Air Force Space Command


Air Force Space Command was a major command of the United States Air Force from September 1982 to December 2019. On 20 December 2019, concurrent with the signing of the National Defense Authorization Act for 2020, it was re-designated as the United States Space Force and became a new sixth service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for space warfare.
AFSPC had its headquarters at Peterson Air Force Base and supported U.S. military operations worldwide through the use of many different types of space operations. More than 38,000 people performed AFSPC missions at 88 locations worldwide; including military personnel of the USAF, Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard; Department of the Air Force civilians; and civilian contractors.

History

In 1982, Space Command was formed to centralize missile warning operations and space launch operations. In 1985, Space Command was renamed Air Force Space Command.
In 1991, the lessons learned during Operation Desert Storm provided emphasis for AFSPC's new focus on support to other branches of the military. AFSPC was the subject of a 60 Minutes News segment on CBS in April 2015. When speaking with reporter David Martin, commanding General John E. Hyten was able to state that the program was doing its part in keeping the global world of GPS satellites and other important global satellite usage peaceful. Possible issues included the development of anti-satellite technology, and the new Boeing X-37 spaceplane was also discussed.
In 2016 Air Force Space Command began its Space Mission Force concept of operations to respond quickly to attacks in space. Each Space Wing's space operators underwent special training before serving a four to six month mission rotation.
On 20 December 2019, Air Force Space Command was redesignated as the U.S. Space Force and elevated to become a military service.

Mission

According to AFSPC, its mission was to "Provide resilient and affordable space capabilities for the Joint Force and the Nation."
AFSPC's primary mission areas were:
Operations at Vandenberg Air Force Base and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station provided services, facilities and range safety control for the conduct of space launches. AFSPC was responsible for the command and control of all US DoD satellites, providing global coverage, secure communications, weather and navigational data, and threat warning. Ground-based radar and Defense Support Program satellites monitored ballistic missile launches around the world to guard against a surprise missile attack on North America. Space surveillance radars provided vital information on the location of satellites and space debris for the nation and the world.
Space Situational Awareness was the most important protective measure that could be applied to satellites, which are inherently vulnerable due to the physics of spaceflight. As of 2013, AFSPC was also considering the replacement of a few large multimission satellites with larger numbers of smaller single purpose platforms. This may be used to defend against ASATs by increasing the number of targets that would need to be attacked to neutralize space-based capabilities.

Resources

Satellites

Fourteenth Air Force

The Fourteenth Air Force was an active Numbered Air Force that was located at Vandenberg AFB, California. It was responsible for launching payloads to space from facilities in California and Florida and managed the generation and employment of space forces to support U.S. Strategic Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command operational plans and missions.

Direct Reporting Units

AFSPC was responsible for providing space assets to the U.S. Strategic Command. AFSPC also supported NORAD with ballistic missile warning information, operates the Space Warfare Center to develop space capabilities, and was responsible for the US DoD ICBM follow-on operational test and evaluation program.
The Space and Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles AFB, California, designs and acquires all Air Force and most Department of Defense space systems. It oversees launches, completes on-orbit checkouts, then turns systems over to user agencies. It supports the program executive officer for Space on the NAVSTAR Global Positioning, Defense Satellite Communications and MILSTAR systems. SMC also supports the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program and the Follow-on Early Warning System. In addition, it supports development and acquisition of land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles for the Air Force Program Executive Office for Strategic Systems.

Locations

The AFSPC headquarters was a major unit located at Peterson AFB, Colorado. There were six AFSPC host bases:
AFSPC also operated several Air Force Stations for launch support and early warning missions: