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ViaSat has executed a contract with Boeing to build ViaSat-2, which is based on ViaSat’s next generation, Ka-Band satellite technology and architecture. ViaSat-2 is expected to be, by far, the world’s highest capacity satellite at the time of launch (scheduled for mid-2016) achieving an unparalleled mix of capacity and coverage.

An ITT Exelis product that detects and locates GPS interference sources in 3-D by using longitude, latitude and altitude has successfully completed a significant integration milestone.

With today’s launch of the fourth GPS IIF satellite, Boeing and the U.S. Air Force continue modernizing the Global Positioning System that millions of people worldwide rely on as a navigation and timing resource.

Northrop Grumman Corp. and the U.S. Navy launched a new chapter in the history of unmanned systems – carrier-capable unmanned aircraft – by successfully catapulting the X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) demonstrator from the deck of the USS George H.W. Bush(CVN-77).

Raytheon Co. has delivered two electronic attack payloads in support of the U.S. Army's Networked Electronic Warfare, Remotely Operated (NERO) system. The payloads were delivered as part of a contract awarded by the U.S. Navy NAVSEA-Crane in 2012. NERO is utilized on the Army's MQ-1C Gray Eagle UAS (Umanned Aircraft System) as an airborne electronic attack system capable of jamming enemy communications systems.

Ongoing activity in March and April included mergers and acquisitions, product launches and milestones, as well as seemingly healthy contract activity, but financials continue to emphasize the difficulties faced by the defense industry. Strategy Analytics Advanced Defense Systems (ADS) service reports, "Defense Electronics Industry Review: March 2013," and "Defense Electronics Industry Review: April 2013," detail significant defense industry news, including product announcements, milestones, contract activity and defense industry financial performance as the first quarter of 2013 came to a close.

Proba-V, a small satellite-based earth observation system for vegetation studies, developed by QinetiQ Space for the European Space Agency (ESA), has been launched from Kourou, French Guiana.

Boeing will build four more 702MP satellites for Intelsat S.A., furthering its role as the initial manufacturer of Intelsat’s new high-performance satellite fleet, Intelsat EpicNG. The 702MPs will deliver reliable, affordable and high-capacity data transmission that Intelsat customers can tailor to their needs.

ITT Exelis received a $9.4 million contract from Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, TX, to supply the Continuous Wave Illuminator (CWI) subsystem for the F-16 Fighting Falcon.