Airbus Group‘s defense and space business unit will invest approximately $48.2 million to build an integrated technology center in support of efforts to “future-proof” its Friedrichshafen site in Germany. Airbus said Thursday the center works to expand Hall 6 that currently serves as a satellite integration facility. “The investment in the new ITC building makes the site a global ‘center […] More

Airbus‘ defense and space subsidiary has received the approval of the European Aviation Safety Agency for the design and development of potential civil-certified unmanned aircraft systems. The Design Organization Approval for UAS expands the company’s existing DOA for conventional manned aircraft in support of efforts to achieve civil type certification for Airbus DS aerial drones, the company said Thursday. “Establishing […] More

Airbus‘ defense and space segment has unveiled plans to build and launch four optical satellites in an effort to deliver high-resolution imagery of Earth to customers in 2020 and beyond. The company said Thursday the constellation will be designed to perform intraday revisits to any point on Earth, support satellite tasking reactivity and capture millions of square kilometers of images per day. The satellites […] More

Hughes Network Systems has expanded a partnership with Airbus‘ defense and space segment in efforts to address military customers’ tactical communications requirements. Airbus DS will distribute all models of Hughes’ satellite networking technology HM System while latter company will market the former’s Skynet military satcom services to U.S. government customers as part of the agreement, Hughes said Tuesday. HM System […] More

Airbus Group plans to develop an autonomous flying vehicle platform concept to fly over traffic jams in an effort to relieve urban congestion and address traffic concerns that resulted from urbanization in “megacities.” The aerospace conglomerate said in a report its A3 outpost has pursued an individual passenger and cargo transport autonomous flying vehicle platform project coined Vahana that has scheduled first vehicle […] More

A subsidiary of Airbus‘ defense and space business will supply the VESTA 9-1-1 call handling service to 11 of 22 public safety answering points in North Dakota under a collective contract through the state’s information technology department. The company said Wednesday Airbus DS Communications will provide the VESTA 9-1-1 system as part of the PSAPs’ effort to deploy a geodiverse regional system […] More

A business unit within Airbus‘ defense and space business has partnered with RMG Networks to integrate the latter’s visual contact center technology with Airbus DS Communications‘ VESTA 9-1-1 public safety call handling system. RMG Networks said Monday its visual contact center is designed to provide real-time data displays on key performance indicators and other critical details to support response efficiency at contact centers. The integrated […] More

A business unit within Airbus Group‘s defense and space segment has unveiled a new public safety communications system that works to combine equipment, software and services in efforts to help federal agencies transition to Next Generation 9-1-1. The company said Monday Airbus DS Communications‘ VESTA NEXT portfolio offering includes IP call handling, call routing, ESInet and GIS functions as […] More

An Airbus Group voice encryption technology has been added to the Defense Information Systems Agency‘s list of approved products for deployment on Defense Department-run networks. Airbus said Thursday its ECTOCRYP Black device with R1.2.3 software offers voice communications security options not previously seen in legacy Secure Communications Interoperability Protocol systems. The platform is built with a common commercial-off-the-shelf hardware architecture that operators can program to accommodate new features […] More

John Kefaliotis, formerly Exelis vice president of international strategy and business development, has been appointed as president of Airbus Group‘s air traffic management subsidiary. Airbus said Monday Kefaliotis provides more than 40 years of air traffic management experience in operational air traffic control, government services and systems contracting to support Metron Aviation‘s mission. “With air traffic doubling […] More

Airbus Group has received a contract from Germany’s defense procurement agency to operate Israel Aerospace Industries-built Heron 1 unmanned aerial systems in support of German forces’ missions in Mali. Airbus’ defense and space business will begin UAS operations in Mali in November through February 2018, Airbus said Thursday. Thomas Reinartz, head of sales for unmanned […] More

Airbus‘ defense and space business will continue to provide WelComE welfare communication services to the U.K. military through August 2022 under an estimated $20.3 million contract renewal from the U.K. ministry of defense. The company said Thursday the WelComE services work to supply welfare communications across various operational environments, including satellite phones, Wi-Fi services and video calling. Airbus Defense and Space […] More