The Air Force has given up plans to accelerate the Advanced Extremely High Frequency communications satellite program (because it cannot find the money to pay to do it faster) and will have to settle for a first launch in 2005. To save $250 million, the Air Force (which had planned to buy five satellites and launch four of them) will leave the spare satellite unassembled after buying its parts. Should it be needed, it will take 24 months to put the parts together and launch it.--Stephen V Cole