Europe’s EGNOS system provides safety services to aviation. Photo: Thales

Thales Alenia Space has won a new contract worth 51 million euros ($55.1 million) with the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) to extend the operational life of the European Satellite-Based Augmentation System (EGNOS).

The EGNOS system enhances the accuracy, reliability and integrity of positioning signals by improving the performance of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), such as GPS and, in the future, Galileo. The Life Extension Phase 1 contract will make sure that EGNOS V2 continues to provide navigation services for Europe’s aviation, maritime, land transport, mapping and agricultural sectors beyond 2028. Thales Alenia Space announced the contract win on April 2.

As part of this contract, Thales Alenia Space will address EGNOS V2 critical system upgrades and infrastructure improvements, reinforcing the system’s resilience and operational durability. These updates will focus on enhancing security measures, modernizing components, and ensuring the ongoing reliability of EGNOS’s ‘Safety of Life’ service, which plays a key role in aviation, enabling accurate approaches at European airports without requiring ground guidance systems.

EGNOS has been operational since 2011 and is credited with improving operational safety and efficiency in European aviation.

“EGNOS is a key asset for Europe, ensuring safer and more efficient transport across multiple sectors. This contract will secure the extension of the system in operations, making the service more robust to support a growing number of users and strengthening the European Union’s satellite navigation capabilities,” said Rodrigo da Costa, executive director of EUSPA, said in a statement.