Airbus will launch its first Pléiades Neo Next satellite early 2028 from the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. The satellite will be launched on an Avio’s Vega C rocket. With the Pléiades Neo Next programme, Airbus says it is reinforcing its Earth Observation capabilities and services “to remain at the forefront of geospatial technologies”. […]

Airbus Defence & Space wants to consolidate its separate Airbus Constellations Satellites business. A French union (Union Nationale des Syndicats Autonomes (UNSA)) has described the move as industrial, economic and social nonsense. The Constellations business is the former Airbus OneWeb Satellite business formed as a joint venture in January 2016 between Airbus and Eutelsat OneWeb […]

Airbus UpNext, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Airbus, has launched a new demonstrator called Airbus UpNext SpaceRAN (Space Radio Access Network). Its mission is to enable standardised global connectivity by exploring advanced 5G Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) capabilities. This demonstrator aims to explore the 5G NTN, a versatile connectivity technology compatible with all types of business applications. […]

Eutelsat has awarded Airbus Defence and Space a contract to build a further 340 OneWeb low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites. Together with the previous batch of 100 satellites ordered in December 2024, the total number of satellites ordered is up to 440. The satellites will be manufactured at Airbus Defence and Space’s Toulouse facility on […]

Airbus and Spacesail, a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellation operator, have announced a strategic partnership to integrate Spacesail’s advanced LEO connectivity into Airbus’s HBCplus inflight solution. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signed at the 2025 Satellite Internet Industry Ecosystem Conference, aims at allowing Airbus’s High Bandwidth Connectivity Plus (HBCplus) customers to access an additional […]

Airbus, Leonardo and Thales have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to create a leading European player in space. This new giant organisation was much expected by the industry and brings together Europe’s three largest space-related businesses. A statement from the trio said: “[This] new European space player aims to unite and enhance capabilities by combining […]

Aerial communications specialist Aalto, which is owned by Airbus, says its HAPS (High Altitude Platform Station) is close to flying the technology, having completed long-term tests with its Zephyr high-flying lightweight aircraft. Aalto is not alone in pushing the technology. US-based (in New Mexico) Sceye is also backing HAPS which it describes as a balloon-based […]

Airbus Defence and Space says it is implementing a new organisation structure to shape the company’s future competitiveness, with over 2,000 jobs to go. The new organisation came into effect on July 1st. The Division has completed all information and consultation processes on European as well as national levels for its adaptation plan and has […]

Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury has expressed optimism that current discussions with Thales and Leonardo would end in an agreement for the three businesses’ space divisions. He said he anticipated regulatory approval will take two years. Faury was speaking at a conference session at the Paris Air Show. He specifically addressed the proposed merger, saying the […]

Middle East airline Etihad has showcased is new passenger layout on its Airbus A321LR fleet, enthusiastically described by the airline as being “beautiful” and noting that Viasat will provide “superfast, streaming Wi-Fi” and live television throughout the cabin on these new aircraft, so passengers can stay entertained and productive during their flights. Abu Dhabi-based Etihad […]