Overview
- The Rheinmetall ICEYE Space Solutions joint venture will build, own and operate the low Earth orbit constellation while providing ground infrastructure and AI-enabled image evaluation.
- The contract runs from the end of 2025 through 2030 with options to extend, and satellite production is slated to start in the third quarter of 2026 in Neuss.
- The program, called SAR Space System for Persistent Operational Tracking Stage 1 (SPOCK 1), gives the Bundeswehr exclusive access to a high volume of SAR imagery.
- Berlin selected the system to bolster surveillance for the permanently deployed Lithuania Brigade and to monitor NATO’s eastern flank.
- Public releases leave data-sharing arrangements unresolved, including whether France will receive SPOCK 1 data as it does under the SAR-Lupe exchange.