U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command 

publishes the Army Space Journal quarterly, with special editions as required. 

The publication consists of four sections, THE LEADING EDGE – Leadership 

Updates; TALKING SHOP – Space Topics; TIP OF THE SPHERE – Space Cadre 

News & Features; and FLIPSIDE – USASMDC Features & Briefs.

The Journal provides a forum through which Space and Missile Defense 

professionals can disseminate professional knowledge and furnish information 

within the U.S. Army. The purpose is to increase the effectiveness of Space 

operations through a professional discussion of events and lessons learned. 

It is also intended to inform the Army Warfighter on Army Space issues.

c o m m a n d i n g g e n e r a l

LTG Richard P. Formica

c o m m a n d s e r g e a n t m a j o r

CSM Larry S. Turner

d e p u t y t o t h e c o m m a n d e r

Dr. Steven L. Messervy

d e p u t y c o m m a n d e r f o r o p e r a t i o n s

COL Timothy R. Coffin

d i r e c t o r o f f u t u r e w a r f a r e c e n t e r

Mr. Larry Burger

d i r e c t o r o f t h e t e c h n i c a l c e n t e r

Ms. Debra G. Wymer

d i r e c t o r, d o t d

Terry Nelson

d i r e c t o r, p u b l i c a f f a i r s

Marco Morales

e d i t o r i n c h i e f

Michael L. Howard

m a n a g i n g e d i t o r

Mr. Richard Burks

g r a p h i c d e s i g n / c r e a t i v e d i r e c t o r

Mr. Michael Kahl

c o n t r i b u t i n g e d i t o r s

Ms. Rachel L. Griffith

Mr. Scott Andreae

Mr. DJ Montoya

CPT Mike Odgers

SGT Benjamin Crane

Recipient of 2002, 2003, 2008 and 2009 Department of the Army Keith L. Ware 

recognition for Excellence in Journalism. For 2009, received 1st place in Art/

Graphics in Support of a Publication, 3rd place in Photojournalism.

Comments, inquiries and manuscripts should be sent to the Director, Future 

Warfare Center, Directorate of Combat Development, ATTN:

Richard Burks

1330 Inverness Dr., Suite 440

Colorado Springs CO 80910

Telephone: 719-622-2902

Fax: 719-622-2951

E-mail: Space.journal@us.army.mil

www.smdc-armyforces.army.mil/ASJ 

Distribution is made to the general public, Functional Area 40 officers and 

associated military officers, civilians and contractors. Changes to addresses 

and requests for this publication should be made to the Future Warfare Center, 

Directorate of Combat Development address listed above.

The Army Space Journal is an authorized publication of the U.S. Army Space and 

Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command in accordance with AR 

25-30 and AR 360-1. The Commanding General, U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense 

Command, has directed that the publication of this periodical is necessary in the transaction 

of the public business as required by law. Use of funds for printing this publication were 

approved by the Commanding General in January 2001.

The views and opinions expressed in the Army Space Journal are not 

necessarily those of the Department of the Army or U.S. Army Space and 

Missile Defense Command.

2011 

Fall 

Edition

the Leading Edge

/ / l e a d e r s h i p u p d a t e s / /

S pa c e C a pa b i l i t i e s

H e l p C r e at e

USASMDC /AR STRAT 4

Streamlined, Steady, & Sharp

By LTG Richard P. Formica

Space Systems 6

A Must Have for the Modern Fight

By CSM Larry S. Turner 

Building Capabilities 8

Today, Tomorrow, & the Day After Tomorrow

By Dr. Steven L. Messervy 

People Power 10

Finding the Return on Investment

By COL Timothy R. Coffin

iSpace 12

Operational Utility of Smart Phones

By Mr. Larry Burger

A New Phase 14

Working for Technical Superiority

By Ms. Debra G. Wymer

Soldiers stationed at JTAGS 

Korea provide vital support 

to their customers.

cover design & layout: Michael Kahl

flipside cover design & layout: Michael Kahl

cover photo: Combat Camera Courtesy photo

filpside cover photo: Courtesy 1st Space Company 
Communicating Space & Missile Defense to the Warfighter

talking Shop

/ / Sp a c e c a d r e n e w s & f e a t u r e s / /

/ / u s a s m d c f e a t u r e s & b r i e f s / /

/ / Sp a c e & m i s s i l e d e f e n s e t o p i c s / /

Tip of the Sphere

The FlipSide

SSG Christopher 

Douglas, PVT 

Jonathan Segarra 

and SGT Vyncent 

Beasley help clear 

debris after an 

earthquake and 

tsunami devastated 

Japan in March.

