PRESS RELEASE: GEXTRECS Live Demonstration Event

GEXTRECS Live Demonstration Event to showcase GOVSATCOM service in disaster response 

The GEXTRECS consortium has announced the final operational readiness to demonstrate governmental satellite communication services (GOVSATCOM) for extreme emergency scenarios to crisis management actors and policy makers from EU Member States. The Live Demonstration Event will take place on 23 October 2025, with field operations held simultaneously in Voerde (Germany) and Port of Vigo (Spain). 

 Ensuring Secure Communication when Everything Else Fails 

The GEXTRECS project, implemented under Horizon Europe, directly addresses the European Union’s priority of increasing resilience against both natural and man-made disasters. In large-scale emergencies, when terrestrial infrastructure collapses, secure and interoperable satellite communication becomes essential. GEXTRECS provides end-to-end GOVSATCOM-based solution for first responders, civil protection agencies, and humanitarian missions operating under extreme conditions. 

“In an era of increasingly extreme events, connectivity is not a privilege — it’s a necessity. It’s the backbone that holds response efforts together and enables coordination in emergency situations. Ensuring reliable and secure connectivity for emergency responders is absolutely vital in the midst of any chaos. It must endure, and its availability must be guaranteed beyond borders and broken ground networks.” said Gema Rueda Montenegro, Project Manager at GMV, GEXTRECS Coordinator. “Our live demonstration event will validate a GOVSATCOM Crisis Management Service Pack that leverages the powerful capabilities developed within the EU Space Programme – GOVSATCOM, Copernicus, and Galileo – to deliver reliable and secure services. This marks a major step forward for European resilience.” 

Key Highlights of the Demonstration Event 

The event will put the GEXTRECS solution to the test in a challenging crisis context.  combining a land cross-border disaster and a multinational maritime emergency.  Key demonstrations will include:  

• Secure, end-to-end GOVSATCOM service:  Emergency responders will use GOVSATOM services to communicate while performing rescue operations. 

• Dynamic allocation of limited resources: The innovative Dynamic Planner prototype will optimise satellite communication resource allocation under rapidly changing conditions.  

• Seamless interoperability of communication networks: The Network Balancer will ensure continuous communications by switching between different satellite communication channels, and between satellite and terrestrial communiation networks. 

• Integrated space services: GEXTRECS will showcase the synergy of GOVSATCOM with Copernicus Emergency Management Service (CEMS) products and Galileo services, providing responders with vital positioning information and Earth observation data directly integrated into the crisis response workflows. 

Addressing User Needs and Expectations 

Aligned with the EU GOVSATCOM initiative’s user-centric approach, the GEXTRECS consortium actively engaged prospective users in shaping the developed solutions. Key partners include I.S.A.R. Germany and the Marine Technology Unit (UTM) of CSIC Spain.

“As an international operating Search and Rescue and Emergency Medical Team, robust and secure communication is the basis of every successful deployment”, stated Simon Gutzeit, Medical Coordinator at I.S.A.R. Germany. “Without connection to other deployed teams and to the Mission Control Center in Germany, the operational risk drastically increases, and rescue actions and treatment of patients become more dangerous. Secure communication is essential, especially when coordinating evacuations after aftershocks.”

“For UTM, GOVSATCOM will be a key enabler to ensure secure communications for scientific missions onboard our vessels and to support rapid response in maritime emergencies. It adds value in data transmission, coordination, and safety during operations”, said Dulce Afonso Rodríguez, Head of the IT and Communications at UTM, responsible for the communications of the Spanish research vessels and the Juan Carlos I Antarctic Station.

Opportunity for interactive engagement 

Invitations to the Live Demonstration Event have been addressed to crisis management and civil protection actors from EU Member States (GOVSATCOM Users), EU agencies, Competent GOVSATCOM Authorities (CGA) and policy makers.  Attendees will have the opportunity to follow the event online or participate in-person in Voerde, Germany. 

Participants will be encouraged to share impressions and expectations during the Stakeholder Workshop, culminating the event. Demonstrations will allow prospective GOVSATCOM users to evaluate practical qualities the GEXTRECS solution, such as usefulness, effectiveness and user-friendliness. 

For more details, please visit the Demonstration Event site. 

About GEXTRECS 

GEXTRECS (GOVSATCOM Extreme Events Crisis Management Service) is a Horizon Europe-funded research project aimed at defining and demonstrating an integrated EU GOVSATCOM Crisis Management Service Pack. It focuses on end-to-end, secure, quickly deployable, and user-friendly space-based communications, leveraging synergies with Copernicus and Galileo, to enhance the EU’s capacity to manage and respond to massive disaster events. 

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