Eutelsat/Fiat Consortium Backs Away From Galileo Operations

At press time, Satellite Today learned that a consortium consisting of Eutelsat, LogicaCMG, Hispasat, F SpA and Aena decided not to bid on a contract to operate the European Union‘s planned Galileo satellite navigation system that will work in tandem with the U.S. GPS satellite navigation system. According to reports, the consortium backed out because it could not fulfill the strict demands of operating the satellite fleet. This leaves two consortia left to bid on the operation rights: Eurely (Alcatel, Finmeccanica SpA, Vinci, SFR and Capgemini) and iNavSat (European Aeronautic Space and Defense Co NV, Thales, Inmarsat and SES Global).