EU advances IRIS satellite program to cut reliance on US Starlink
The European Union is developing the IRIS satellite constellation, a 348-satellite network slated for its first launches in 2029 to provide secure communications for governments and critical services.
The European Union is moving ahead with IRIS, a satellite communications system designed to reduce reliance on the US-based Starlink network. The constellation will comprise 348 satellites—330 in low Earth orbit and 18 in medium orbit—intended to offer secure, resilient links for governmental, defence, emergency and corporate users. Germany, through OHB, will construct the medium-orbit satellites, while Belgium’s Aerospacelab has secured a contract to produce a substantial portion of the low-orbit fleet.
Initial launches are scheduled for 2029, with full operational capability expected by 2030. The push for an EU-controlled network was intensified after Ukrainian troops reported intermittent Starlink outages at high speeds, highlighting strategic vulnerabilities. The EU estimates the expanded capacity will raise secure communication availability for government users by 60% within the bloc and 54% worldwide.
Why it matters
A home-grown EU satellite network would lessen strategic dependence on foreign communications infrastructure.
How this story developed
- Oct 8 Ukrainian drone strike ignites fire at Yandex data centre in Ryazan
- Oct 8 Yandex Cloud confirmed power‑supply issues and issued a customer advisory following the incident.
- Oct 9 A drone strike in Kaluga disabled several data centre modules.
- Oct 11 Yandex’s Vladimir data centre was shut down after a drone strike.
- Oct 12 The Digital Development Ministry said it is devising protective solutions for critical infrastructure after the series of drone attacks.
- Oct 14 SpaceX has imposed a speed-based limit on its Starlink service in Ukraine, causing interruptions to combat drone missions that rely on the network.
- Oct 14 SpaceX introduced a speed‑based limitation on Starlink terminals when they are moving.
- Oct 14 A viral screenshot showing a sharp fall in Yandex bot traffic prompted experts to explain that the decline was due to routine web‑crawler requests, not a coordinated silencing of bots.
- Oct 15 Speed limit was partially removed, allowing terminals to operate at speeds up to 160 km/h.
- Oct 15 Starshield service restored to normal operation after earlier speed caps.
- Oct 15 Ukrainian defence units say Starshield terminals used for high-speed movement are back online and their performance is gradually improving.
- Oct 15 Ukrainian defence sources said communications were restored but did not confirm that all terminals are fully operational.
- Oct 16 US-imposed speed limits on Starshield reduced bandwidth for Ukrainian frontline units.
- Oct 17 Starlink service was restored following talks between the UK and US defence secretaries.
In this story
Related stories
17 in this thread