14 DAY TRIAL // The US Air Force's Wideband Global SATCOM 4 spacecraft was successfully launched yesterday, January 19, from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), on Florida. Takeoff occurred at 7:38 pm EST (0038 GMT), and the satellite was flown to orbit aboard an ULA Delta IV delivery system.
The spacecraft was built by Boeing under a 2006 contract worth $464 million. WGS 4 is part of a planned satellite constellation that the US Defense Department wants to deploy for increasing its ability to provide high-throughput communication capabilities to military assets in foreign theaters.
“WGS-4 continues Boeing's commitment of supporting the Air Force's mission of delivering critical communications to warfighters. The company will remain focused, committed and dedicated to this mission as we continue to build the WGS series of satellites,” Boeing Space & Intelligence Systems VP and general manager Craig Cooning commented after the launch.