R6 VDES Space Payload
Saab Space
Saab's space-hardened VHF Data Exchange System (VDES) payload for satellite-based maritime communication, flown on the Ymir-1 satellite launched via SpaceX Falcon 9 in November 2023.
Technical specifications
- Payload type
- Space-hardened VDES (VHF Data Exchange System) transponder
- Host mission
- Ymir-1 satellite
- Launch date
- 11 November 2023
- Launch vehicle
- SpaceX Falcon 9
- Vessel detection
- 60,000+ unique vessels per day
- Application
- Maritime domain awareness, vessel tracking, ship-to-shore/ship-to-satellite data exchange
- Standard
- VDES (IMO/ITU successor to AIS)
- Product heritage
- Saab TransponderTech AIS family: R3, R4, R4A MkII, R5, R5 SUPREME
About
The Saab R6 VDES (VHF Data Exchange System) payload is a satellite-hosted maritime communication transponder that extends Saab’s decades of terrestrial and airborne AIS (Automatic Identification System) transponder heritage into orbit. VDES is the IMO/ITU-standardized successor to AIS, providing higher-bandwidth two-way ship-to-shore and ship-to-satellite data exchange for applications including vessel tracking, weather and navigational safety broadcasts, and maritime traffic management. The R6 payload was launched on 11 November 2023 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 as part of the Ymir-1 satellite mission, marking Saab’s entry into space-based maritime communication after a long history of shipborne and airborne AIS transponders (R3, R4, R4A, R5, R5 SUPREME). In operation, the payload detects over 60,000 unique vessels per day, providing global maritime domain awareness beyond the range of terrestrial AIS receivers.
Documentation
No public datasheet yet — request the datasheet / ICD from the supplier.