# Fleet tracking by satellite beyond mobile coverage Where there is no mobile network, a tracking device still determines its position by GNSS and sends it over a satellite link instead. ESA names satellite connectivity as a way to keep logistics and mobility services working where mobile coverage is inadequate or absent. At open sea, ESA calls it an irreplaceable link to the rest of the world. ## Why fleets drop out of view Trucks on long-haul routes, trailers in remote yards, rail wagons and vessels regularly leave mobile coverage. A tracker that sends only over the mobile network stores its positions or goes silent until it reconnects, and the control room loses sight of the asset exactly where help is hardest to reach. ESA describes this gap for land transport: logistics and mobility services need connectivity where mobile coverage is inadequate, unreliable, compromised or absent, for example in autonomous long-haul transport. Satellite connectivity can also signal critical situations of vehicles in remote or low-coverage areas, such as breakdowns, accidents or theft [1]. At open sea, satellite communication is an irreplaceable link between offshore activities and the rest of the world [2]. **Figure:** Illustrative map, not real data. A tracked route crosses an area without mobile coverage, where the device sends its positions by satellite. ## How satellite tracking works Two space technologies share the work: - **Position from GNSS.** The device computes its position from satellite navigation signals. GNSS enables tracking and tracing of vehicles and goods, route optimisation, flow monitoring and the monitoring of assets in transit [1]. In road transport, EUSPA describes asset management units that send GNSS positions by telematics so that operators can monitor vehicle fleets and the status of dangerous goods [3]. - **Transmission by satellite.** Where no terrestrial network is available, the device sends its position and status over a satellite link instead of the mobile network. Mobile standards now bring the two together. Since Release 17, the 3GPP specifications include NB-IoT and LTE-M (eMTC) over non-terrestrial networks, so an IoT device can communicate directly with a satellite. These devices are assumed to have a GNSS receiver [4]. Our pages on [what GNSS is](https://leto.space/knowledge/gnss/) and on [satellite communication](https://leto.space/knowledge/satellite-communication/) explain both technologies. At sea, satellite Earth observation adds a further check: it is used to verify the AIS messages that ships broadcast and to detect vessels that do not send them [2]. ## What you get - Positions of vehicles, trailers, containers or vessels along the whole route, including the stretches without mobile coverage. - Alerts from vehicles in remote areas, for example after a breakdown, an accident or a theft [1]. - Data for route optimisation, flow monitoring and the monitoring of goods in transit [1]. - One data stream in your fleet or transport management system, whichever network carried the message. ## Limits **Limits** - **GNSS needs a view of the sky:** GNSS signals reach the ground below the level of ambient noise. Indoors and underground the receiver gets no usable signal, and in urban canyons reflected signals degrade the position \[5]. Inside a warehouse or a tunnel, a tracker that relies on GNSS alone cannot update its position. - **Signals can be jammed or spoofed:** Jamming can cut a receiver off, and spoofing can make it report a false position. Inexpensive jamming equipment is readily available \[5]. How to detect and handle this is covered in protecting GNSS-dependent operations. - **Direct-to-satellite standards are young:** IoT over satellite entered the 3GPP standards with Release 17 \[4]. Check which devices, networks and regions a provider supports before you plan a roll-out. ## How we help We map where your routes leave coverage and which decisions suffer from the gap. In [requirements and procurement](https://leto.space/consulting/procurement/) we specify devices, connectivity and the integration into your systems and compare providers against these requirements. A pilot on part of the fleet then shows whether the gap closes in daily operation. [More on implementation](https://leto.space/consulting/implementation/) To find providers of tracking devices and satellite connectivity, [Spacegraph](https://leto.space/spacegraph/), our discovery platform, has an industry category "Transport & Logistics". ## Related use cases - [Connecting remote sensors via satellite IoT](https://leto.space/use-cases/satellite-iot/): The same links for fixed sensors in remote places. - [Protecting against jamming and spoofing](https://leto.space/use-cases/gnss-resilience/): What to do when the position itself cannot be trusted. - [Monitoring global traffic hubs](https://leto.space/use-cases/traffic-hub-monitoring/): The state of the ports and hubs a fleet depends on. - [Satellite data in mobility and logistics](https://leto.space/industries/mobility-and-logistics/): All use cases for transport and logistics. ## Frequently asked questions ### Do we need satellite trackers for the whole fleet? Usually not. ESA describes satellite connectivity as needed where mobile connectivity for logistics and mobility services is inadequate, unreliable or absent [1]. Start with the vehicles, containers or vessels whose routes leave coverage, and keep mobile tracking where it works. ### How accurate is the position? That depends on the receiver and on the service it uses. Augmentation such as the Galileo High Accuracy Service or RTK gives higher accuracy than a standard receiver, where a use case needs it [1]. ### How do we start? Start with a map of where your fleet leaves mobile coverage and what a gap costs you there, for example a delayed arrival message or a missing alarm. From that we derive the requirements for devices, connectivity and integration into your systems. Our [consulting overview](https://leto.space/consulting/) shows the path from the problem to operation. ## Sources 1. [ESA Space Solutions: Space for land mobility, European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space Solutions, accessed 2026-10-06](https://business.esa.int/mobility-land) 2. [ESA Space Solutions: Space for maritime, European Space Agency (ESA), ESA Space Solutions, accessed 2026-10-06](https://business.esa.int/maritime) 3. [EU Space Market Report 2026, Issue 1, EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), 2026-05-26](https://www.euspa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/EU_Space_Market_Report_2026.pdf) 4. [Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN), 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), accessed 2026-10-06](https://www.3gpp.org/technologies/ntn-overview) 5. [Satellite-derived time and position: a study of critical dependencies (Blackett review), UK Government Office for Science, 2018-01-30](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/satellite-derived-time-and-position-blackett-review) Page: