Program funding is divided with France providing 79 percent, Italy adding 14 percent and 7 percent from Spain. The Helios 1A and 1B spacecraft are based upon Matra Marconi Space's Spot 4 Earth-observing satellite. They are 3-axis stabilized and nadir pointing. The optical reconnaissance satellites provide images with approximately one-meter resolution. Operations can be performed only during daylight and clear weather conditions.
Military observers believe the resolution is one-meter.
Matra Marconi Space press materials Helios 1A was launched aboard Arianespace Flight 75 on July 7, 1995. The Ariane 40 rocket placed the satellite into a near-polar orbit with a perigee of 679 km, apogee of 682 km and inclination of 98.1 degrees to the equator. The spacecraft entered service three months later. A follow-on pair of advanced Helios 2 satellites are under development by Matra Marconi Space, and will be based on the Spot 5 satellite design. They will feature an infrared capability to allow observations at night.