Colorado Springs, Colo. The Air Force will “stand up a three-star deputy chief of staff for space,” Gen. Jay Raymond, chief of Air Force Space Command said. When the position is finalized and filled, the Air Force will have someone at the Pentagon who will “come to work every day focused on” integrating space into multi-domain warfighting, Raymond said at the 33rd Space Symposium on Tuesday. The new deputy will have plenty of work to do, Raymond said, as space leadership in the Air Force is currently focused on “getting after rapid acquisition processes” by shifting “milestone decision authority” from the Department of Defense to the Air Force, as the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act requires. Another goal will be to “leverage ORS authority” and expand its acquisition power to other programs, he said, making reference to the Operationally Responsive Space office at Kirtland AFB, N.M.
U.S. munitions have been expended at a high rate during Operation Epic Fury against Iran, prompting concerns that the Pentagon is eating into weapons stockpiles it needs to deter threats around the world. Yet the newly released $1.5 trillion defense budget request was developed before the war against Iran and…