COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Lockheed Martin is targeting a May 2017 launch date for the first satellite in the US Air Force's next-generation global positioning system constellation.

The constellation, known as GPS 3, will improve the accuracy of the GPS network used in everything from military ordinance to getting around in your car.

Getting the first GPS 3 satellite online — originally projected to launch in 2014 — hasn't been easy. The first satellite was originally projected to launch in 2014. Much of the delay has been laid at the feet of subcontractor Exelis, which struggled with the development of the main payload. While those issues have been resolved, the damage to the schedule has been done.

The Air Force is locked into a contract with Lockheed for eight GPS 3 satellites, with options for up to four more. But service officials have indicated that they are considering opening the contract up to competition. Both Boeing and Northrop would likely enter such a competition.

Mark Valerio, Lockheed's vice president and general manager of military space programs, told reporters Monday that he expects the Air Force to go ahead with plans to compete the follow-on contract.

"We're not afraid of competition," Valerio said.

Just when that competition could start, however, isn't clear. Dave Madden, director of the Military Satellite Communications Systems Directorate at Space and Missile Systems Center, said last month that he wants to open competition on the GPS 3 system with satellite No. 11, and is having discussions about how to ensure an open competition; but the timing of such a it is possible that competition could be made earlier or later. move to the left or the right, however.

Valerio expressed confidence in Lockheed's capabilities to compete in the future, in part because of the infrastructure the company has developed to build the GPS 3 systems. He pointed to its assembly line setup, which uses advanced software to track equipment and limits the number of times the satellites need to be lifted, as a major advantage.

Email: amehta@defensenews.com

Twitter: @AaronMehta

About Aaron Mehta

Aaron Mehta was deputy editor and senior Pentagon correspondent for Defense News, covering policy, strategy and acquisition at the highest levels of the Defense Department and its international partners.

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