Photo Courtsey 

1st Space Company

These pages are 

flipped by design.

Turn them over to 

continue reading.

Lasting Partnerships

Space Professional 

Personnel Update .............. 56

Section Coordinator Michael Connolly

Training Insights ................ 58

Section Coordinator Larry Mize

Alternative Methodologies ......... 58

Space Training Division 

Course Listings .......................... 62

By Daryl Breitbach

Congratulations Graduates ....... 66

Career Management ........... 71

Section Coordinator MAJ Glen Hees

Operation New Dawn Ends 18

Army Tactical & Operational 

Space Faces a Strategic Crossroads

By Multiple Contributors

United States and Australia 26

An old Alliance, fortified through SATCOM

By Wing Commander Patrick J. Del Guidice

Space Systems 30

Provide an Edge in Australia - U.S. Exercise

By MSG Corine Lombardo 

Aussies & Yanks 32

Pacific SSE Reaches Three Goals

By Multiple Contributors

Knowing Northcom 36

Director Unravels Missile Defense

By CPT Michael Odgers

Missile Defense Exercise Spans Globe 38

Warfighters Learn Better Communication

By SGT Benjamin Crane

Protecting Soldiers 40

Protecting Research and Technology

By Jeffrey W. Bennett

Space Support European Style 44

Highlights Challenges and Joint Operations

By Rachel L. Griffith 

JTAG S Korea 46

By Rachel L. Griffith

European Satellite Center 50

Provides Vital Access

By Rachel L. Griffith 

In Touch with Most of the World 52

C Company Reaches Two-Thirds of the Globe

By Rachel L. Griffith 

Acting as One Team 54

Commercial Imagery Allows Sharing with Partners

By CPT Mike Hance
//// Discussing Everything Space

//// Straight Talk – Reporting from the Trenches

michael.howard@smdc-cs.army.mil

Andy Rooney died. I always liked him because 

he questioned things and people of authority. I saw him on “60 minutes” as a disheveled 

elderly man who mostly needed to trim his eyebrows 

and seemed a bit grouchy and even unpleasant. He usually came up with some oddball piece challenging this 

manufacturer or that one for the size of a cereal box 

or other marketing ploy. But he always spoke his mind. 

He was never unwilling to take on powerful leaders, 

politicians or businesses for their slights on the average, 

everyday Joe. On television, he walked a mile and more 

in our shoes, so to speak, and he did it for 33 of his 92 

years. He earned his way to have a masterful presence 

that will continue in memory. I can hear Rooney’s voice 

telling the television camera right now how it would be 

impossible for him to have a presence if he were not 

here. That’s the voice of reason that made him so popular with his audience.

For me, there has always been more to the Rooney story. 

In a way, he’s even iconic. When I think of Rooney and his 

mannerisms and words, I think of WWII, the campaigns 

in the European and Pacific theaters of war. I think of my 

favorite General in the Army, General Dwight D. Eisenhower 

and my least favorites, Generals Douglas MacArthur and 

George Patton. I think of Stars and Stripes, the independent military newspaper overseas. I think of my talks with 

Bill Mauldin, who created the Pulitzer-winning cartoon series 

Willie and Joe while serving on the staff of the European Stars 

and Stripes with Rooney. I think of Soldiers yesterday, today 

and even in the future. And, I think of my dad who passed 

away years ago. The very first Soldier I ever knew was my 

father, although he had taken off the uniform long before 

I was born. Maybe that explains why I think of the average 

Soldier down in the trenches fighting when I consider all 

these things that Rooney triggers in my mind.

