The Chief of Space Operations announced the transfer of Army and Navy satellite communications billets, funding, and mission responsibility to the U.S. Space Force.
Space Force Gen. John W. “Jay” Raymond made the announcement at the Air Force Association meeting in Washington, yesterday. The transfers are scheduled to be effective October 1, 2021, if the DoD budget is passed and signed.
“We’re one team with our sister services, and over the last year and a half, we have worked with the Army and the Navy and the Air Force to determine which capabilities come over to the Space Force,” Raymond said. “The intent was to consolidate (and) increase our operational capability; increase our readiness and do so in a more efficient manner.”
The changes are “a first tranche,” he said.
This is the latest step in building the new Service. The idea behind the U.S. Space Force was “to create a unity of effort around our space enterprise,” said Space Force Lt. Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, the Service’s Deputy Chief of Space Operations for Operations, Cyber and Nuclear. “Simply forming the Service made the idea of looking for efficiencies possible.”