[Satellite TODAY 09-15-10] Astrium Services has signed a ten-year partnership with Russian remote sensing company and development center ScanEx for reception and distribution rights on the upcoming Spot 6 and 7 satellites, Astrium announced Sept. 14.
    The deal makes ScanEx the exclusive regional partner throughout the Russian Federation for the Spot 4, 5, 6 and 7 satellites, guaranteeing continued access to high-resolution optical data until 2019.
    The partnership, which also provides ScanEx the exclusive reception and distribution rights on the Spot 5 satellite, is part of a long-term cooperation program between Astrium and Russian industries, which began with distribution rights for imagery from the Spot 2 and 4 satellites. This was followed in 2008 when ScanEx was granted reception and distribution rights for the Spot 5 and Formosat-2 satellites over the Russian Federation and Belarus.
     Spot satellite data is used in Russia for mapping, forestry and disaster management. In summer 2010, images from Spot 4 and 5 were used for burnt areas assessment after the fire season in Russia. Spot 6 and 7, which are being built by EADS Astrium, will be launched in 2012 and 2013, respectively.
    “We officially announced the funding for the Spot 6 and 7 program in June 2009. This is the first time in the remote-sensing industry that satellites have been developed through entirely private funding. This partnership will ensure that ScanEx has secure, long-term access to high-resolution data.  This important contract, signed two years before the launch of Spot 6 is a strong signal of confidence in our long term strategy,” Astrium CEO Eric Béranger said in a statement.
    Previous Spot satellites had been funded by CNES (the French Space Agency) before Astrium acquired Spot Image in 2008. This purchase aims to strengthen Astrium Services’ presence in the Earth observation value chain — satellites, spaceborne and airborne data, ground segment, application solutions, and information management and distribution.

Astrium Partners With SpaceX To Market Falcon 1e in Europe   Satellite Today   September 10, 2010
[Satellite TODAY 09-10-10] Astrium and SpaceX have entered into an agreement to provide cooperative launch services to the European very small satellite market by marketing SpaceX s Falcon 1e launch capabilities to space agencies and other…

Astrium Leases Hylas 1 Capacity to Test Military Ka-Band Services   Satellite Today   September 9, 2010
[Satellite TODAY 09-09-10] Astrium Services has entered into an agreement with Avanti Communications to use Ka-band transponder capacity on the upcoming Hylas 1 satellite to test future military and government services, Astrium announced Sept. 8. …

Astrium Outlines Initial Market Strategy for AirPatrol Terminal    Satellite News   July 27, 2010
[Satellite News 07-27-10] Astrium has high hopes for its new AirPatrol airborne terminal, which it launched at the Farnborough Airshow last week, Aidan Joy, managing director of secure satcom systems at Astrium told Satellite News.