Three months after rocketing into space atop a Delta 4 booster, maneuvering into geosynchronous orbit 22,300 miles high and passing a thorough checkout, the U.S. Air Force's newest communications craft has been delivered into the hands of military controllers from builder Boeing.

An artist's concept of WGS antenna arrangement. Credit: Boeing

The Wideband Global SATCOM 4 satellite was transferred from Boeing control to Air Force operators on Wednesday. The initial flying of the bird was conducted from the aerospace firm's facilities in El Segundo, California, where the spacecraft was manufactured.

"This fourth WGS satellite adds substantial capacity and resiliency to the WGS constellation," said Craig Cooning, vice president and general manager, Boeing Space & Intelligence Systems. "The team worked around the clock to ensure that all testing was completed successfully, and that the satellite was healthy and ready for customer handover. We remain committed to the Air Force, the WGS mission, and to continuing to support the delivery of this critical enhancement of warfighter communications."

Boeing said in a statement that on-orbit testing had demonstrated the functionality of WGS 4's communications payload features by passing test signals through each of the satellite's 19 antenna beams. The tests also verified the craft's beam-steering functions.

The military ground control team will finish some additional testing on the satellite and reposition it over the Middle East to enter service this summer.

Valued at $464 million, the satellite joins three other WGS satellites that form the Pentagon's worldwide communications backbone across all branches of the military.

WGS 4 is the first craft, however, with an internal reconfiguration to improve communications bandwidth to the military's remote-controlled drones known for their stealthy and undercover operations in global hotspots for surveillance, intelligence-gathering and offensive operations.

Read more about WGS 4 in our earlier launch story.

The ever-growing WGS constellation now has four craft in space and five more in production. Teaming with five allied nations, Canada, Denmark, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and New Zealand, the Air Force ordered WGS 9 under the broadening fleet earlier this year.

All of these spacecraft provide high-data-rate, large-volume communications services from geosynchronous orbit. The provide 10 times the capacity over the heritage Defense Satellite Communications System birds they gradually replace in space.

"We don't see any reduction in wideband capability needed for the warfighter. It's just the opposite -- it's going exponential," Dave Madden, director of the Military Satellite Communications Systems Directorate at the Air Force's Space and Missile Systems Center, said on the eve of the WGS 4 launch in January.

"The Canadian Forces' recent efforts in Libya and Afghanistan have highlighted the critical importance of rapid communications between headquarters and deployed forces," Peter MacKay, minister of national defence, said in signing the WGS 9 deal. "This agreement with our allies will meet the requirement for secure data and voice transmissions, which are essential to the success of modern military operations."

Cooperation with other nations isn't new for the wideband program. Australia joined as a partner in 2007 and financed WGS 6 that will be launched next summer.

Additional coverage for subscribers:
VIDEO: WGS 4 BLASTS OFF ABOARD DELTA 4 PLAY | HI-DEF

VIDEO: DELTA 4 ROCKET LAUNCHES WITH WGS 3 PLAY

VIDEO: ATLAS 5 ROCKET LAUNCHES WITH WGS 2 PLAY
VIDEO: LAUNCH PREPARATIONS PLAY

VIDEO: WGS 1 LAUNCH SEEN FROM PRESS SITE PLAY
VIDEO: PRE-LAUNCH NEWS CONFERENCE PLAY
SUBSCRIBE NOW