Excerpts from the United Launch Alliance Mission Overview:

The ULA team is proud to be the launch provider for the U.S. Air Force (USAF) Global Positioning System (GPS) Directorate by delivering replenishment satellites aboard Atlas V and Delta IV launch vehicles. GPS IIF-6 is one of the next generation GPS satellites, incorporating various improvements to provide greater accuracy, increased signals, and enhanced performance for users.

A United Launch Alliance Delta IV Medium+ (4,2) will deliver the GPS IIF-6 satellite to semi-synchronous circular orbit. Liftoff will occur from Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, FL.

The Navstar GPS is a constellation of satellites that provides navigation data to military and civilian users worldwide. The system is operated and controlled by the 50th Space Wing, located at Schriever Air Force Base, CO.

As a result of increased civil and commercial use as well as experience in military operations, the USAF has added the following capabilities and technologies to the GPS IIF series to sustain the space and control segments while improving mission performance:

• Two times greater predicted signal accuracy than heritage satellites.
• New L5 signals for more robust civil and commercial aviation.
• An on-orbit, reprogrammable processor, receiving software uploads for improved system operation.
• Military signal “M-code” and variable power for better resistance to jamming hostile environments, meeting the needs of emerging doctrines of navigation warfare.