A crucial step toward the development of the Galileo Public Regulated Service (PRS) military user segment took place Monday, Feb. 8, with the kick-off meeting in Brussels of the GEODE (GalilEO for EU DEfence) project, according to a press release from FDC.

GEODE is the biggest Galileo application development project ever launched.

Sponsored by Belgium, Germany, Italy, France and Spain — contributions should exceed 82.7 million euros — GEODE is supported by the EU with a grant of about 44 million euros. The ambitious defence-cooperation project is under the umbrella of the European Defence Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP) of the European Commission.

GEODE will establish the framework for developing the Galileo PRS user segment for defense applications. At kick-off, the project involved 30 companies and organizations from 14 EU Member States: Belgium, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Romania.

The GEODE Roadmap

National defense organizations — in close cooperation with industry — have defined a roadmap for the Galileo PRS military user segment development, beginning with a specification and standardization phase. GEODE will prototype, test and qualify

• seven PRS security modules developed from various technologies
• nine PRS receivers (including two server-based variants)
• four GPS/Galileo PRS-compatible anti-jamming controlled radiation pattern antennas (CRPA).

A common and standardized test environment will be developed as well as a PRS infrastructure to ensure the availability of the security assets for operational testing.

Finally, military operational field testing will be organized on military platforms (naval, land and drones) and timing and synchronization systems in (at least) Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece and Romania.

A PRS solution for spacecraft will also be designed and prototyped.

Beyond paving the way for the equipment of EU Member States defense forces with Galileo PRS, the military user segment that is developed, tested and certified under GEODE is planned to be available for export to other countries that have the necessary PRS security agreements with the EU.

The GEODE project will be completed in 2026.

Plans are for GEODE to

• boost EU competitiveness in the highly strategic domain of military positioning, timing and synchronization.
• foster the equipment of EU Member States’ military forces with Galileo PRS capability, essential to reinforce their interoperability and autonomy.
• facilitate access to complex security-certified technologies and make them affordable through means of standardization and by creating the necessary critical mass.

In brief, the project will bolster EU Member States’ military capability, create business opportunities for the EU industry in the field of military application of satellite navigation, and maximize the benefits of the Galileo programme by energizing the adoption of its PRS service in all EU Member States and beyond.

Background on GEODE

This project has received funding from the European Defence Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP) under grant agreement No 039.

The GEODE industrial consortium is led by FDC and comprises the major industry players of the field: Airbus Defence and Space, Antwerp Space, Cy4gate, Diehl Defence, Elettronica, Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS, GMV Aerospace and Defense, Indra Sistemas, Safran Electronics and Defense, Leonardo, Siemens Aktiengesellshaft, Orolia, Tecnobit, Telespazio, Thales Alenia Space Italia, Thales AVS France, Thales SIX GTS France, accompanied with 12 other EU companies acting as subcontractors (c.f. picture hereafter).

The GEODE project is developed in the context of the European Radio-navigation Solution (EURAS) project of the Permanent Structure Cooperation (PESCO). The EURAS project aims at promoting the development of EU military positioning, navigation and timing) capabilities and future cooperation taking advantage of Galileo and the PRS.

Feature photo: U.S. Army