UK Mulls D2D to Fill Emergency Services Network Coverage Gaps

The UK’s long-delayed Emergency Services Network (ESN) could gain a satellite back-up layer, with the UK Space Agency inviting industry input on using Direct-to-Device (D2D) services from LEO satellites to improve coverage for emergency responders.

Acting for the Home Office’s Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme, the agency is assessing how satellite connectivity could augment ESN in remote and hard-to-reach locations that remain challenging for terrestrial 4G/5G networks.

ESN, which will replace the UK’s legacy TETRA-based Airwave system with a smartphone-based 4G/5G service on EE’s network, is now not expected before 2029. Against that backdrop, satellite D2D could be a pragmatic stop-gap and long-term resilience option, ensuring police, fire and ambulance services can remain connected even where terrestrial coverage falls short.