Boeing and Air Force officials last month celebrated 20 years of operations for the first Global Positioning System Block IIA satellite, which is designated GPS Block IIA-10 (SVN-23). The Air Force and its industry partners placed this satellite into orbit on Nov. 26, 1990, and it began operations two weeks later. Built by then-Rockwell (now Boeing), it had an intended design life of 7.5 years, but has already served longer than any other GPS satellite. Air Force officials anticipate that it has another year to 18 months of life left in it. The overall GPS constellation comprises 31 operational satellites today (11 Block IIA, 12 Block IIR, seven Block IIR-M, and one Block IIF). The Block IIF spacecraft entered service on Aug. 26. Following 12 Block IIFs will come the Lockheed Martin-built GPS Block III model, the first of which is projected to launch in 2014. (Los Angeles release)
Due to the prolonged delay in deliveries of the Tech Refresh 3 version of the F-35 fighter, Denmark is pulling six of its TR-2-configured F-35 jets stationed in the U.S. back to home base in order to consolidate aircraft and get better training for its pilots and maintainers, the Danish…