Hisdesat Taps Airbus and Thales Alenia Space for SpainSat NG III After Orbital Debris Loss

Spanish satellite operator Hisdesat has awarded a formal industrial contract to Airbus and Thales Alenia Space to build the SpainSat NG III military communications satellite, moving quickly to replace a predecessor lost to a space debris strike during launch. The contract, signed under the Spanish government-backed GOVSATCOM initiative, will deliver a secure communications platform for the Spanish Armed Forces and NATO allies.

The new satellite follows the 6,100kg Airbus-built SpainSat NG II, which was declared "non-recoverable" after being struck by a "space particle" at an altitude of approximately 50,000km during its orbit-raising phase. The loss of NG II underscored the growing threat of orbital debris to high-value government assets and accelerated the need for a rapid replacement.

Airbus will serve as prime contractor, responsible for the design, integration, and testing of the satellite at its facilities, with its Spanish sites developing the X-band payload. Thales Alenia Space, a joint venture between Thales and Leonardo, will supply the ultra-high frequency (UHF) and military Ka-band payloads from its Tes Cantos factory in Spain. The satellite is slated for launch in the third quarter of 2030, following a 48-month development timeline, with operations expected to begin in early 2031 alongside the SpainSat NG I spacecraft.

"In today's complex geopolitical landscape, SpainSat NG-III reinforces Spanish and European strategic autonomy by securing mission-critical communications for Spain, NATO, and our allied forces," said Alain Fauré, head of space systems at Airbus Defence and Space, in a statement.

The SpainSat NG program has received approximately €2 billion ($2.34bn) in Spanish government funding for construction, launch, and operations, with an expected operational lifespan of 15 years. It remains unclear how much of that investment was tied to the total loss of NG II or whether any recovery has been made through insurance claims.

The third satellite in the series will be the most advanced of the fleet, featuring expanded bandwidth, enhanced jamming and electronic warfare protection, and X-band antennas capable of reconfiguring coverage up to 1,000 times per second. That capability is designed to enable rapid detection of electronic warfare attempts and spoofing threats, a critical requirement for modern military communications.

The contract also arrives as Airbus, Leonardo, and Thales move forward with plans to create a joint European space company, following a memorandum of understanding signed in October 2025. The proposed entity, expected to become operational in 2027 pending regulatory approvals, aims to consolidate European space capabilities to better compete on the global stage.

In a joint statement issued at the time of the MoU, the CEOs of the three companies — Guillaume Faury of Airbus, Roberto Cingolani of Leonardo, and Patrice Caine of Thales — said: "By pooling our talent, resources, expertise, and R&D capabilities, we aim to generate growth, accelerate innovation, and deliver greater value to our customers and stakeholders. This partnership aligns with the ambitions of European governments to strengthen their industrial and technological assets, ensuring Europe's autonomy across the strategic space domain and its many applications."

Industry analysts view the SpainSat NG III award as a signal of sustained European investment in sovereign satellite communications, particularly as geopolitical tensions heighten the demand for resilient, secure military connectivity. The program also demonstrates the strategic importance of maintaining domestic industrial capacity for critical space infrastructure.