As we reflect on the recent loss of two dear figures in our Programme, we take a dedicated moment to share a tribute to Claude Gal, whose passing a year ago remains deeply felt as we continue the work he helped begin.
IN MEMORY OF CLAUDE GAL
By Daniel Levesque, Head of Secretariat (1987-2011)
Claude joined the Sarsat team led by Dr. Daniel Ludwig in CNES (the French national space centre) during the early stages of development as System Manager, responsible for the satellite 406 MHz SAR payload. This was in1980, and I had just joined the team at the end of 1979 and was impressed by his professional experience. This was pioneering work. Although the 406 MHz payload had been developed based on CNES experience with the Argos data collection system at 401 MHz, the specific environment of the SAR mission required further improvements both for the satellite payload and the newly developed 406 MHz beacons. Claude rapidly became the CNES team expert on all these matters. In 1983 he succeeded Daniel Ludwig as Head of the Argos and Sarsat Department in Toulouse; a position he kept until his retirement in 2004.
One of the challenges of the Programme was to ensure the compatibility (interoperability in technical terms) of the SARSAT and COSPAS satellite payloads which had been developed independently in the USSR and in France. In February 1982 a small team of experts led by Claude Gal was invited to conduct laboratory tests on the Cospas 406 MHz payload in Moscow to ensure it would operate as expected with the experimental 406 beacons.
After the Cospas-1 satellite launch on 30 June 1982, success was quickly registered at 121.5 MHz with the first rescue (the Ziegelheim SAR case). At 406 MHz the story was slightly different with severe interference detected in the frequency band. Claude played a leading role in the struggle to identify, locate and gradually eliminate these interference transmissions which were a serious threat to the 406-system performance.
Claude was a key leader in producing the first issue of the 406 MHz beacon specification, document C/S T.001, which was approved at the Technical Working Group meeting he chaired in Villefranche in 1986. It was his proposal to number the System documents using the C/S N.00X format still used to this day. His contribution to the Programme would become invaluable over many years as chair of the TWG and Joint Committee meetings, building on his considerable experience and his unique ability to reach consensus on difficult technical issues. In all these endeavours Claude was instrumental to achieving the success of this unique international cooperation. He continued to provide expertise to participants in the Programme after his retirement in 2004, as consultant for ESA on the MEOSAR project.
On a more personal level, I would like to acknowledge the constant support and availability of Claude during the 24 years of our cooperation in Cospas-Sarsat. His kindness to all and his calm and steady leadership are the highlights of these years of friendship.
Claude was a keen explorer of the diversity of the world, which he travelled frequently, beyond Cospas-Sarsat duties, in company of his wife Geneviève and his daughters. He passed away in February 2025 at the age of 82. Fortunately, Claude worked for many years to document the Programme history and to develop the video library, allowing his contributions to be available to future generations.
Farewell Claude, we miss you sorely.