From June 10 to 14, 2026, Berlin Brandenburg Airport Willy Brandt will once again become a center of the international aerospace industry as part of ILA Berlin 2026. On the second day of the event, Israeli company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Germany’s Reflex Aerospace announced a strategic partnership, presenting a new class of smart space solutions focused on the VHR²C constellation, offering very high resolution and very high revisit rates.
Photos: Rafael Advanced Defense Systems
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Reflex Aerospace presented a new class of VHR²C satellite constellation, offering very high resolution and very high revisit rates. The satellite system has been designed for the rapid, large-scale production of constellations, directly addressing the growing operational demand for persistent and effective intelligence gathering from space.
The announcement builds on proven operational foundations. Rafael’s space-proven VHD (Very High Definition) electro-optical payload, with a resolution of up to 30 cm, has already been successfully launched and is currently operational, providing top-tier customers with outstanding VHR (very high resolution) imagery. This orbital experience, comprising eight successful electro-optical missions, forms the basis for the development and robustness of the satellite system and represents Rafael’s tangible, space-proven capabilities in both the commercial and defense markets.
“Modern defense and intelligence customers cannot afford to wait many hours for a revisit or accept trade-offs between resolution and responsiveness. We built this new class of satellites to eliminate that trade-off. This is a strategic play for Rafael. We laid the foundation, and now our plans are in motion. Together with our partner Reflex, we are perfectly positioned to address the surging demand for satellite capabilities and the global push for sovereignty. By bringing together proven in-orbit payload and satellite heritage, AI-driven exploitation, and rapid manufacturing infrastructure to deploy at constellation scale, Rafael and Reflex have created a high revisit focused end-to-end system that matches the pace of today’s threat environment — and is ready to scale with tomorrow’s.” ‒ Guy Oren, Vice President, Intelligence, Space & Cyber Directorate at Rafael Advanced Defense Systems
“This new joint satellite system represents exactly the kind of mission Reflex was built for. Our platform architecture is designed to maximize payload performance while enabling the rapid production timelines that modern intelligence requirements demand. Partnering with Rafael – whose electro-optical and intelligence heritage is unmatched – allows us to bring a truly best-in-class constellation to market at a pace the industry hasn’t seen before.” ‒ Walter Ballheimer, CEO Reflex Aerospace
