It is operated by the United States National Reconnaissance Office.

[1] Following liftoff the rocket flew east, placing the satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit.

By 23:43 UTC, official updates on the status of the launch had been discontinued.

[2] Whilst details of its mission are officially classified, amateur observers have identified USA-227 as being a third-generation Satellite Data System satellite in geosynchronous orbit.

[3] The first amateur observation of the satellite was made on 6 April 2011,[4][5] when the spacecraft was located at a longitude of 30.4° west.