Looking for Free Thinkers: Peter Teets, former undersecretary of the Air Force and DOD executive agent for space, believes it is past time to “develop systems that integrate space professionals across the services.” Teets, who was speaking at the 2006 Space Warfare Symposium in Keystone, Colo., added, “We need more and better free thinking than we’ve ever had.” According to the Denver Post, Teets did not confine his comments to some 200 military and industry attendees to developing an integrated space cadre, he also asserted that the Pentagon must make information available to the tactical warfighter much more quickly. He called the inability to provide real-time data “a huge problem.”
The Air Force is planning to spend $2.19 billion over the next five years to acquire new C-37 jets for transporting military and civilian leaders. That’s on top of another $1.17 billion in projected funding for the VC-25B “Air Force One” replacement.