France Awards €1.5B-Plus IRIS Military Satellite Contract to Airbus and Thales
France has awarded Airbus Defence and Space and Thales Alenia Space a contract worth more than €1.5 billion for two IRIS Earth-observation satellites, replacing its current CSO system. The award is placed, but ground-segment, payload, operations, maintenance, supplier, and international-cooperation pathways may create follow-on opportunities.