Lockheed Martin has been awarded a $395 million Air Force contract to provide the ninth and 10th GPS III satellites.
The contract covers funding for long-lead items as well as full production for the two satellites, according to a Lockheed Martin news release. The first eight satellites are already in production at the company’s Denver facility.
“The Lockheed Martin team is finishing up final testing and integration activities on the first GPS III satellite, GPS III SV01, and is preparing to deliver it to the Air Force later this year,” the company said. “The second satellite, GPS III SV02, is poised to have its major functional systems fully integrated into one space vehicle prior to starting its own environmental testing. GPS III SV03 also is beginning to take form in the company’s production clean room as its major subcomponents are being assembled.”
GPS III is supposed to provide more accurate GPS data, less vulnerability to jamming and longer spacecraft life.
Air Force orders 2 more GPS III satellites
