The Air Force’s launch schedule is filling up fast as new capabilities come online. In an effort to maintain efficiencies and prevent unnecessary delays, Air Force Space Command is reworking the way it schedules launches, said Gen. Robert Kehler, the command’s boss, in his Friday address at AFA’s Global Warfare Symposium in Los Angeles. Instead of scheduling just one launch, command officials are looking to “keep multiple contenders” in line to ensure that they don’t lose a coveted launch spot if a program experiences delays, he said. “The days of playing schedule roulette are over,” asserted Kehler.
Advancements in commercial space technology could make President Donald Trump’s proposed “Golden Dome” missile defense network far more likely to succeed than the failed “Star Wars” strategic umbrella initiative of the 1980s, U.S. Space Command’s top general said May 22....