Geostationary
AEHF-3 (USA 246)
Military EHF Communications · US Space Force
Right now
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The third AEHF satellite, completing the primary operational constellation and achieving true global protected military communications coverage. With three AEHF satellites operational, no point on Earth where the US military operates is ever out of reach of jam-proof, nuclear-survivable communications. AEHF-3 also carries the first operational crosslinks between AEHF satellites, allowing messages to be routed through space without touching the ground — pure space-based military internet.
Its orbit
- Orbit
- Geostationaryappears to hang motionless over one spot on the equator
- Altitude
- 22,000–22,484 mi (35,406–36,184 km)
- Inclination
- 5.5°
- One orbit
- 23.9 hoursabout one orbit a day
- NORAD ID
- 39256
- Int’l designator
- 2013-050A
- Launched
- 2013
Orbital elements from CelesTrak, as of 22 Sep 2026.
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