The French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA) has awarded Airbus Defence and Space and Thales Alenia Space a contract to develop a new generation of military Earth observation satellites under the IRIS programme. The contract is valued at more than €1.5 billion and aims to ensure the long-term capability of the French Armed Forces to gather intelligence from space.

The contract covers the detailed design, manufacturing and testing of two extremely high-resolution satellites, the development of ground systems for satellite control and data processing, as well as in-orbit operations and maintenance. The programme is expected to continue until the end of the 2030s, ensuring France’s long-term access to strategically important satellite capabilities.

The IRIS satellites will replace the existing CSO (Composante Spatiale Optique) satellites, developed as part of the multinational MUSIS (Multinational Space-based Imaging System) programme. The new generation of satellites will significantly improve image quality while reducing the time required to process and deliver imagery to end users. This will enable the French Armed Forces to access intelligence information more quickly, which is particularly important in modern military operations and security environments that require timely decision-making.

The IRIS system will be capable of imaging any point on the Earth’s surface, both day and night, using the visible and infrared portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Thanks to their extremely high resolution, the satellites will support strategic reconnaissance, the monitoring of potential threats and military operations. In addition to Earth observation, the system will be capable of imaging objects in space, contributing to space surveillance and the identification of potential threats to satellite infrastructure.

Under the division of responsibilities within the consortium, Airbus Defence and Space will serve as the prime contractor, responsible for the development and production of both satellite platforms, a significant portion of the first satellite’s payload and the ground segment. Thales Alenia Space will develop a next-generation optical payload for the second satellite, supply critical components for the first and contribute to the development of the ground infrastructure.

Alain Fauré, Head of Space Systems at Airbus Defence and Space, emphasised that the IRIS programme represents an important contribution to French sovereignty and strategic autonomy. According to Fauré, the project will further strengthen France’s industrial supply chain in the field of space-based optical imaging systems.

Developing its own satellite-based intelligence capabilities enables France to independently monitor security developments, assess situations and make strategic decisions without relying exclusively on information provided by other countries. The programme also represents a continuation of European efforts to strengthen defence and space capabilities at a time when space infrastructure is becoming increasingly important from a strategic perspective.

Like its predecessor, the MUSIS programme, which involves eight European partners, IRIS will remain open to international cooperation. Allied nations will therefore be able to access the French satellite system, creating further opportunities to strengthen European defence cooperation and intelligence sharing.