So it all gravitates – starts there, really – to the greatest 

generation that endured war. I have been a military journalist for all but three of my adult years and have come to 

know many Soldiers over the years. I read my first Stars and 

Stripes newspaper sitting on a curb in Frankfurt, Germany 

while on my way to my first job as a battalion journalist in 

1979. From that day, I wanted to write for Stripes. It represented a level of professionalism and excellence in journalism that was meaningful to me. I did not know it then, 

but that attraction connected me to the past and my strong 

viewpoint on communication today. When I eventually did 

make it to the Stripes staff in Tokyo in the mid-1980s, I was 

able to experience just a touch of being a Soldier working 

the grind of a journalist for a daily newspaper.

The key to understanding the value of Stripes – 

Mauldin, Rooney, my dad, Eisenhower, MacArthur, Patton 

and WWII veterans – is to understand the newspaper’s 

premise. Stripes began as a Union newspaper in the Civil 

War. Afterwards it stopped printing until World War I. In 

1942, Eisenhower brought the newspaper back in Europe 

with Army Soldiers Mauldin and Rooney a part of the original staff. In 1945, MacArthur started an edition for the 

Pacific troops. Since then, both editions have published 

continuously for U.S. peacetime and combat troops serving 

overseas – to include conflicts in Korea, Vietnam, Bosnia, 

Straight Talk 

– Reporting from

 the Trenches
File Edit Post Comment

//// Discussing Everything Space

All Posts Posts by ASJ Posts by Others Wall-to-Wall

Mike Howard on Facebook

Facebook Notes

Links //// Get Space Here

Submit an Article

space.journal@us.army.mil

Find us online

www.smdc-armyforces.army.mil\ASJ

Mike Howard

Space Professional,

Please answer as many of the following survey questions 

as possible and return to LTC J. Dave Price ASAP. Your 

input could make a difference in Army space.

1. What should be the vision of SMDC/ARSTRAT?

2. What should be the objectives and goals of SMDC/

ARSTRAT?

3. What should be the Army Space strategic 

communications plan or narrative?

4. What should be the vision of the Army Space 

proponent and FA 40s?

5. What should be the objectives and goals of the Army 

Space proponent and FA 40s?

6. What should be the strategic communications plan or 

narrative for Army Space proponent and FA 40s?

7. What is the future of Army Space and or FA 40s?

8. How does the mission of the Army command or FA 40s 

need to change to get ready for the next 10-15 years 

in support of joint commands?

9. Other than STO/ACCM, where does the focus of 

battalion, brigade and Army Space support forces 

need to be? What kind of mission creep or mission 

change to you perceive?

10. Any other thoughts? Can I quote you? If not, your 

answers will remain anonymous. 

Please reply to J. Dave Price at john.price1@us.army.mil

or jdp3usa@aol.com LTC Price is currently a student at 

the Army War College at Carlisle, PA

Nov 10 at 6:17 pm • Comment • Like

Kosovo, Desert Storm, Iraq, Afghanistan. Throughout, 

the purpose of Stripes has been to provide unfiltered 

news to the troops away from their hometown newspapers.

The idea of providing a free press for troops fighting for the freedoms of Americans is a poignant one. 

Eisenhower seemed to understand this. I remember 

talking to Mauldin in the early 1980s. He told me that 

Patton did not really care for his portrayals in drawings 

of unshaven and disheveled Soldiers in the trenches, 

but Eisenhower understood the value. Mauldin told me 

about Patton calling him to his headquarters one day to 

“chew my ass – he had his view, I had mine and mine had 

more stars.” Mauldin explained that Patton felt the Army 

newspaper should carry only the party line story – that 

the images of Soldiers should be spit-n-polish in order to 

encourage the fighting troops to emulate the image. Later, 

I would learn that MacArthur seemed to have the same 

perspective and even ran the Pacific edition of Stripes 

with a tighter reign.

But the point goes deeper than viewpoints on what 

type information a military newspaper should print. What 

drives to the heart of the Rooney piece is that these talented Soldiers came together while men were fighting and 

dying to do something journalistic to help the cause. They 

covered the war. They questioned things, even authority. 

They knew – as did Eisenhower – that their journalistic 

work had to be credible, believable to have the meaning with troops. Through this approach, they brought 

the troops a little touch of home, a smile. Somehow or 

other, Eisenhower knew this was good. He knew his force 

would be better for it. It did not weaken discipline, I suspect it strengthened it. Sadly, through my reading about 

and understanding of both Patton and MacArthur, they 

seemed to lack this understanding.

