Josef Aschbacher

New Capabilities

As of May 2026: Leading ESA through launcher and constellation transition years

VA266 launched successfully. After acquiring signal, ESA declared the mission successful: Galileo SAT 33 and SAT 34 are healthy, with solar arrays deployed. That shifts the story from launch drama to operations: early-orbit checks and in-orbit testing, then a slow drift toward Galileo's 23,222 km operational regime.

Updated May 15