Loren Thompson of the Lexington Institute has just issued a short report on the Transformational Satellite Communications program to “explain why TSAT is the single most important technology initiative undertaken in pursuit of military transformation, and why failure … could have devastating consequences.” This system—a constellation of five sats designed to provide an Internet-protocol-based global information network—would deliver secure, jam-resistant, continuous connectivity for stationary or mobile warfighters, says Thompson. He cautions that it is “complicated and expensive” and “represents a monumental [technological and operational integration] challenge,” but he notes that most of its key technologies “have been matured in earlier programs.” Thompson urges “stable funding” to see the program through the “pitfalls seen in other space programs.” Congress has been prone to drain funding from space programs, but the tide, in this case, could be turning. Currently, the Space and Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles AFB, Calif., is considering contractor proposals and expects to award a contact for the program’s space segments sometime this fall.
The Defense Innovation Unit is gearing up for the first flight of its commercially developed hypersonic testbed as soon as the end of February—part of a larger project to quickly increase the cadence of the Pentagon’s hypersonic flight testing and field advanced, high-speed systems and components at scale.