I don’t know how Rooney would feel about being this 

icon. He’d probably call me an idiot for writing about him 

in an Army magazine. He’d say I was over blowing the 

facts to make him seem like something he was not. But I 

guess I don’t care. Rooney and my dad and Eisenhower and 

MacArthur and Patton and WWII veterans and the greatest 

generation each in independent ways represent something 

fresh as we move forward to face future challenges. While 

most are gone from this earth, we should remember the 

straight-talk effect they had on their surroundings.

I don’t know how Rooney would feel about 

being this icon. He’d probably call me an idiot 

for writing about him in an Army magazine.
4 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

LTG Richard 

P. Formica

Commanding General

USASMDC/ARSTRAT USASMDC

ARSTRAT

I

n my previous column in the Spring/Summer edition of the 

Army Space Journal I shared my testimony to the Senate Armed 

Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces on May 11, 2011. 

The testimony was about the Army as a user of Space capabilities; the Army’s Space strategy and policy; and the Army as a 

provider of Space capabilities. I shared the testimony in this 

column because I believe it provided a good summary of what 

the Army and U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/

Army Forces Strategic Command contribute to our nation’s 

Space capabilities.

In this column, I will highlight the synergy derived from 

vertical-horizontal integration of our core tasks and the cumulative effect of a uniquely organized command that is geographically well-positioned to optimize support to combatant 

commanders and Warfighters.

As the Army’s proponent for Space, high altitude, and 

global Missile Defense and as the Army’s operational integrator for global Missile Defense, USASMDC/ARSTRAT has 

three core tasks which focus on providing capabilities today, 

tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow:

1) Providing trained and ready Space and Missile Defense 

forces and capabilities to the combatant commanders and to 

the Warfighter (today)–our Operations function;

2) Building future Space and Missile Defense forces 

(tomorrow)–our Capability Development function;

3) Researching, testing, and integrating Space, Missile 

Defense, directed energy, and related technologies (day after 

tomorrow)–our Materiel Development function.

Streamlined, Steady, & Sharp
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 5

C/

Another key to the synergy we derive from integrating the three core 

tasks across functions is that we are geographically well-positioned to 

execute our mission.

The 

Sun 

Never 

Sets on 

USASMDC /

AR STRAT

This year, USASMDC/ARSTRAT aligned our organization along the three core tasks. The Operations function is responsible for providing trained and ready forces for 

today; the Capability Development function is responsible for 

building the Space and Missile Defense forces for tomorrow; 

and the Materiel Development function is responsible for 

researching the technologies for the day after tomorrow.

The Operations function is performed by our operational 

forces. The Deputy Commander for Operations, COL Timothy 

 R. Coffin, is responsible for leading, training, and supervising our operational forces: 1st Space Brigade, 100th Missile 

Defense Brigade, the Astronaut detachment, and the Army 

Space Professional Development Office.

The Capability Development function is performed by 

the Future Warfare Center (FWC), led by Mr. Larry Burger. 

As the Army’s force modernization proponent for Space, 

high altitude, and global Missile Defense, FWC follows 

the Army and U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command 

(TRADOC) processes in building future Space and Missile 

Defense forces using the Doctrine, Organizations, Training, 

Materiel, Leader Development, Personnel, and Facilities construct. The FWC consists of the Battle Lab, Directorate of 

Combat Development, Directorate of Training and Doctrine, 

Decision Support Directorate, and the TRADOC Capability 

Manager for the Ballistic Missile Defense System and Space.

The Materiel Development function is performed by 

the Technical Center (TC), led by Ms. Debra Wymer. The TC 

is responsible for the directorates which research, test, and 

integrate Space, Missile Defense, high altitude, cyber, directed energy, and related technologies. In the TC are the Space 

and Cyber Technology Directorate, Emerging Technology 

Directorate, Rapid Transition, and U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll/

Reagan Test Site.

When we streamlined the command, we created a Deputy 

to the Commander. The Deputy works closely with the Chief 

of Staff to integrate across the functional areas associated 

with each of the core tasks by providing a vertical-horizontal 

view. The Deputy and the staff ensure the integration of the 

core tasks across the three functions of Operations, Capability 

Development, and Materiel Development.

