The new Space Force budget request omits funding for future tranches of the Space Development Agency’s data transport layer, teeing up a potential debate in Congress about the future of the organization and the service’s plan for managing both tactical and enterprise communication needs.
Space
The Trump administration on April 21 nominated Erich Hernandez-Baquero, an executive at Raytheon, to serve as assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition and integration.
The Space Force announced April 16 the establishment of a Cislunar Coordination Office to manage and craft a roadmap for the service’s nascent deep-space missions.
The Space Force is requesting $1 billion in fiscal 2027 to build four space operations centers around the country, part of a broader push to build up the service to match growing demand for space capabilities.
The Pentagon has canceled its contract with RTX to field a ground segment to manage its most capable GPS satellites, a more than 15-year effort beleaguered by software development issues and cost overages.
U.S. Space Command has tasked a team of internal analysts with laying the foundation for a future maneuver warfare strategy that uses advanced, on-orbit mobility to “shatter the enemy’s cohesion,” the command’s top officer said April 13.
Boeing and its subsidiary Millennium Space Systems are rolling out a new mid-class satellite bus they say will provide commercial and defense customers flexibility at a time when the Pentagon is pushing for more production and speed.
A recent injection of $475 million has reversed delayed delivery timelines for the Pentagon’s hypersonic missile interceptor by several years, Air Force Lt. Gen. Heath Collins, director of the Missile Defense Agency, told congressional leaders in an April 15 hearing.
The Space Force has selected an initial pool of vendors that will compete to build sensors and satellites that track airborne targets, as Pentagon officials push to transform the capability from a prototyping effort to an operational one.