A fifth Boeing-developed navigation satellite for the U.S. Air Force has joined the branch’s GPS IIF constellation.
The satellite took off on Feb. 20 and was validated by the company and Air Force to activate the spacecraft’s payload, Boeing said Tuesday.
“As each GPS IIF joins the fleet, we are sustaining and modernizing the constellation for years to come,” said Craig Cooning, vice president and general manager of space and intelligence systems at Boeing.
The sixth GPS IIF satellite out of a planned 12 is scheduled for launch in the second quarter of 2014.