LUXEMBOURG — Commercial satellite operator SES reported a 4.2% year-over-year rise in third-quarter revenue driven by expansion in aviation and government defense connectivity, the company announced during its investor presentation on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026.
In parallel with the financial results, SES disclosed that it has secured commercial launch contracts for 53 operational satellites scheduled to enter orbit by 2030.
Defense Tailwinds and Networks Acceleration
Growth during the quarter was anchored by the operator’s Networks division, where revenue rose 6% on a like-for-like basis. The Government and Defense business unit generated €216 million ($242 million), marking a 4.2% like-for-like increase. Chief Executive Officer Adel Al-Saleh attributed defense expansion to accelerating customer uptake across managed network services, early delivery milestones under the European Union’s sovereign IRIS2 constellation contract, and task orders under the U.S. Space Force’s Protected Tactical SATCOM – Global (PTS-G) program.
Fleet Expansion and 53-Satellite Launch Manifest
To sustain its multi-orbit connectivity services across government and commercial mobility corridors, SES confirmed it has secured orbital launch capacity for 53 spacecraft without publicly naming its contracted launch service providers.
The planned deployment manifest spans three orbital tranches:
- Geostationary Fleet: Seven geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) satellites engineered to reinforce high-throughput video and fixed enterprise networks.
- meoSphere Constellation: 28 high-power medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellites built by satellite manufacturer K2 Space to supply software-defined beam capacity.
- Sovereign MEO Tier: 18 MEO satellites dedicated to the European Union’s IRIS2 network, incorporating satellite bus platforms manufactured by Germany’s OHB SE.
Luxembourg Payload Production and Delivery Timeline
The IRIS2 spacecraft will integrate proprietary, software-defined communications payloads designed and built directly by SES. Production of the mission hardware is centered at a dedicated satellite payload manufacturing facility in Luxembourg, which the company confirmed will reach full operational capability by 2028. Following initial payload qualification and bus integration, flight deployments across the 53-spacecraft pipeline will progress toward complete orbital entry into service by 2030.
