Kleos Space Finalises Launch Preparations in Chennai, India

Kleos Space S.A., a Luxembourg-based space-powered Radio Frequency Reconnaissance (RF) data-as-a-service company, has announced that its mission team will be travelling to Chennai in India next week to finalise preparations for the launch of Scouting Mission satellites on PSLV C49.

Kleos Space has confirmed that it is awaiting the public announcement of the upcoming launch date by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the launch provider. The Kleos team will start travelling to the launch site at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Chennai on 18 March to carry out final preparations over a period of approximately six days prior to handing Kleos’ nanosatellites over to New Space India (NSIL) for integration with the launch vehicle. The preparation activities include carrying out spacecraft checkout, battery charging, fuelling, setting the final spacecraft flight configuration and overseeing the dispenser integration.

Kleos’ Scouting Mission satellites will launch from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre aboard PSLV C49, a rideshare mission conducted by the ISRO and featuring satellites from other organisations including Spire Global.

Kleos’ satellites will launch into a 37-degree inclination orbit, providing unprecedented situational awareness over crucial shipping regions including the Strait of Hormuz, South China Sea and East and West African coasts. Kleos’ Scouting Mission satellites will detect and geolocate maritime radio frequency transmissions to provide global activity-based intelligence irrespective of the presence of positioning systems, in spite of unclear imagery and if targets are out of patrol range. These initial satellites form the foundation of a larger constellation that will deliver near real-time intelligence over key regions of maritime interest.

Andy Bowyer, CEO of Kleos Space, commented: “The launch of our Scouting Mission satellites from Chennai is imminent. Our combined team is undertaking final preparations for our satellites to be integrated with the PSLV launch vehicle. Following launch, spacecraft operation engineers will guide the satellites from launch vehicle separation until they are established in their final orbit. This is an important milestone for Kleos as it will enable us to commence data delivery and revenue generation from early adopter contracts”.

Andy Bowyer continued: “We are seeing increasing demand for our global maritime geolocation intelligence data, which will enhance the ISR capabilities of governments and commercial entities. Our independent intelligence will complement existing datasets to enable the detection of hidden maritime activity such as drug and people smuggling, piracy, pollution and illegal fishing”.