AFA- Synchronizing Space Operation
Moderator: Col Stu Pettis, USAF (Ret)
Col Nathan Vosters, Director of Resources and Requirements, Space Forces Indo-Pacific
Col Christopher Putman, Commander, US Space Forces Central
Col Max Lants, Commander, USAFE-AFARICA Director of Space Operations
Priorities
Q: Priorities of CoCom?
Col Lants: In transition period, CSO announced that standing up EUCOM and AFRICOM space component. Challenge #1 get to standup and start function as service voice. Biggest challenge, need to be voice for combatant commander…both outwardly for COCOM as well as internally advocating and educating for space within the command and up channeling that information.
Col Putman: a little bit of un-education, DS4 no longer a construct, how do we gracefully educate ourselves…not going to leave great partners…how do we stand up new component and not leave Air Force [behind].
Col Vosters: Underlying connective issue, fallen into Indo-Pacom priorities, maintaining free Pacific as well as international order. Each service, supported nicely with plus up of folks…challenge remain with opportunities to continually bring space components to fight. Successes Q: Accomplishments made to better integrated Space Forces?
Col Putman: Partner, nation engagement in AOR…in CENTCOM have a lot of nations that want to become space fearing partners, how do we have engagements with these non-traditional partners. Ex) educating space 100 with Sudia Arabia…
Col Vosters: Participate in Tier-1 exercise as an established component, highlighted value that component brings to command and also interaction with other components… Q: Lessons learned from Watching components stood up?
Col Lants; Development of products, mission analysis…every AOC is unique because every COCOM is different…all have to be individually tailored to make sure supporting what COCOM needs from space perspective. EUCOM support with Ukraine, partner engagements, a lot of members in continent are interested in Space. AFRCIAM space as well, partner and engagement with no military space, but interest in civil space. Have to be good at tailoring at what COCOM needs. Working Together Within the Space Force Q: Director of space forces and component commander…new space force component to US Space command…how do you work together to meet objectives?
Col Vosters: Joint integrated space team (in Hawaii), look at selves as one team despite two different bosses…taking a look at actions/taskers how can we be mutually supportive…respecting roles and responsibilities and what other has to do. Synergy with geographically combatant command.
Col Lants: More work than can be done, looking to partner with US Space Command…average military member don’t understand between Space Force, Combatant command, and Space Force Component…space command is strategic perspective, Space Force component is geographical/regional…developing doctrine and thought process from Space perspective…capabilities that are global in nature (GPS, MW, etc)…Vandenberg do amazing to support us with that. Also, region capabilities/terrestrial effects that need to be based on timing and tempo of regional commander…regional global divide is helping us understand roles and responsibilities…integration to regional commander
Col Putman: Legacy of IPE construct, that trying to push behind us…decision to move to JIST, its an LNO..as soon as have conversation on what JIST is…anytime a key meeting, sit down with leadership and explain what differences are…there is more than enough work going around and have a good relationship. As Space Command gets organized and stands up components, that will start to clear up roles…getting there it takes time. Just has to make sure everyone understands the lanes of the road. Leveraging Partnerships Q: Buy what we can, only procure what we must…examples leveraging partnerships?
Col Vosters: work that industry is doing to bring capabilities at speed…where we can leverage what industry is doing with flexibility, scale, and resilience…mean a lot to a component commander and a combatant commander…providing those options are really important…like to work with partners and allies, understand what they are bringing to the fight so capabilities can be complimentary…been a priority at component working with Australia, Japanese, and South Korea…AOR nations with varying degrees footprint in space, how share global commons and what benefits have…benefits of maintaining rule based order in space, respective to each other and how collaborate…
Col Putman: A lot of nations, commercial is only way to move mission forward…best answer with us is to work with commercial partners that is not classified…gives latitude to work with mission partners…commercial opportunity for exercises…
Col Lants: Russia and Ukraine conflict showed that there was underestimated enormous growth of commercial space, and ability to rapidly support in the conflict …credit card to buy capability or allies help with support…lots of lessons learned…1)commercial provided Ukraine state of world space capability in a blink of an eye…2)worked with partners and allies, …nations able to make independent assessments…coalition formed organically without US having to play “trust me” card…open distribution of information. Significant changes in commercial environment…
Col Putman: how do we integrate commercial space across spectrum to not just partner piece, but also with US capabilities…two prong, enables partners, but inherent form of come back…
Col Vosters: ask question why is chart NOFORN comes up in Indo-Pacific…looking at where we can go to collaboration and information sharing environment. Benefit from us and sharing with allies and partners…ability from commercial side helps allies and partners.
Col Lants: Commercial is out front of military from a requirements standpoint…companies keeping images for years, able to playback tape on earth…take signature and research database with a very fast process…changes everything and being led by commercial industry…enabling COCOMs to have capability that they could have never imagined… Q: Nonmaterial solutions to work with partners and allies?
Col Vosters: Daily calls with Australian counterparts…planning together and information sharing together…way to engage in operations in the future want to double down and expand that effort to other partner nations in AOR…even looking to industry for how they are employing their systems. Mutually learning…
Col Putman: Space 100, one of great things brought NCO’s to unit to be instructors, the integration of NCO Corp is paying dividends as make inroads to countries…partners that just aren’t CENTCOM nations…ex) UK officer on staff their to see how do operations in combat environment then take back to operations…
Col Lants: NASINT capabilities bringing on, but other nations have very few professionals then been doing for decades…education is huge…they are just now building education is critical to that…a lot of nations not going to get to on-orbit capabilities anytime soon…seen from Ukraine strong interest in electromagnetic spectrum perspective…look at nations coming to us asking for training…start to think about SATCOM, jamming, terrestrial comm…nations close to Ukraine that they are learning…unexpected demand signal. Closing Comments:
Col Vosters: Even though represent different AOR’s definitely collaboration happening between the three organizations…share what we can…
Col Putman: 1) cross-command interaction but that also goes to supporting fires in US Space Command…2) Rotational amnesia is never going to go away…looking for volunteers…
Col Lants: 8 Dec when activate as a Space Force Component at EUCOM/AFRICAOM…great teammates with USAFE, they have been supporting the stand-up…partners within Space Command, staff, and headquarters Space Force supporting us under resourced as we stand up.
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