Responding directly to the deputy are two special capability areas–the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and 

Contracting and Acquisition Management Office (CAMO). 

The CTO looks internally across the functional components as well as looks externally to the command to develop the strategies and implementation of a “gate” process 

for all programs (technology, test, and demonstrations) in 

order to ensure effective inter-organizational efficiencies. 

CAMO manages active contracts (total value $17.6 billion) for 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT, the Army, and other agencies (fiscal 

year 2010 obligations: $2.4 billion). In fiscal year 2011 CAMO 

successfully underwent a yearlong review to demonstrate synergies, efficiencies, and benefits of realigning under the Army 

Contracting Command, resulting in the approval to realign 

under the Army Contracting Command-Redstone (ACCRSA) effective Oct. 9, 2011. As part of ACC-RSA, CAMO 

will remain co-located with USASMDC/ARSTRAT in direct 

support of its mission. USASMDC/ARSTRAT retains its 

Head of the Contracting Activity (HCA) authority with the 

ACC-RSA Principal Assistant Responsible for Contracting 

dual-hatted to support both USASMDC/ARSTRAT and the 

Army’s Aviation and Missile Command HCAs.

Another key to the synergy we derive from integrating the three core tasks across functions is that we are geographically well-positioned to execute our mission. In 

Huntsville we’re co-located with the Missile Defense Agency 

(MDA); Army Materiel Command/Army Aviation and 

Missile Lifecycle Management Command; Program Executive 

Office (PEO) Missiles and Space; PEO Aviation; Missile and 

Space Intelligence Center; NASA; and the tech base there. 

In Colorado Springs we are co-located with MDA; U.S. 

Northern Command; U.S. Air Force Space Command; 

Joint Functional Component Command for 

Integrated Missile Defense; and again with the 

particularly Space-oriented tech base there.

In summary, aligning USASMDC/

ARSTRAT under our three core tasks and 

their related functional components, along 

with the cumulative effect of a unique 

organization and geographically well-positioned elements, is a synergy that optimizes support to combatant commanders and 

Warfighters.

Our nation is facing critical decisions 

in the military’s future. Providing Space and 

Missile Defense capabilities to Warfighters 

while remaining disciplined stewards of the 

government’s resources remains a critical focus 

for our command. This will be particularly important in an environment of tight budgets and with 

today’s fiscal realities.

S E C U R E T H E H I G H G R O U N D
6 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

USASMDC/ARSTRAT 

Command Sergeant Major

CSM Larry 

 S. Turner

Space Sys

A Must Have for 

the Modern Fight 

ny Soldier who’s had boots on the ground in a combat environment knows the importance of maintaining continuous situational awareness, of precisely striking an intended target, and 

of having reach-back communication capabilities. What many 

Soldiers don’t know is that you need Space-based systems to 

enable many of these critical capabilities. This lack of knowledge is both a good and a bad thing. It’s good because it means 

we’ve been able to integrate Space across the Army in a transparent manner. It’s bad because we haven’t done a good enough 

job of educating the Soldiers on the ground about capabilities 

they receive and capabilities that are available from Space.

The recently completed Talisman Sabre training exercise 

with the Australian military shows just how much Space brings 

to the modern fight. “Space Operations help the commanders visualize movement on the battlefield using commercial 

topographical imagery, but it isn’t just about terrain features 

and maps,” said MAJ Courtney Henderson, U.S. Army Pacific, 

Space Support Element, Fort Shafter, Hawaii. “Space capabilities enhance the military’s ability to communicate, navigate terrain, engage the enemy with better accuracy, and protect its 

forces.” 1

Throughout Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi 

Freedom, and New Dawn, Space systems have given our 

Soldiers a strategic advantage and have helped keep them out 

of harm’s way. The use of GPS and satellite imagery has gone 

from a “nice to have” to a “must have” mission requirement. 

