According to a press release issued on September 14, BAE Systems will buy In-Space Missions. This firm recently secured a contract to create a military satellite for the United Kingdom. BAE Systems has announced that it will purchase In-Space Missions to improve its ability to make small satellites for private and government customers. Either of the parties involved did not disclose the deal’s value.
Ben Hudson, who serves as the chief technology officer of the BAE Systems, stated in a statement that the United Kingdom has the potential to be a worldwide player in the developing low-Earth orbit space industry while also serving its own sovereign commercial and defense interests. In addition, they will be able to bring together a variety of space capabilities that will aid us in providing multi-domain operations, information advantage, and networking for their customers.
On SpaceX Transporter-2 rideshare mission, In-Space Missions launched its first small satellite, Faraday Phoenix, into orbit, marking the company’s debut in space. In July 2020, the company’s maiden Faraday satellite was destroyed during a failed launch attempt by Rocket Lab Electron.
The partnership implies that In-Space Missions will keep its small firm culture while benefiting from the great scale and new opportunities afforded by BAE Systems, according to Doug Liddle, who is the chief executive officer of In-Space Missions. In an interview with SpaceNews, he stated that the company, which has more than 30 workers, will function as a separate business division within the BAE Applied Intelligence, a division of BAE Systems that encompasses other space-related activities, like ground systems and manufacturing, among others.
Titania is a small experimental satellite that In-Space Missions is going to build under a contract with the Ministry of Defence and Defence Science and Technology Laboratory awarded on August 9 for 9.5 million pounds ($13.2 million). Launched in 2023, the satellite will conduct research into space-to-ground laser communication technology.
The British government has indicated that it supports the agreement. According to Science Minister Amanda Solloway, “This acquisition represents a significant show of confidence in our burgeoning space sector.” BAE Systems said that adding on board the experience of In-Space Missions will help extend the United Kingdom’s capabilities in the low Earth orbit satellites, generating important export prospects while maintaining the nation at the forefront of the latest commercial space age.
To help space enterprises flourish, In-Space Missions combines experience and innovation. It creates new space and the ‘newspace’ missions and assists the space sector with consulting and procurement.
Since their inception in 2015, they have worked with or supported more than 40 newspace, academic, traditional space, institutional, financial, and government organizations, leveraging our combined team’s 150 years of experience in the institutional, military and commercial space activities spanning Space Science, Earth Observation, SatComms, Navigation, and Space Exploration.