Spirent, Saab land Galileo deals

GPS World, May, 2006

Spirent of Paignton, United Kingdom, has been selected by Alcatel Alenia Space and Thales, overseeing Galileo's Ground Mission Segment (GMS) and Test User Segment (TUS) elements, respectively, to provide Radio Frequency Constellation Simulators (RFCS) for the development and in-orbit validation phases of the Galileo project. Spirent's RF Constellation Simulators will test performance of the receivers used in the GMS stations which control the satellite constellation, and the TUS which forms the basis for future Galileo user receivers. The RFCS will also conduct testing in adversarial and error conditions to improve the resilience of the Galileo system

Saab Contract Saab Ericsson Space in Gothenburg, Sweden, and Austrian Aerospace in Vienna, Austria, will provide several pieces of key onboard equipment for the first four satellites in Galileo's in-orbit validation phase. The contract was awarded by system industrial prime Galileo Industries, owned by EADS Astrium, Alcatel Alenia Space, Thales, and Galileo Sistemas y Servicios.

Saab Ericsson Space Group received a [euro]30 million contract for the computer system that controls and commands the satellite functions (Integrated Command and Data Unit, ICDU); the Navigation Signal Generation Unit (NSGU) generating the complex digital navigation signals (system-critical, to come from two independent suppliers); the digital baseband processor for the Mission Receiver (MIS-REC) used for the mission data reception from ground, for the integrity function; computers of the security units, used for encryption/decryption of communication links with ground to deny unauthorized access; and the mission receiver antenna at C-band, the S-band transmit/receive antenna for command and control, and other satellite-handling devices.