Galileo In Orbit Validation phase

At the end of October a Soyuz will be launched from Europe's Space Port in French Guiana for the first time, carrying into orbit the first pair of so-called IOV satellites. IOV stand for In-Orbit Validation: it's the phase when the Galileo system will be assessed through tests using the operations of two experimental satellites (GIOVE A and B already on orbit) and a mini constellation of four operational satellites and their related ground infrastructure.
These first 2 Galileo satellites will be sent to the first orbital plane on Medium earth Orbit, followed by another 2 in the second orbital plane next year.