Contact

ARIANE National Surveillance Authority – IABG awarded major contract by the ESA

The European Space Agency ESA has - in close liaison with the executive board of the German Aerospace Agency DLR – commissioned the aerospace division of IABG with the overall responsibility and implementation of the independent ARIANE National Surveillance Authority. The agreement signed in April 2007 is valid for the period from early 2007 to late 2010.

The central task of the ARIANE National Surveillance Authority entails safeguarding and improving the technical reliability of the ARIANE carrier system in addition to the reduction of the manufacturing risks. To this end, the ARIANE National Surveillance Authority runs local offices at four German centres of industry (Augsburg, Bremen, Lampoldshausen and Ottobrunn) and, on behalf of the ESA and in close specialist cooperation with the French programme partner CNES, performs independent quality checks on the products, processes and quality management systems of manufacturers and suppliers. The German ARIANE National Surveillance Authority is also part of the ARIANE pan-European Surveillance Authority through ESA/CNES.

IABG was already active from 1997 until late 2006 as a subcontractor on behalf of the German Aerospace Agency DARA, now DLR, within the scope of the ARIANE National Surveillance Authority. By commissioning IABG directly, ESA and DLR are showing their recognition for the outstanding services rendered over a long period of time and the technical expertise of the surveillance team at IABG.