Boeing has completed and shipped six of the 12 GPS 2F satellites to the U.S. Air Force today after on-orbit testing was completed successfully. The 2F satellites are the fourth generation of Boeing-manufactured GPS devices designed to improve GPS signal performance and accuracy worldwide. The United Launch Alliance (ULA) launched the sixth GPS 2F satellite from Florida on May 16, 2014, marking the second launch in three months. The next launch is scheduled for the third quarter of 2014.
Currently, there are a total of 27 functional satellites in orbit around the Earth providing GPS signals worldwide. There are also 3-5 decommissioned satellites also in orbit, waiting to be reactivated in case of a failure of another satellite. The first GPS satellite was launched in 1978, and a full constellation was achieved in 1994. Since then, the Air Force has successfully expanded the configuration to include additional satellites, increasing the coverage and accuracy for GPS devices worldwide.
