[Satellite TODAY 03-13-13] Boeing has shipped its fifth Wideband Global Satcom (WGS) satellite, which aims to provide faster transmission of airborne intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance imagery to the United States Air Force. WGS-5 arrived at the Astrotech processing facility March 9 and will undergo preflight checkout, fueling and integration before its launch later this year on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta 4 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Fla.

   WGS-5 is part of the Air Force’s upgraded Block 2 series, featuring performance upgrades such as a switchable radio frequency bypass that sends imagery approximately three times faster than the data rates currently available to the U.S. Department of Defense. The satellite will join four other Boeing-built WGS satellites to provide warfighters with instant, secure, worldwide connectivity. 

   “We worked closely with the Air Force to follow a commercial operating model on the Block II follow-on contract,” Boeing Space & Intelligence Systems Vice President and General Manager Craig Cooning said in a statement. “This new model has saved the Air Force more than $150 million without compromising mission assurance.”

   WGS satellites include enhanced capabilities designed for flexible communications in both X- and Ka-band frequencies, allowing terminals that operate in different frequency bands to interconnect and reposition coverage beams based on evolving mission needs. WGS-6 is the next satellite in the series to be produced under the Block 2 contract. The satellite completed testing and is scheduled for a mid-2013 launch date. WGS satellites -7 through -10 are in production under a Block 2 follow-on contract signed in August 2010.