Lockheed Martin says first GPS 3 satellite delayed until December

Lockheed Martin has pushed back the delivery of the first satellite in the U.S. Air Force’s next generation of positioning, navigation and timing satellites by four months after discovering a problem with the navigation payload, the company said Sept. 14. Lockheed Martin officials had said in March that they had planned to deliver the first of the GPS-3 satellites to the Air Force in August, but now expect the satellite to be available in December. While the Air Force previously has said the satellite would launch no earlier than 2017, some industry officials expect that a 2018 launch is more likely especially as the Pentagon absorbs delays with the next-generation GPS ground system known as the Operational Control Segment. More

(Source: SpaceNews - Sep 15)