US Air Force to control and develop Boeing's WGS-4 spacecraft

Boeing announced today that the US Air Force accepted control of the fourth Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS) military communications satellite on April 11, after the spacecraft passed several weeks of rigorous on-orbit tests. WGS-4 was launched mid January and is the first spacecraft in the program's upgraded Block II series, which includes a new radio frequency bypass that supports the transmission of airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance imagery at data rates approximately three times greater than those currently available on Block I satellites. By passing test signals through each of the satellite's 19 antenna beams, the on-orbit testing demonstrated the functionality of WGS-4's communications payload features, and also verified its beam-steering functions. Air Force operations personnel at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado are conducting additional tests and preparing to move WGS-4 into its operational position by this summer.