We Space Enablers are very familiar with the advantage preA
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 7

tems 

The 

Sun 

Never 

Sets on 

USASMDC /

AR STRAT

cision navigation and targeting brings to the battlefield, but 

many Soldiers aren’t aware that vital systems like Friendly 

Force Tracking can’t work without Space. Satellite imagery 

provides critical terrain information to the Soldier on the 

ground. When plotting attack and escape routes, I’m positive our Soldiers would prefer to know that a bridge on the 

route has been destroyed by seasonal flooding before trying to 

cross it.

Soldiers constantly use these products with little to no 

appreciation of what it takes to produce them. Again, a good 

and bad thing. As MAJ Henderson noted, “Space Operations 

Soldiers retrieve and interpret data and develop products that 

help commanders navigate on the battlefield. Whether they’re 

tracking convoys, establishing landing zones and distribution 

networks, or mapping critical infrastructure to locate obstacles, bridges, and crossings ... .” 2

Another great example of how Space Enablers contribute to the safety of service members comes from the annual Army Space Cadre Symposium which was held the week 

of Aug. 1-5, 2011, in Colorado Springs, Colo. At the conference, a former U.S. Central Command Space Support Element 

member told of a team from the Department of Agriculture 

which was in theater to assess current crop conditions and the 

status of irrigation systems. A Marine Corps unit would escort 

the Department of Agriculture team, and was plotting the 

route for the inspection which would transverse several hostile 

areas, when a Space Enabler asked exactly what was needed 

for the assessment. The Space Enabler provided current satellite imagery of the areas in question to the team. After reviewing the satellite imagery, the team determined that they could 

develop their assessment using the satellite imagery and would 

not have to physically visit the hostile locations. Space kept 

American citizens and their Marine escort out of harm’s way.

Space has become an integral part of all Army operations. 

As LTG Richard P. Formica, commanding general of U.S. 

Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces 

Strategic Command, said at the Space Cadre Symposium, 

“there’s no going back.” We must focus on providing 

resilient Space capabilities for our ground forces 

in order to make sure the Army doesn’t experience “a day without Space.” We also must work 

to educate the rest of the Army on the role 

Space plays. As LTG Formica noted, we 

must provide “Space training for the rest 

of the Army–at the schoolhouses, in exercises, NCO schools, etc.” We’ll do this by 

helping them add information on what 

Space contributes to their current lesson plans and exercises, not by creating 

new courses or new exercises. The goal is 

to help the Soldier get a solid grasp on the 

importance of Space to mission success.

S E C U R E T H E H I G H G R O U N D

Footnotes

1 Corine Lombardo, “Space Systems Give Australians, U.S. Soldiers 

Edge in Talisman Sabre,” Aug. 3, 2011, http://www.army.mil/

article/62877/.

2 Ibid.

“Space Operations help the commanders 

visualize movement on the battlefield 

using commercial topographical imagery, 

but it isn’t just about terrain features 

and maps.”

— MAJ Courtney Henderson
8 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Deputy to the Commander

Dr. Steven 

 L. Messervy

These days we see a lot of headlines and briefings that raise the issue of 

reduced budgets and being more efficient with our resources. “Do more 

with less ... find new ways to do our mission effectively ... we have to 

think differently.” However, our Space and Missile Defense forces and 

capabilities continue to grow in importance to the Warfighter. Just like 

we saw during the Arab Spring, Japan’s earthquake and tsunami disaster, 

and natural disasters in the United States, our high-demand, low-density 

capabilities are often requested to support the combatant commanders 

and ground commanders. Under an umbrella of uncertainty– in terms 

of both threats and resources–our challenge is to build and maintain 

the capabilities our Warfighters need. So what is U.S. Army Space and 

Missile Defense Command/Army Strategic Forces Command doing 

to meet those challenges, and how can we ensure that we are not only 

executing our missions effectively, but also preparing for the uncertain 

future?

The best thing we can do is ensure our team is trained and ready 

to deliver capabilities today and prepare capabilities that will meet the 

challenges of tomorrow. Within our command, Space and Missile 

Defense operational forces and professionals deliver capabilities 

24/7/365 at 16 locations around the globe; the Future Warfare Center 

builds capabilities for future forces; and the Technical Center develops 

future technologies to address capability gaps.

