Arianespace
to
launch
Athena-Fidus
satellite
11
February
20210
Arianespace
has
been
chosen
to
launch
the
French-Italian
Athena-Fidus
dual
use
satellite,
within
the
scope
of a
contract
signed
by
Thales
Alenia
Space
and
Telespazio
and
the
French
and
Italian
space
agencies,
CNES
and
ASI.
The
French-Italian
Athena-Fidus
satellite
will
be
lofted
into
geostationary
transfer
orbit
during
the
second
half
of
2013
by
an
Ariane
5 or
Soyuz
launch
vehicle
operating
from
the
Guiana
Space
Center,
Europe’s
Spaceport
in
French
Guiana.
Athena-Fidus
(Access
on
theaters
for
European
allied
forces
nations-French
Italian
dual
use
satellite)
is a
French-Italian
telecommunications
satellite
that
uses
state-of-the-art
civil
broadband
Internet
technologies.
Funded
jointly
by
French
space
agency
CNES,
French
defense
procurement
agency
DGA,
Italian
space
agency
ASI
and
Italian
Ministry
of
Defense,
Athena-Fidus
will
provide
communications
services
to
both
armed
forces
and
civil
security
agencies
in
France
and
Italy.
It
will
complement
the
capabilities
offered
by
Syracuse
3
and
Sicral
satellites.
Thales
Alenia
Space
will
produce
the
Athena-Fidus
satellite
using
a
Spacebus
4000B2
platform.
The
satellite
will
weigh
about
3,000
kg
at
launch,
and
has
a
design
life
exceeding
15
years.
“Arianespace
is
especially
proud
of
once
again
being
able
to
serve
the
French
and
Italian
Ministries
of
Defense,
CNES
and
the
Italian
space
agency,
just
a
few
weeks
after
the
successful
launch
of
the
Helios
2B
satellite,”
said
Jean-Yves
Le
Gall,
Chairman
and
CEO
of
Arianespace.
“We
are
also
very
pleased
to
bolster
our
strategic
partnership
with
Thales
Alenia
Space
through
this
latest
contract,
which
clearly
shows
the
strategic
nature
of
our
mission,
namely
to
provide
timely
launches
of
satellites
that
support
sovereignty
in
France
and
throughout
Europe.”
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