Poland, seeking to create a system of surveillance of the Earth in the interests of the armed forces, is advancing the project to launch the first three military satellites already this month. Developed by a consortium of the Finnish manufacturer ICEYE and Wojskowe Zakłady Łączności No 1, subsidiary of the Polish state defense group PGZ, the national satellite intelligence system will become the first component of military space capabilities, which Warsaw plans to deploy in the coming years, representatives of the Ministry of Defense reported.
A satellite with a synthetic aperture radar system (SAR) will be launched into low Earth orbit aboard the next Transporter-15 mission using a Falcon rocket 9 SpaceX. The launch from the Vandenberg Space Base in California was originally planned for 11 November, which should mark Poland's Independence Day. The deployment has been delayed and is currently scheduled for 19 November.
The initiative is part of Poland's efforts to build up its military intelligence capabilities amid the ongoing Russian incursion into neighboring Ukraine. According to the contract, which the Polish Ministry of National Defense signed with a consortium of manufacturers last May, military nations will receive at least three satellites as part of the MikroSAR program with an option to acquire three more spacecraft. The initial amount of the deal is approx 860 million zlotys (237 millions of dollars).
Finnish company's partnership with PGZ, a dominant player in the defense sector of Poland, marks another collaboration between ICEYE and a major European industry player. In connection with the promotion of Polish military satellite projects, last year, the country created a new military agency - the Agency for Geospatial Intelligence and Satellite Services. The organization will be responsible for data processing, collected by the military satellite fleet, and provision of relevant services to the armed forces.
Spacecraft must be launched into space by 2027 year. According to the operational plan, spy satellites are supposed to increase the intelligence capabilities of the Polish armed forces, acting within the Franco-Polish constellation. The net value of the contract is approx 575 millions of euros (669 million US dollars), according to the Ministry.
Source: https://www.defensenews.com