As a result of our reorganization efforts in fiscal year 2011, these 

three components of our command are now streamlined. To summarize, we moved the TRADOC Capabilities Manager function out of 

Operations and placed it under the direction of the Future Warfare 

Center. We also merged two technology development centers – the 

Technology Center and the Test and Warfighter Solutions Center–

into one Technical Center. Finally, the Commanding General created a 

Today, Tomorrow, 

& the Day After Tomorrow

Building 

 Capabilitie

USASMDC/ARSTRAT 
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 9

Deputy to the Commander position to serve as an integrator 

across the three functional components of the command and 

the headquarters staff.

These three significant realignments will help USASMDC/

ARSTRAT improve its organizational effectiveness and allow 

our workforce and leadership to better execute our core 

tasks in support of the Army, combatant commands, and the 

Warfighter. As we transition into fiscal year 2012, our focus 

will remain on our three core tasks, but with greater emphasis 

on improving command-wide integration.

We already are seeing the benefits of working across the 

functional areas of operations, capability development, and 

materiel development. For example, the Long Endurance 

Multi-Intelligence Vehicle (LEMV) pulls from subject-matter representatives across the command, to include engineers, 

budget analysts, program managers, military and intelligence 

analysts, requirements developers, modeling and simulation 

experts, and contracting specialists. Similarly, the senior leadership across the command has supported the LEMV team to 

ensure this fast-track project has the support it needs to provide a technology demonstration for the Warfighter in 2012.

Another example of how our command is synchronizing across the three core tasks is the recent formation of the 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT Concepts/Capabilities Development 

Integrated Concept Team (ICT). This team, chartered by the 

Commanding General, consists of command representatives 

from the staff, Operations, Future Warfare Center, and the 

Technical Center to collaborate on Space and Missile Defense 

concepts, analysis, and requirements, to ultimately shape 

or deliver new Space and Missile Defense capabilities to the 

Army. The ICT is designed to lead the command’s efforts integrating and synchronizing all concept, doctrine, organization, 

training, materiel, leader development and education, personnel, and facilities activities related to the Army’s Space, high 

altitude (HA), and Global Missile Defense (GMD) proponent. 

As such, the ICT will develop the conceptual underpinnings 

for the advancement of Army Space, HA, and GMD support; 

identify the associated required capabilities and gaps; and prioritize the gaps and identify solutions. The solutions will focus 

on answering the Army’s most critical military problems.

The ICT will be guided by an Executive Oversight 

Committee consisting of the Deputy to the Commander, 

Chief Technology Officer, Deputy Commander for 

Operations, Director of the Future Warfare Center, and the 

Director of the Technical Center. Using this ICT as a means 

to leverage the talent across our command, USASMDC/

ARSTRAT can shape the Army’s Warfighting concepts, doctrine, and capability portfolios, and our efforts are resourceinformed, integration-focused, and outcome-based.

In emerging efforts such as the command’s nanosatellite 

technology initiatives, led by the Technical Center, the command’s functional teams are coming together to shape this 

effort and optimize the potential capability in support of the 

tactical Warfighter. As the command pursues a Joint Capability 

Technology Demonstration for tactical nanosatellites, the 1st 

Space Brigade is now involved to provide the operational perspective; the Future Warfare Center is supporting through 

studies and analysis, and concepts and architecture development; and the headquarters staff is engaged to help the project through external coordination and synchronization with 

other Army Space activities.

Finally, perhaps one of the best examples of success 

resulting from an integrated command effort was the recent 

publication of the Army Space Strategic Plan. When the effort 

was first tasked by the Army Space Council, elements of the 

command had multiple approaches for what the Army Space 

Strategic Plan should include. Through many iterations of 

command coordination with Headquarters Department of 

the Army staff, the Army now has a solid plan with priorities for its Space investment, and USASMDC/

ARSTRAT will have a leading role in implementing 

the Strategic Plan.

These are just a few examples of what 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT is accomplishing as 

we emphasize integration across our unique 

command. Through the employment of 

our operations, capability development, 

and materiel development functions, we 

provide the Army with a core of subject-matter expertise in Space, high altitude, and ground-based Missile Defense. 

The Army and the Warfighter will soon 

reap the benefits of that expertise applied 

to the LEMV demonstration, the products from our ICT, the military potential of 

nanosatellites, and the prioritized deliverables 

from the Space Strategic Plan. Our talented team 

of Soldiers, Civilians, and contractors 

enables us to deliver capabilities today, 

tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow..

