The 2007 Air Force budget request allots $315 million to the Global Positioning System Block III satellite program, which is to offer higher anti-jam capabilities and improved accuracy and availability and integrity, as well as the capability to deny adversary use. The first launch for GPS III is slated for 2013. The 2007 dollars would fund a development contract for the spacecraft and a modernized ground segment.
Amid NATO’s continued push to ramp up air defenses in Eastern Europe, Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall swung by seven allied countries to boost relations last week, including those on Russia’s and Ukraine’s doorstep.