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.
An important U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry AWACS command and control plane was among the aircraft damaged in a March 27 Iranian missile and drone attack on Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, people familiar with the matter told Air & Space Forces Magazine.