LOS ANGELES AIR FORCE BASE, El Segundo, California – The U.S. Air Force has launched the seventh Wideband Global SATCOM spacecraft on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV launch vehicle at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on July 23, at 8:07 p.m. EDT. Acquired for the Air Force by the Space and Missile Systems Center, Military Satellite Communications Directorate and built by Boeing Defense, Space & Security, a unit of The Boeing Company, WGS is the nation’s next-generation wideband satellite communications system supporting soldiers, sailors, airman, Marines, and international partners around the world.
Over the next few months, Boeing will begin on-orbit testing of WGS-7 to verify nominal performance and prepare the satellite for operational use. Ultimately, WGS-7 will be controlled by the U.S. Air Force’s 3rd Space Operations Squadron at Schriever Air Force Base. WGS-7 is expected to enter operations in early 2016.
“The WGS constellation continues to provide significant added capacity to our DoD space communications architecture.” said Lt. Gen. Samuel Greaves, Space and Missile Systems Center commander and Air Force Program Executive Officer for Space. “WGS delivers crucial wideband communication to soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and international partners around the globe. I am proud of the hard work and cooperation of the government and contactor teams on another successful WGS launch.”
The Space and Missile Systems Center is the U.S. Air Force’s center of acquisition excellence for acquiring and developing military space systems. With three more satellites in production, the WGS constellation is planned to have a total of ten satellites on orbit by 2018.
