WGS procurement is through contracts with The Boeing Company issued by the Air Force Space Command's MILSATCOM Systems Directorate. The Directorate plans for, acquires and sustains space-enabled global communications to support the President, Secretary of Defense, and combat forces. WGS is the nation's next-generation wideband satellite communications system. It is replacing the Defense Satellite Communications System, the Department of Defense's backbone for satellite communications over the last two decades.
The Space and Missile Systems Center is the U.S. Air Force's center of acquisition excellence for acquiring and developing military space systems including Global Positioning System, military satellite communications, defense meteorological satellites, space launch and range systems, satellite control network, space based infrared systems, and space situational awareness capabilities.