A Boeing Delta II rocket today successfully replaced one of the first U.S.
Air Force navigational satellites launched aboard another Delta 11 years ago.

The launch took place at 9:48 p.m. EDT from Pad A of Space Launch Complex
17 and was the 31st Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite lifted into
orbit aboard a Delta rocket (excluding the Block I satellites used during the
research and development phase of the GPS program).
Boeing has an additional
17 launches manifested aboard the Delta II rocket for the satellite-based GPS
(Block IIR satellites).

Recognized as the world’s premier navigation satellite system, GPS
operates via a constellation of satellites (currently 27), a ground control
system, and thousands of terminals, to help locate and guide military and
civilian users in the air, at sea, and on the ground.
The original 24 GPS
satellites and replacement satellites have been carried into orbit by Delta
rockets.

“We are proud of a long-standing relationship with the U.S. Air Force,”
said Will Hampton, Boeing director of U.S. Air Force Delta II programs.

“In fact, Delta’s origins go back to the Thor intermediate-range ballistic
missile, which was developed in the mid-1950s for the Air Force,” Hampton
explained.
“The Thor, a single-stage, liquid-fueled rocket, later was
modified to become the Delta launch vehicle, which then evolved into the
Delta II.”

The technological evolution continues with development of the Delta III to
meet the needs of the commercial launch market for larger payloads, and the
Delta IV for the U.S. Air Force Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Program
(EELV).
Delta IV is offered as a family of launch vehicles — Small, Medium
and Heavy.

Boeing is working on design, development and production of the fourth
generation of GPS satellites, the Block IIF, for the U.S. Air Force.
Beginning in 2002, a number of these satellites will be launched on the Boeing
Delta IV under the U.S. Air Force’s EELV program.

The Delta II rocket is manufactured in Huntington Beach, Calif., with
final assembly in Pueblo, Colo.
The rocket is powered by the RS-27A engine
built by Boeing in Canoga Park, Calif.
Launch coordination and operations for
this mission were provided by the Delta launch team at Cape Canaveral Air
Force Station.
Alliant Techsystems, Magna, Utah, builds the graphite epoxy
motors for boost assist; Aerojet, Sacramento, Calif., manufactures the second-
stage engine; Cordant Technologies, Elkton, Md., builds the third-stage motor;
and L3 Communications, Teterboro, N.J., builds the guidance and flight control
system.

Visit our Delta home page at: (www.boeing.com/delta)