The first Global Positioning System Block IIF satellite came through its initial integrated system test with flying colors. The GPS Wing at Los Angeles AFB, Calif., confirmed that all major subsystem are integrated properly on the satellite, which is slated for launch next year. But next it must go through acoustic, separation, and thermal vacuum testing, according to a Space and Missile Systems Center release.
With the Air Force in the midst of its biggest testing boom in decades, the Maintenance Operational Test (MxOT) Division at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., is making sure those tests include an often-overlooked perspective: that of maintainers.