The Swiss army wants to go into space with satellites

The Swiss army is going into space – these are their plans

With Donald Trump as the new US President and Elon Musk in tow, space will suddenly become massively more important than it already is. That’s why the Swiss army now wants to become active in space.

The Swiss army and the defense company Ruag MRO are planning a sovereign Swiss satellite constellation in space with a maximum of 40 satellites.

Bild: Adobe Stock

At first glance, the smartphone looks like an ordinary modern Samsung cell phone: flat, square, surrounded by black and with five cameras on the back. A pen is included.

But a second look makes you suspicious. The cell phone shows on the display a secure email, a secure browser, a secure messenger, a private Android operating system, its own ChatGPT called Lasa and even its own app store.

Secure email, secure browser, secure messenger: The “Guardian” smartphone, which Ruag MRO developed in collaboration with the Geneva-based company Wisekey, can also connect to a satellite network.

Image: Ruag MRO

It is Ruag MRO, the defense company that acts as a technical service provider to the Swiss Army, that developed the secure Swiss cell phone – in close collaboration with Wisekey, a Geneva-based cybersecurity company. Ruag confirms this.

“Guardian” is based on a mass-produced Samsung cell phone with an Android operating system. To make it safe, it was massively edited. Ruag spokeswoman Kirsten Hammerich says: “All elements that cannot be verified, that do not contain any productivity requirements, that establish a connection to third parties or send data to third parties will be removed from the operating system.” All elements required by a customer would be replaced by self-managed alternatives “to ensure complete control over the devices”. Nobody should be able to tap into the smartphone. It is designed to meet the Army’s “confidential” classification.

“Guardian” exists as a prototype and is in the pilot phase. According to Ruag’s plan, the cell phone should become the heart of secure communication for the army, police, authorities, border guards, fire brigade, medical services, civil defense and authorities in Switzerland.

The new secure smartphone can connect not only to a 5G mobile network, but also to a satellite network. “Guardian is a building block in a possible overall concept for satellite communication,” emphasizes Hammerich.

This is particularly important for the Swiss army. She is planning to go into space and is working on a basic paper on it that will be published soon. Operationally, the army wants to create a “Space” command, analogous to the “Cyber” command.

Satellites are essential for this. Defense Minister Viola Amherd knows this, as does the entire Federal Council. In their report “Defense Capability and Cooperation” from January 31, 2024, it says: “Today, almost all more complex military systems for positioning, time synchronization, communication, reconnaissance or weather forecasting are dependent on satellites.” The satellites are being further developed and reduced in size “at a rapid pace”. This opens up many opportunities for smaller countries like Switzerland – “because prices are falling”.

Soon only 60,000 francs for a satellite

There is indeed a noticeable democratization in satellite systems. While the development of a satellite cost 20 million francs a few years ago, today it costs 300,000 francs, says Carlos Creus Moreira, founder and CEO of Wisekey. It has also been manufacturing satellites for three years via Wisesat and the Spanish company Fossa. In two years, the development will only cost 60,000 francs, says Moreira and explains: “Because the Starship large rocket project can transport significantly more satellites with containers ten times larger. This reduces costs.”

Democratization helps Switzerland. Behind the scenes, the Ruag MRO, the Swiss Army, the Federal Armaments Office (Armasuisse) and – in close cooperation – the private company Wisekey are working on entry into space.

The goal is a sovereign Swiss satellite constellation system. This emerges from the brochure that Ruag published in September on the “National Mobile Security Communication System MSK”. The MSK project is intended to replace Polycom by 2030, a comprehensive radio security network for authorities, border guards, police, fire departments, medical services, civil defense and the army that is coming to the end of its life.

Research shows that Ruag and the army are considering plans to place a maximum of 40 small satellites in low Earth orbit. With this network, the Army could meet the key requirements it faces in space: reconnaissance and surveillance, high-speed satellite communications that complement communications on the ground and provide accurate geopositioning signals at all times, because military systems and precision weapons are increasingly reliant on them.

Ruag cannot yet provide any concrete information on this, says spokeswoman Hammerich. One thing is clear: Ruag and the army see the MSK project as an ideal springboard for space. In its brochure, Ruag writes that it is developing “a satellite system to replace Polycom’s terrestrial infrastructure” in collaboration with the army. This is “significantly more cost-effective, efficient and reliable”.

The army is also examining “a tailor-made space-based telecommunications capability to replace ground-based systems in all situations,” she confirms. Studies are currently being developed and demonstrators are being tested in order to create a basis for decision-making. “If these studies show a viable path,” writes the Defense Group, “a possible application to Parliament for an initial capability build-up can be submitted with the Army Message 2026.”

The Army is testing direct connections between smartphones and satellites in low Earth orbit. The tests will be incorporated into a study that Armasuisse is preparing in parallel.

The battle for alignment

The Federal Council wants to raise 2.9 billion francs for the MSK project. “A portion of this that has yet to be determined could flow into the space sector,” suggests Center National Councilor Isabelle Chappuis, who is intensively involved in space issues. In the Federal Council’s explanatory report on MSK, cooperation with satellite providers and possible space communication by the army are also planned for the future.

But behind the scenes there seems to be a struggle over the direction of MSK. The Federal Office for Civil Protection is responsible, and it tells CH Media that satellite technology is an option. However, a variant without the inclusion of satellites is currently at the center of discussions.

According to reports, many parties and organizations that took part in the consultation, which lasted until October 24th, see it differently. They want immediate integration of satellite communications.

Trump and Musk are giving the army a leg up

Center National Councilor Chappuis is also in favor of this. “Switzerland must move forward with its own, sovereign satellite system, an actual Swiss Stars system,” she says. “With Donald Trump and Elon Musk in the White House, it can be assumed that global space activities will become very military in the future.”

It was Trump who created the United States Space Force, the space division of the US armed forces, in his first presidency in 2019. And Musk and his space company SpaceX built the Starlink satellite network with 6,697 satellites – by far the largest network in the world.

For Switzerland as an important business location, it is “very important that the country has an independent and sovereign satellite constellation,” be it for banks, industry, science or the army, says Carlos Moreira, founder of Wisekey. “It would be fatal to be dependent on other countries such as the USA in these times of crisis.”

Wisekey launches 105 satellites into space

Wisekey itself has begun developing its own satellite constellation. 17 satellites are already in space, and when fully expanded the network will include 105 satellites, as RTS reported. They are supposed to orbit the earth at a distance of 160 to 2000 kilometers. This allows Wisekey to generate satellite images of Switzerland every five minutes. This constellation offers secure and cost-effective “Internet of Things” applications for networked agricultural processes and for energy and logistics, says Moreira. However, it is unlikely to meet the army’s requirements.

Nevertheless, Wisekey has developed a slightly modified satellite for test purposes for the army. It is blue and white, 50 centimeters long, 20 centimeters deep and equipped with the latest generation of microprocessors that can defend a satellite against computer attacks.

The satellite that Wisesat and Fossa developed on behalf of Wisekey and the Swiss Army. It will be launched into low Earth orbit by SpaceX in California on January 16th.

Image: Wisekey

This satellite will be launched into space from California on January 16, 2025. This is where an emergency arises for the “Guardian” smartphone – a test in real time with a satellite in space.

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