Boeing has completed environmental tests on the first Global Positioning System Block IIF satellite that it is building for the Air Force, thereby confirming the mechanical integrity of the spacecraft, the company announced July 1. Members of Boeing’s industry team conducted a series of acoustic tests under Air Force supervision at Boeing’s facility in El Segundo, Calif., to replicate the noise levels to which the satellite will be exposed during its launch into orbit. Boeing said it is on track to deliver this first satellite to the Air Force this year for subsequent launch. Overall, it is building 12 Block IIF satellites.
The Air Force and Boeing agreed to a nearly $2.4 billion contract for a new lot of KC-46 aerial tankers on Nov. 21. The deal, announced by the Pentagon, is for 15 new aircraft in Lot 11 at a cost of $2.389 billion—some $159 million per tail.