Sen. Wayne Allard (R-Colo.) says that the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee approved, at his request, more than $10 million for space-related activities at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. If approved in the final 2007 defense appropriations bill, the bulk of the money—$10 million—would go toward reconfiguration of a new four-meter telescope for ground use. The telescope was to be part of USAF’s space-based laser project. Another $500,000 would go toward the academy’s Center for Space and Defense Studies, created last year, said Allard in a statement, “to build an intellectual foundation for space policy and develop Air Force officers with a vocation for space.”
Air Force depots are not typically meant for quick repair jobs, but during Operation Epic Fury, the service moved some of its stateside heavy maintenance capability forward to fix battle-damaged aircraft closer to the fight.
