What makes the most recent WAAS hosted payload special?

On this episode of the GovSat Report Radio, we revisit a government satellite program that we’ve discussed once before on the program – the Federal Aviation Administration’s Wide Area Augmentation System, or WAAS for short.

WAAS is a terrestrial and satellite network that augments GPS and ensures greater precision in the routing and piloting of aircraft. Needless to say, if you’ve ever flown on an airplane, you’re probably very happy that WAAS exists – even if you weren’t aware of it.

WAAS payloads have historically been launched into orbit as hosted payloads aboard commercial satellites. And that didn’t change with the most recently-launched WAAS payload, which was sent into orbit aboard SES-15, a hybrid satellite operated by commercial satellite provider, SES.

On this episode, we’re joined by representatives from the companies that made the most recent WAAS payload a reality - Raytheon and SES GS - who will speak to us about the launch, the SES-15 satellite and the future of the WAAS program moving forward. They are:

- Bryan Benedict, the Senior Director of Innovation and Satellite Programs at SES GS
- Dana Hargrave, the Senior Program Manager for WAAS at Raytheon