Two satellites sent into orbit by the European Space Agency and intended as part of Europe's version of the American-based GPS satellite navigation system have themselves ended up off-course.

The fifth and sixth satellites of what is expected to eventually be an array of nearly 30 satellites were launched from French Guiana on Friday are in the wrong orbits but under control, according to space agency officials cited by BBC News.

The satellites -- Doresa and Milena -- blasted off on a Russian Soyuz rocket after a 24-hour delay due to bad weather.

"Observations taken after the separation of the satellites from the Soyuz VS09 (rocket) for the Galileo Mission show a gap between the orbit achieved and that which was planned," read a statement issued by France-based launch service Arianespace, the world's first commercial space transport company. "They have been placed on a lower orbit than expected. Teams are studying the impact this could have on the satellites."

Arianespace declined to comment further on whether the trajectories of the two wayward orbiters could be corrected, said a report by the AFP news agency.

As of Jan. 1, 2013, Arianespace employed 315 people at its French headquarters, its launch complex at the Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana and at its offices in Singapore, Tokyo, and Washington, D.C.

Meanwhile, the ESA confirmed it's examining the implications of the anomaly.

The agency is building the orbiting constellation for the European Union, which has invested billions into the satellite navigation project, believing the system will provide significant returns to European economies through new businesses that can utilize the navigational data delivered from orbit.

After being delayed for several years, Galileo is estimated to be fully deployed by 2017. The network will:

  • Work alongside GPS and the Russian Glonass systems;
  • Provide real-time positioning down to a meter or less;
  • Deepen and extend high-value markets already initiated by GPS.