JUMPSEAT
JUMPSEAT was the code name for a series of SIGINT (Signal Intelligence) satellites built by Hughes for the NRO. Eight satellites were launched between 1971 and 1987 under NRO Mission 7700. The numerical designation of JUMPSEAT was Air Force Program (AFP-) 711. The satellites operated in highly elliptic Molniya orbits with 63° inclination, and monitored suspected Soviet ABM radar sites.
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| Image: NRO |
| JUMPSEAT |
Very few solid information is available on JUMPSEAT. Even the dates of the launches are not 100 percent certain, because JUMPSEAT used the same types of launch vehicle and Molniya orbit as the early SDS communication satellites. This made it very hard for observers and analysts to tell an SDS from a JUMPSEAT. The launch table below shows the dates, which reputable sources seem to agree on, but it cannot be excluded than one or more of JUMPSEAT 5/6/7 was actually SDS 3/4/5 (and vice versa).
JUMPSEAT was succeeded in the 1990s by the TRUMPET series.
JUMPSEAT Launch List
- No.: Sequential flight number for the JUMPSEAT program
- Name: Unclassified name of the satellite. The OPS number ("OPS" standing for "Operations") is a random number given to all military-related satellite launches between 1963 and May 1984 Since June 1984, U.S. military satellites get a sequential "USA" number. "NROL" stands for National Reconnaissance Office Launch, a number assigned by the NRO to its satellite launches since 1996.
- Mission: Each mission had a unique NRO Mission number in the 77xx range.
- COSPAR ID: International designation of the satellite
| No. | Name | Mission | COSPAR ID | Launch | Launch Vehicle |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | OPS 4788 | 7701 | 1971-021A | 21 Mar 1971 | Titan-3(33)B-Agena D |
| 2 | OPS 1844 | 7702 | Launch failure | 16 Feb 1972 | Titan-3(33)B-Agena D |
| 3 | OPS 7724 | 7703 | 1973-056A | 21 Aug 1973 | Titan-3(33)B-Agena D |
| 4 | OPS 2439 | 7704 | 1975-017A | 10 Mar 1975 | Titan-3(34)B-Agena D |
| 5 | OPS 6031 | 7705 | 1978-021A | 25 Feb 1978 | Titan-3(34)B-Agena D |
| 6 | OPS 7225 | 7706 | 1981-038A | 24 Apr 1981 | Titan-3(34)B-Agena D |
| 7 | OPS 7304 | 7707 | 1983-078A | 31 Jul 1983 | Titan-3(34)B-Agena D |
| 8 | OPS 7304 | 7708 | 1983-078A | 31 Jul 1983 | Titan-3(34)B-Agena D |
JUMPSEAT launches
Main Sources
[1] Dwayne A. Day: From TACSAT to JUMPSEAT:
Hughes and the top secret Gyrostat satellite gamble, The Space Review, December 2020
[2] Jonathan McDowell: Jonathan's Space Home Page
[3] JUMPSEAT Fact Sheet, NRO, 2026
[4] Gunter Krebs: Gunter's Space Page (for launch lists)
Back to Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles, Appendix 3
Last Updated: 30 January 2026