Shield Space Completes Critical Design Review for BROADSWORD Mission in Boost to Defence of UK and NATO Spacecraft

Orbital defence company Shield Space has successfully completed the Critical Design Review (CDR) for its upcoming BROADSWORD mission. At a time of mounting threats in space, the mission will show how working space systems can be deployed for NATO and its allies in as little as nine months, far faster than with traditional programmes, which can take years.

The mission is a major milestone on the path to protecting UK and other NATO spacecraft, which are vitally important for defence and the wider economy yet face mounting threats from Russia, China and other countries.

Shield Space, founded by operators and engineers with more than 80 years’ military experience, makes systems that let satellites guide themselves autonomously and intercept nearby threats. At present, satellites rely on human control to work. If communication to the ground is cut, they become vulnerable or effectively useless.

Now, the completion of the CDR confirms that the design for its first mission, BROADSWORD, is mature and gives the programme authorisation to move on to the spacecraft integration stage. BROADSWORD, set to launch in Q3 2027 on a SpaceX Transporter rideshare mission, will deploy a small, autonomous 8U ‘chaser’ satellite carrying out a full RPO sequence to a 100m separation with a second, smaller 3U ‘target’ satellite launched alongside it.

It is notable that Shield Space has managed to achieve this milestone just seven months after fundraising, in January, and will be launch-ready by Q1 of 2027.

Shield Space will eventually be able to give defence customers a complete mission as one product: a finished, fully integrated satellite, launch, software, and operations service bundled together. Instead of stitching parts together over years, the customer will buy the whole system ready to use, which makes it possible to get a working space defence mission into orbit in as little as nine months.

At present, customers struggle to field spacecraft quickly enough to conduct rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO); protect key orbital infrastructure; and respond to emerging risks. Many programmes take years to go from concept to orbit.

BROADSWORD is one of several missions that Shield Space is developing. Senior military leaders in NATO-member countries have shown strong and sustained interest in these proposals, suggesting the partnership’s plans meet the needs of future space security.

Developing autonomous RPO capabilities is the first step in Shield Space’s journey to deliver Space-Based Carrier Strike systems under the NEXUS programme. NEXUS will place ‘mothership’ satellites on patrol in orbit, each carrying swarms of interceptors that will be released on command to inspect, shadow or disable a threat spacecraft. This will give defence customers ongoing surveillance, flexible response options, and coverage over large areas.

Graeme Ritchie, CEO of Shield Space, said: “Passing the CDR is a big step forward. It shows that, working together with EnduroSat, we can deliver missions that will improve the resilience of the UK and the rest of NATO.

“It will show that getting a programme from concept to orbit need not take years. We can do it in months.

“That has major implications for our ability to defend our spacecraft and secure orbit. It’s also our first step towards developing space-based carrier strike capabilities, which is the cornerstone of our NEXUS programme.”

Defence analysts have repeatedly warned that Russian and Chinese spacecraft are stalking UK and NATO satellites. Earlier this year, Russian satellites targeted the strategically crucial ICEYE-X36, used to support Ukrainian forces. In February, European security officials said they believed two Russian space vehicles had intercepted the communications of at least a dozen key satellites across the continent.

Last year, the former head of the UK Space Command, Maj. Paul Tedman, said Russian spacecraft were stalking British spacecraft on a ‘weekly’ basis.

Shield Space recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with active debris removal and in-orbit servicing company ClearSpace in a deal that marked the first step towards a deeper collaboration between UK SMEs focusing on protecting the country’s access to space.