Air Force Space Command earlier this month transferred control authority of the latest on-orbit GPS IIF navigation satellite to the airmen of the 2nd Space Operations Squadron and Air Force Reserve Command’s 19th SOPS at Schriever AFB, Colo., according to a release. “Ownership has been transferred from the developers to the operators,” said 2nd SOPS Commander Lt. Col. Todd Benson in the April 17 release. “We’ll continue with more on-orbit checkup. Soon, we’ll set the vehicle ‘healthy to all users,’ which means the general populace can start using it,” he added. The Air Force and its industry partners on March 25 launched this satellite, the ninth GPS-IIF spacecraft, into space from the central Florida coast. It was the first of three GPS IIF launches scheduled in 2015. The Schriever airmen took control of the satellite on April 3, states the release. AFSPC in 2014 deployed the most GPS satellites that it has in more than 20 years, launching four into orbit.
NASA Boss: Race to Moon Has National Security Stakes
Sept. 15, 2026
NASA is pushing hard to get astronauts back to the moon by 2028—and the urgency is driven in no small part by the national security implications of doing so before China does, Administrator Jared Isaacman said Sept. 15.
