Startical Partners With NanoAvionics For Pioneering Space-Based Air Traffic Management Tests

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Startical Partners with NanoAvionics for Pioneering Space-Based Air Traffic Management Tests

by Clarence Oxford

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Mar 19, 2024

In a significant advancement for global air traffic management, Startical, established through a partnership between ENAIRE, Europe’s fourth-largest air navigation service provider, and Indra, a global leader in air traffic systems, has announced a collaboration with NanoAvionics. This partnership aims to test Startical’s innovative technology using a satellite constructed by NanoAvionics, marking a critical step towards developing the first constellation of over 270 satellites for space-based air traffic services.

The collaboration will utilize NanoAvionics’s MP42 microsatellite bus for a six-month test period to evaluate the efficiency of VHF radio communication and ADS-B surveillance systems from space. Scheduled to become operational in 2025, this mission signifies a leap forward in utilizing space technologies for enhancing air traffic management (ATM) capabilities.

NanoAvionics is entrusted with supplying the satellite bus, integrating the necessary payload, and managing the launch and initial mission operations. This initiative will allow Startical’s specialists to oversee the satellite’s ATM systems directly.

The International Telecommunication Union’s recent approval for the use of the aeronautical communications band from space solidifies the project’s foundation, setting a historic precedent for the aviation industry. J. Enrique Gonzalez Laguna, CEO of Startical, emphasized the company’s ambition to lead in satellite surveillance and air traffic management technology, highlighting the strategic role of artificial intelligence and satellite interconnectivity in revolutionizing ATM systems.

NanoAvionics’s CEO, Zilvinas Kvedaravicius, expressed enthusiasm about the partnership, underscoring the synergy between NanoAvionics’s satellite technology expertise and Startical’s visionary approach to air traffic management. The collaboration is poised to demonstrate the small satellite platform’s reliability and contribute to the next development phase of space-based aviation services.

This public-private venture between ENAIRE and Indra, known as Startical, aims to deploy a low-altitude small satellite constellation to improve global air traffic management services. Distinguished by its integration of ADS-B surveillance and VHF radio communications, Startical’s initiative promises enhanced safety, efficiency, and reliability for air travel, offering substantial benefits to airlines and passengers worldwide.