Why did Europe develop the Galileo satellite navigation system?

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GPS satellite — GPS U.S. Navstar Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite in orbit over Earth, shown in an artist's conception.

Europe developed the Galileo satellite navigation system primarily to ensure civilian control over critical infrastructure. While systems like the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS) and the Russian GLONASS are widely used for civilian purposes, they were originally developed for and remain under the control of their respective countries' military forces.1

There was significant concern that essential worldwide civilian activities, such as air traffic control, should not be dependent on a system managed by a single nation's military. To address this, the European Union initiated the development of Galileo in the late 1990s to provide a reliable, independent navigation service operated under civilian authority. The system became operational in 2016.12