WASHINGTON – Boeing Co. has won a contract potentially worth $1.3 billion to build a new series of communications satellites for the Pentagon.
The U.S. Air Force awarded the Wideband Gapfiller contract to Boeing Space and Communications Group, Seal Beach, California, Jan. 3. The contract has a base value of $160.3 million, which covers development and construction of the first satellite, said Air Force Capt. Joseph Della Vedova, a spokesman for the service.
The Air Force intends to buy at least three Wideband Gapfiller spacecraft and has options for another three, which would bring the contract value to $1.3 billion, Della Vedova said.
The Wideband Gapfiller constellation, which is slated to begin launching in 2004, will augment the current Defense Satellite Communications System satellites. The Wideband Gapfiller satellites also will serve as a bridge to the Pentagon’s next-generation of dedicated general-purpose communications spacecraft.
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