Airbus’ fully reconfigurable, high-capacity OneSat satellite takes major step forward

Support from ESA, UKSA and CNES stimulates innovation in European industry, enhancing space solutions

Commercial success of Airbus telecom satellite products OneSat and Eurostar Neo, help preserve European sovereignty, competitiveness and jobs

Toulouse, 21 April 2021 – Airbus has passed an important milestone for the OneSat flexible satellite product line, with the Final Design Review successfully achieved with customers and space agencies.

The fully reconfigurable OneSat product line features major innovations and disruptive technologies including the latest digital processing and active antennas enabling several thousand beams. In addition, to meet the demanding schedule for OneSat development, Airbus is applying agile new ways of working with its industrial partners, customers and space agencies.

François Gaullier, Head of Airbus Telecom Systems, said: “The worldwide commercial success of Airbus’ telecom satellite products OneSat and Eurostar Neo, proves our investment strategy focusing on new technology and innovation is spot on. This was largely made possible thanks to key support from space agencies, which further reinforces European industrial competitiveness and jobs, preserving Europe’s sovereignty in space. These investments gave us the impetus to innovate and offer pioneering technological and industrial solutions to our customers. Thanks to our intuitive reading of the market, the right technological choices and a disruptive supply chain approach, we see Eurostar Neo and OneSat as key pillars in the current and future geostationary telecoms market.”

Elodie Viau, Director of Telecommunications and Integrated Applications at ESA, added:
“I am proud that ESA is associated, through the OneSat Partnership Project, with the development of this innovative software defined satellite product line. Such partnership projects allow Industry to engage in ambitious and challenging endeavours to accompany the transformation of the satcom market, to strengthen European leadership, and ultimately to ensure our citizens are better connected.”

Airbus is currently manufacturing seven OneSats for its customers as well as eight state-of-the-art Eurostar Neo telecommunications satellites. Development of both programmes is supported by ESA, as well as the French Space Agency (CNES), and the UK Space Agency.