Inmarsat, has announced today that SWISSto12, the European aerospace provider, will develop its new eighth-generation of spacecraft. The three I-8 satellites will provide additional network resilience and deliver safety services.
Such precise tracking could enable pinpoint safety navigation on aircraft, help emergency services reach vessels in distress more quickly, or allow a raft of industrial innovations, like device tracking in agriculture or advanced, automated transport management systems.
The three l-8 satellites will complement the existing constellation and Inmarsat’s two I-6 generation satellites, which were launched in 2021 and 2023.
In March 2023, Inmarsat announced testing with ground stations in Australia had been completed and declared a success. Allowing them to start to provide Ka-band services for the fast-growing Asia Pacific region.
Peter Hadinger, chief technology officer at Inmarsat, said “Every single day people around the world depend on Inmarsat services. Our customers have demanding, and often safety critical, missions that rely on our satellite technology for links that can make the difference. The I-8’s will not only underpin our existing capabilities for the future; but enable ever more advanced safety innovations like SBAS that can ultimately help save more lives. We have chosen SWISSto12 because they have the ground-breaking technology that can make it a reality.”
Emile de Rijk, CEO at SWISSto12, said “We are delighted that Inmarsat has selected SWISSto12 as its partner for its landmark l-8 program. It demonstrates that, with HummingSat, we have created a highly-advanced new class of small geostationary spacecraft that delivers world-leading connectivity capabilities at a fraction of the cost. Our proprietary 3D-printing of Radio Frequency payload technology allows us to push the limits of existing capability and service new and existing business cases for geostationary satellite communications. This is an important step in our journey to better connect and protect every corner of the world.”
We reported earlier this year that Viasat had received clearance to acquire Inmarsat. Click here to read more.
