Cannes, December 12, 2016 - Thales Alenia Space, the joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo-Finmeccanica (33%), announced that its satellite platform ELiTeBUS™1000 has been accepted by the Rapid Spacecraft Development Office (RSDO) in the prestigious Rapid III Catalog managed by Goddard Space Flight Center. With this award Thales Alenia Space confirms once again its strategic presence as trusted European satellite manufacturer in the US catalog, which already includes the PRIMA platform.

Designed and developed in France, ELiTeBUS™1000 has been built on the flight heritage of the PROTEUS platform that served various radar, altimetry, optical & astronomy missions, including CNES-ESA and NASA missions JASON 1/2/3, CALIPSO, SMOS, and COROT. It benefits from the merging of Proteus concepts, with successful design evolutions optimized for performance and manufacturing, allowing carrying of up to 12 satellites under the fairing of heavy launchers and demonstrated on Globalstar 1 & 2, O3B, and Iridium NEXT.

ELiTeBUS™1000 is suitable for Low and Medium Earth Orbit missions with payload capability up to 350 kg, maximum power of 1,5 KW, and life time up to 12 years. The propulsion system relies on 9 catalyst thrusters providing 1 Newton thrust each, and a 164 Kg hydrazine tank. Its state of the art avionic architecture is built around the processor LEON 3 for fast data processing. ELiTeBUS™1000 is compatible with Falcon 9, Atlas 5, Soyuz, and Vega.

Thanks to this award, Thales Alenia Space increases its opportunities to bid in the US Institutional market on future Request for Offers for standard services in the Rapid III contract, and enhances its visibility in the commercial market as reliable partner with highest quality standards.

© Thales Alenia Space/Master Image Programmes

About RSDO
The Rapid Spacecraft Development Office is responsible for the management and direction of a dynamic and versatile program directing the definition, competition, and acquisition of multiple fixed-price Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracts. These contracts offer NASA and other Federal Government Agencies fast and flexible procurement of spacecraft and spacecraft component for future missions. Standard services in the Rapid III contract include: spacecraft build and test, integration and test of the payloads, delivery to the launch site, support of launch site operations, support of early orbit operations, and on-orbit check out and acceptance.

About Thales Alenia Space
Thales Alenia Space brings over 40 years of experience to the design, integration, testing and operation of innovative space systems for telecommunications, navigation, Earth observation, environmental management, exploration, science and orbital infrastructures. A joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo-Finmeccanica (33%), Thales Alenia Space also teams up with Telespazio to form the parent companies’ “Space Alliance”, which offers a complete range of services and solutions. Thales Alenia Space has built up unrivaled expertise in dual (civil-military) missions, constellations, flexible high-throughput payloads, altimetry, meteorology, and high-resolution radar and optical observation, as well as space exploration. The company capitalizes on its strong legacy, while also making innovation a key to its strategy. By offering a continuous stream of new products and expanding its global footprint, Thales Alenia Space has established its leadership in today’s fast-evolving space sector. Thales Alenia Space posted consolidated revenues exceeding 2.1 billion euros in 2015 and has 7,500 employees in nine countries. www.thalesaleniaspace.com

Thales Alenia Space Press Contacts:

Sandrine Bielecki
Tel: +33 (0)4 92 92 70 94
sandrine.bielecki@thalesaleniaspace.com

Chrystelle Dugimont
Tel: +33 (0)4 92 92 74 06
chrystelle.dugimont@thalesaleniaspace.com