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Alcatel delivers the European satellite navigation system EGNOS to the European Space Agency (ESA)

21 June 2005

Alcatel Space, a subsidiary of Alcatel (Paris: CGEP.PA and NYSE: ALA), achieved a key step for satellite navigation in Europe with the successful acceptance of the EGNOS system. This review marks the completion of the system's technical qualification, which represents more than 8 years of intensive work from a consortium of more than 40 companies lead by Alcatel Space.

This review marks an important step in the European satellite navigation domain. The review, called Operational Readiness Review (ORR), will enable in the near future "non safety of life" applications via a contract with the European Satellite Service Provider (ESSP). It is also the first step for the Galileo " early applications ".

Launched in 1998 by the European Space Agency, the European Commission and Eurocontrol - the European organization for air navigation safety, EGNOS (European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service) is the first stage in Europe's contribution to GNSS - Global Navigation Satellite System and paving the way for the Galileo system.

EGNOS complements the American GPS and Russian Glonass system, allowing demanding applications such as air navigation to use these services with complete safety. By providing continuous monitoring of GPS and Glonass performance, and warning users of any degradation in quality, EGNOS delivers the integrity information needed for critical applications. Furthermore, it significantly improves positioning accuracy and guarantees service continuity. EGNOS is now officially an integral part of Galileo.

For its coverage of Europe, EGNOS relies on three geostationary satellites and a network of ground equipment at 43 sites in 22 countries. Thirty-four receiving stations monitor the GPS and Glonass constellations, along with the Egnos geostationary satellites. Four mission control centers calculate the EGNOS message and control the system, while six other stations send the signal to the geostationary satellites. Two support centers round out the system, with the PACF (Performance Assessment and Check-out Facility), inaugurated in March 2005 at the Toulouse Space Centre providing operational support. In 2007, after the certification process, EGNOS safety-of-life services will be declared available.

In addition to its strong involvement in EGNOS, Alcatel is a major partner in Europe's Galileo satellite navigation system: one of the founding member of Galileo Industries, in charge of the ground segment, a founding member of the Eurely consortium competing for the Galileo concession, responsible for the Galileo demonstrator now being integrated in our clean rooms, and in charge of the production of major subsystems to be used on the 30 satellites in the constellation.