Posted on Aug 20, 2020
Why is the Space Force a whole different military branch instead of a command under the Air Force? Is there any advantage?
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As a former officer who spent half his career around fighter jets and half around space systems, I will tell you from an insider point of view.
Point 1: Personnel and expertise. Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) was a major command with about 35,000 personnel, but not all of those personnel were entirely space-focused. Also there were other space cadre spread throughout the Air Force serving at the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), and Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). Some of the space cadre were being moved in and out of the space community every 3-4 years. By creating a separate branch of the military, the US Space Force (USSF) can now manage its cadre of space personnel in a more focused manner.
Point 2: Funding. The AFSPC budget was about $10B per year (using round numbers) out of the entire, joint space budget of $12B. There is $38B of funding that was used as a "pass-through" to the intelligence community for classified programs. The US Air Force (USAF) budget is about $200B per year, minus the $10B for AFSPC and the $38B pass-through, leaving the USAF to "execute" a $200B with "only" $152B. The separation of of the USSF from the USAF means that the USAF owns almost all of the budget that it must execute and report to Congress, and now the USSF gets its own budget that it does not need to compete against fighter jets, bombers, and some portion of the classified pass-through. Ideally, the USSF would have about 50% control over that intelligence community pass-through. By creating a separate branch of the military, both the USAF and the USSF can better manage the funding they receive.
Point 3: Unity of command and new applications of space power. Before the creation of USSF, a good amount of the space forces in all branches was shared with air, ground, sea, marine, and cyber forces. Around the same time that the USSF was created, the Department of Defense stood up an eleventh unified command, US Space Command (USSPACECOM). Under this construct, USSF has unity of command in terms of the organize, train, and equip function for the joint space forces, and the majority of those functions ($10B out of $12B budget (83%), and the plurality of the now 40k personnel (20k or 50% USSF, 15k or 38% USAF/NRO/other (for now), and 5k Army/Navy). This also opens the door for the US Army and US Navy to have combatant command authority over the joint space forces in a more meaningful, efficient, and combat-lethal manner. To be fair, the USAF/ AFSPC did not use space forces as a combat multiplier or a lethal combat force. When US Army's GEN James Dickinson takes over as USSPACECOM commander, the joint space forces will gain a combatant commander whose command experience spans strategic, operational, and tactical command and operations experience. Nothing against US Space Force Gen Jay Raymond, but the lethal application of military power looks very different from a Minuteman missile silo or Joint Space Operations Center console compared to an air defense artillery battery or a tactical operations center in Afghanistan or Iraq. By creating a separate branch of the military, the DoD gains more unity of command at the strategic, operational and tactical levels (rather than a purely strategic support function as it was under AFSPC).
Point 1: Personnel and expertise. Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) was a major command with about 35,000 personnel, but not all of those personnel were entirely space-focused. Also there were other space cadre spread throughout the Air Force serving at the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), and Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). Some of the space cadre were being moved in and out of the space community every 3-4 years. By creating a separate branch of the military, the US Space Force (USSF) can now manage its cadre of space personnel in a more focused manner.
Point 2: Funding. The AFSPC budget was about $10B per year (using round numbers) out of the entire, joint space budget of $12B. There is $38B of funding that was used as a "pass-through" to the intelligence community for classified programs. The US Air Force (USAF) budget is about $200B per year, minus the $10B for AFSPC and the $38B pass-through, leaving the USAF to "execute" a $200B with "only" $152B. The separation of of the USSF from the USAF means that the USAF owns almost all of the budget that it must execute and report to Congress, and now the USSF gets its own budget that it does not need to compete against fighter jets, bombers, and some portion of the classified pass-through. Ideally, the USSF would have about 50% control over that intelligence community pass-through. By creating a separate branch of the military, both the USAF and the USSF can better manage the funding they receive.
Point 3: Unity of command and new applications of space power. Before the creation of USSF, a good amount of the space forces in all branches was shared with air, ground, sea, marine, and cyber forces. Around the same time that the USSF was created, the Department of Defense stood up an eleventh unified command, US Space Command (USSPACECOM). Under this construct, USSF has unity of command in terms of the organize, train, and equip function for the joint space forces, and the majority of those functions ($10B out of $12B budget (83%), and the plurality of the now 40k personnel (20k or 50% USSF, 15k or 38% USAF/NRO/other (for now), and 5k Army/Navy). This also opens the door for the US Army and US Navy to have combatant command authority over the joint space forces in a more meaningful, efficient, and combat-lethal manner. To be fair, the USAF/ AFSPC did not use space forces as a combat multiplier or a lethal combat force. When US Army's GEN James Dickinson takes over as USSPACECOM commander, the joint space forces will gain a combatant commander whose command experience spans strategic, operational, and tactical command and operations experience. Nothing against US Space Force Gen Jay Raymond, but the lethal application of military power looks very different from a Minuteman missile silo or Joint Space Operations Center console compared to an air defense artillery battery or a tactical operations center in Afghanistan or Iraq. By creating a separate branch of the military, the DoD gains more unity of command at the strategic, operational and tactical levels (rather than a purely strategic support function as it was under AFSPC).
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Maj Walter Kilar
Note that the numbers above were based on earlier projections from FY20. I have seen proposals for a $20B space budget and a $10B cyber budget for FY21.
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Because the Air Force will capitalize on the situation, eat 90% of their budget, and the Space Force will be left eating scraps.
Same thing that happened to the Marine Corps since it was organized under the Department of the Navy...
Same thing that happened to the Marine Corps since it was organized under the Department of the Navy...
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The Air Force fought for years to keep it under them. The Space Force concept has been being pitched since President Obama was in office. The AF didn’t want to lose the funding that would go if their space assets were pulled. The decision was made before President Trump took office to make it a separate branch, but it wasn’t fully funded until after he took over. For several years military and civilian policy makers pushed for a separate branch but the AF lobbied heavily against it.
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Maj Walter Kilar
To amplify your point, some version of the space force had been proposed by multiple Congressmen going back to the days of President G.W. Bush. At one point it made more sense for the Air Force to fight the idea of an independent branch, because as you pointed out, the Air Force would lose a huge chunk of funding. As the GWOT kept trudging on, the space budget and the pass-through budget for the intelligence community became too much of a drain on the Air Force, which just wanted to build new fighter jets, long range strike bombers, new tankers, and new hypersonic missile systems (offense and defense). By letting the Space Force loose and hopefully pawning that intelligence community pass-through off on the Space Force, the Air Force can now focus on its priority of air power (and less on air and space power).
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