Maxar and Saab Agree Strategic Partnership to Develop Multi-Domain Battlespace Solutions and Advance Europe’s Space-Based Capabilities

WESTMINSTER, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 4, 2025--

Maxar Intelligence, the leading provider of secure, precise geospatial insights, today announced a strategic partnership with Saab to jointly develop next-generation multi-domain battlespace solutions, with a specific focus on advanced space-based C5ISR systems (Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance) for the digital battlefield and GPS resilience for autonomous drone systems. These solutions will help Europe accelerate the development of more advanced sovereign space-based capabilities.

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Through a Teaming Agreement, Saab can access Maxar’s geospatial intelligence and advanced mission products like Raptor, as well as draw upon the company’s technical expertise. The deal expands on Maxar’s existing relationship with Saab, which has most recently focused on deploying Maxar’s Raptor product for autonomous drone navigation and operation in GPS-denied environments.

“This partnership will bring together Maxar’s industry-leading geospatial intelligence products with Saab’s highly advanced defense systems to solve some of the most complex tactical and operational challenges across the battlespace today—from powering more intelligent, real-time multi-domain command and control systems to helping autonomous systems overcome GPS jamming,” said Dan Smoot, Maxar Intelligence CEO. “The deal also reflects the growing realization that geospatial intelligence can go beyond powering analyst workflows to powering mission-focused software products deployed at the tactical edge.”

“And, most importantly, our partnership with Saab underscores Maxar’s deep commitment to supporting our international customers as they continue to build up their sovereign defense capabilities, both in Europe and across the globe,” Smoot continued.

The agreement builds on successful joint testing of Maxar’s Raptor software product. The technology was tested with Saab in multiple countries, including a demo in real-world conditions where the product demonstrated the ability to accurately extract ground coordinates within an accuracy of less than 2 m.

“Our collaboration with Maxar represents a significant leap forward in our commitment to use information from the Space domain and thereby enhancing the strategic defense capabilities of Europe and beyond,” says Görgen Johansson, head of Saab business area Dynamics.

“By integrating Maxar’s high-end geospatial insights and satellite capabilities with our advanced defense systems, we are setting new standards in the effectiveness and reliability of military operations across multiple domains.”

Maxar’s geospatial intelligence products will also help Saab build more advanced C5ISR solutions through secure access to the most advanced commercial satellite imagery in near real-time. Maxar’s global 3D terrain data unlocks unique opportunities for real-time multi-source data fusion, enabling truly joint multi-domain operations, seamless interoperability between autonomous systems and enhanced mission coordination.

About Maxar Intelligence

Maxar Intelligence is a leading provider of secure, precise geospatial insights. Operating the most advanced commercial Earth observation constellation on orbit, we use the power of very high-resolution satellite imagery and software technology to deliver mission success on Earth and in space. Our secure, AI-powered products and services deliver ground truth in near real-time to keep nations safe, improve navigation, protect our planet, speed up disaster response and more. For more information, visit www.maxar.com.

Maxar Intelligence and Saab are partnering to develop next-generation battlespace solutions. Using Maxar's industry-leading geospatial intelligence products and its Raptor technology, the two partners will develop new technologies for advanced C5ISR and effective operation of autonomous drone systems in GPS-denied environments. (Graphic: Maxar Intelligence)

CRANS-MONTANA, Switzerland (AP) — In the aftermath of a fire inside a Swiss Alpine bar that killed 40 people celebrating the new year, survivors, friends and family members, the region’s top authorities and even Pope Leo have spoken to the public in remarks in French, Italian, German and English, reflecting the tradition of Swiss multilingualism.

Another 119 people were injured in the blaze early Thursday as it ripped through the busy Le Constellation bar at the ski resort of Crans-Montana, authorities said. It was one of the deadliest tragedies in Switzerland’s history.

Investigators said Friday that they believe sparkling candles atop Champagne bottles ignited the fatal fire when they came too close to the ceiling of the crowded bar.

Here’s a look at what people said in the wake of the disaster:

— “I’m looking everywhere. The body of my son is somewhere,” Laetitia Brodard told reporters Friday in Crans-Montana as she searched for her son, 16-year-old Arthur. “I want to know, where is my child, and be by his side. Wherever that may be, be it in the intensive care unit or the morgue.”

— “We were bringing people out, people were collapsing. We were doing everything we could to save them, we helped as many as we could. We saw people screaming, running,” Marc-Antoine Chavanon, 14, told The Associated Press in Crans-Montana on Friday, recounting how he rushed to the bar to help the injured. “There was one of our friends: She was struggling to get out, she was all burned. You can’t imagine the pain I saw.”

— “It was hard to live through for everyone. Also probably because everyone was asking themselves, ‘Was my child, my cousin, someone from the region at this party?’” Eric Bonvin, general director of the regional hospital in Sion that took in dozens of injured people, told AP on Friday. “This place was very well known as somewhere to celebrate the new year,” Bonvin said. “Also, seeing young people arrive — that’s always traumatic.”

— “I have seen horror, and I don’t know what else would be worse than this,” Gianni Campolo, a Swiss 19-year-old who was in Crans-Montana on vacation and rushed to the bar to help first responders, told France's TF1 television.

—“You will understand that the priority today is truly placed on identification, in order to allow the families to begin their mourning,” Beatrice Pilloud, the Valais region's attorney general, told reporters Friday during a news conference in Sion.

Pope Leo said in a telegram Friday to the bishop of Sion that he " wishes to express his compassion and concern to the relatives of the victims. He prays that the Lord will welcome the deceased into His abode of peace and light, and will sustain the courage of those who suffer in their hearts or in their bodies.”

— “We have numerous accounts of heroic actions, one could say of very strong solidarity in the moment,” Cantonal head of government Mathias Reynard told RTS radio Friday. "In the first minutes it was citizens — and in large part young people — who saved lives with their courage.”

— “Switzerland is a strong country not because it is sheltered from drama, but because it knows how to face them with courage and a spirit of mutual help," Swiss President Guy Parmelin, speaking on his first day in the position that changes hands annually, told reporters Thursday.

People bring flowers near the sealed off Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, where a devastating fire left dead and injured during the New Year's celebrations. (AP Photo/ Antonio Calanni)

A woman holding a stuffed animal, whose daughter is missing, gather with others near the sealed-off Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, where a devastating fire left dead and injured during the New Year's celebrations. (AP Photo/Baz Ratner)

People light candles near the sealed off Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, where a devastating fire left dead and injured during the New Year's celebrations. (AP Photo/ Antonio Calanni)