Four of SVGC’s space and defence specialists recently attended the Defence in Space Conference (DISC) in London, reflecting our ongoing commitment to supporting the UK’s space and defence ambitions. As a company dedicated to delivering evidence-based decision support for assured SATCOM capability, we bring together a unique blend of specialist skills, underpinned by bespoke modelling, tools and simulations. Our presence at DISC reinforced both our expertise and our active role in shaping the future of resilient space-enabled defence.
The event brought together representatives from UK and international defence ministries, the military, industry leaders, government bodies, and subject matter experts to explore the most pressing issues shaping the future of defence in the space and MilSATCOM domains.
The SVGC team outside The Brewery for DISC25
Strategic Importance of Space as a Warfighting Domain
Building on themes from previous years, DISC25 explored both enduring and emerging challenges, with a particular focus on the evolving role of MILSATCOM/SATCOM in supporting defence capabilities. Key recurring themes included:
- building trust amongst the space community
- deepening collaboration between military, government, academia and industry
- recognising emerging threats early and proactively developing mitigations
- the importance of maintaining resilient Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT)
- looking to the future through the lens of hybrid constellations and “networks of networks”
- advancements in and the utility of Space Domain Awareness (SDA) and Space Situational Awareness (SSA)
- introduction of AI for threat management, both terrestrial and in-space, and for network management, amongst many other potential applications
New discussions were centred on the integration of space into multi-domain operations, the “Network of Networks” concept for resilient communications, and the balance between sovereign control and commercial service provision.
UK SKYNETs Chief SATCOM Engineer, Paul Wells, hosting a panel discussing Future Hybrid SATCOM networks
Technological Innovations and their Opportunities and Threats
Technological innovation was a major focus, particularly in response to adversarial threats such as jamming, spoofing, on-orbit proximity operations and cyber intrusions. Concepts such as proliferated/hybrid constellations, quantum-secured communications, AI-driven threat detection, and dual-use platforms were presented as critical enablers of future SATCOM resilience.
The proliferation of autonomous systems and AI will introduce new demands on SATCOM services, including exponential data growth and capacity demand, real-time decision support, and complex network management. AI is becoming increasingly embedded in SATCOM infrastructure, enabling autonomous terminals, smart payloads, and on-orbit threat response. Building operator trust in AI will require transparency, reliability, and maturing of human-in/on-the-loop design principles.
Defence Vendors took the opportunity to showcase their current and future capabilities
Looking to Future Assurance and Resilience
Amongst the discussions and presentations, it was clear that maintaining a secure and sustainable future of defence activities in space will require investment, innovation and collaboration, with many of the conference participants showcasing their current and planned capabilities to ensure this is possible. DISC25 concluded with a clear call for agile, threat-informed, and collaborative strategies to guide future capability development.
As with previous DISC events, and other recent space and defence themed conferences, it was clear effective and invested collaboration is key to ensuring space remains a trusted and assured domain.
At SVGC, we remain committed to supporting innovative, forward-thinking solutions that help shape the future of space security and resilience. If you’d like to find out more contact us today.
