29/04/24 (Agence Europe) – On Monday 29 April, the European Commission announced the successful placement in orbit of two new Galileo satellites on the night of 27-28 April, as part of the completion of the deployment of the Galileo constellation. These satellites will help to increase the reliability of the system, and therefore of positioning information, for the benefit of users, the Commission said in a press release. This launch expands the Galileo constellation already in orbit in view of reaching its full operational capacity, with 24 operational satellites in nominal slots and spare satellites in orbit. Looking ahead to the future, 12 second generation (G2G) satellites are in production. The first launch of these satellites is expected to take place in 2026 with the Ariane 6 launcher. The European Commission has announced that it is in the process of ordering two additional Ariane 6 launches in the coming months. (CG)