Contract will Deliver First National Security Satellite to Belgium
Redwire Awarded Prime Contract, Will Work Closely with Aerospace Lab
Belgian Defense has awarded a prime contract to Redwire to build and deliver the country’s first national security satellite.
“MATTEO represents a significant advancement for Belgium’s technological sovereignty and national security.”
Marc Dielissen, Redwire Europe
The mission—known as MATTEO—is commissioned by the Belgian Federal Government and is fully funded by Belgian Defense. MATTEO will be built in-country leveraging and supporting Belgium’s National Defense Industrial Technology Base strategy. Redwire and Aerospacelab will jointly develop MATTEO. The mission combines Redwire’s space mission heritage and proven track record of mission assurance with Aerospacelab’s satellite manufacturing expertise. MATTEO will enhance Belgium’s ability to monitor, protect, and respond to evolving regional and global security challenges.
“MATTEO represents a significant advancement for Belgium’s technological sovereignty and national security, and Redwire is honored to be trusted to deliver on a mission of such strategic importance,” said Marc Dielissen, EVP of Redwire Europe.
“This in-orbit demonstrator (IOD) will allow Belgian Defense, in close cooperation with national industry, to benefit from cutting-edge technology for the next steps of its capability development in the Space domain,” said a Belgian Defense spokesperson. “We are delighted to rely on a strong and promising partnership, able to strengthen the national Defense Industrial and Technology Base for the space segment. In these times of global tensions and of a new European awareness, it is a strong and univocal signal. It is necessary to arm ourselves to face the increased challenges in terms of defense, and MATTEO will fully contribute to this necessary shift.”
Redwire’s facility in Belgium has more than 50 years of heritage successfully developing spacecraft platforms and delivering innovative technology for game-changing European programs. Most notably, every spacecraft used for ESA’s Proba-1, Proba-2, Proba-V, and Proba-3 missions have been designed, developed and/or integrated at Redwire’s Belgium facility. Redwire is also taking full advantage of its European heritage as the prime contractor for ESA’s Skimsat mission, a technology demonstrator satellite that will fly in Very Low Earth Orbit with primary support from the Belgian government and its Ministry of Defense.