S E C U R E T H E H I G H G R O U N D

The 

Sun 

Never 

Sets on 

USASMDC /

AR STRAT

es

The senior leadership across the command has supported the LEMV team to 

ensure this fast-track project has the support it needs to provide a technology 

demonstration for the Warfighter in 2012.
10 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

USASMDC/ARSTRAT 

Deputy Commander 

for Operations

COL Timothy 

 R. Coffin

Like most military commands, U.S. Army Space and Missile 

Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command has a 

stated mission and vision. These statements are very helpful in 

defining and understanding the command’s direction and purpose. A way to add meaning to these definitions, however, is to 

assess our professional capabilities to deliver on our raison d’être–

meaning “reason for existence”. If we look across the various 

parts of the command that provide capabilities to Space and 

Missile Defense operations–doctrinal processes, organization, 

training, material/equipment, logistics, facilities, and people–we 

find the most important of these assets is the human element.

It is the people of the command who drive powerful contributions through their collective experience, knowledge, education, insight, and passion. With that in mind, it requires the 

investment of time, money, leadership, training, education, 

and care to develop people-based qualities. This is much the 

same as developing a technical solution like a missile interceptor takes in terms of time, effort, money, testing, and nurturing. Both types of investments are absolutely worthwhile and 

vital. In business, companies and employers make investments 

to recruit and retain employees, obtain new or upgraded 

equipment and facilities, and train and educate the workforce. 

In general, corporations make decisions along the way using 

“refund on investment” or ‘ROI’ as a metric. The same fundamentals apply when we–USASMDC/ARSTRAT–invest in its 

most valued asset, its people.

Our command vision highlights the fact that our workforce is talented and made up of Soldiers, Civilians, and contractors–all public servants. They are organized, aligned, and 

equipped to support three functional areas: operations or 

Finding the Return 

on Investment

People Powe
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 11

today, capability development or tomorrow, and materiel 

development or day after tomorrow. Let’s informally designate the employees in those areas as Operators, Thinkers 

and Teachers, and Researchers and Designers, respectively. 

Equally important–and providing services across the entire 

command–are the members in our liaison offices and staff, 

contracting, and headquarters elements.

More than 840 of our Operators are providing day-today support to the Warfighter, either in place in the United 

States, forward stationed in Europe, Asia, or the Middle East, 

or deployed in an area of operations for the fight against terrorism. Operators in the command are primarily found in 

the 1st Space Brigade, 100th Missile Defense Brigade, selected portions of the staff and in the technical center operating 

radars on Kwajalein Atoll, and of course in our NASA astronaut detachment.

The center of gravity of the command’s Thinkers, 

Teachers and Trainers is in the Future Warfare Center where 

they prepare the command to operate its U.S. Strategic 

Command and U.S. Army missions in the future. On the side 

of Army Service Component Command (ASCC) responsibilities, the team’s activities look to providing future capabilities–forces and equipment in global strike, space, missile 

defense, cyber, and weapons of mass destruction. To meet 

the command’s Army-level responsibilities, the team runs 

the Army’s Space and ballistic Missile Defense “schoolhouse.” They write doctrine and instruction manuals, teach 

courses at other military educational institutions, such as the 

Army War College, Command and General Staff College, 

and U.S. Military Academy.

Researchers and Designers grouped in the technical 

center investigate and develop equipment and technologies 

with potential for Warfighter use–again, with both Army and 

ASCC responsibilities in mind. Researchers and Designers 

are working more than 50 programs, creating solutions for 

our long-term needs as well as plugging the gaps in capabilities identified during our last decade of asymmetric warfare. 

They are doing this through advances in nanosatellites, solid-state lasers, medium- and high-altitude airships, advanced 

hypersonics, high-power microwave weapons, sensors, and 

many other technologies.

Each of these separate groups of experts could easily go their own way or collide across independent paths. 

Instead, the guidance of the command’s common vision and 

the lubrication and glue provided by the supportive staff–

like CIO, Logistics, Personnel, Intelligence, Operations and 

Resourcing–help bind us together. This creates the path to 

move in a forward direction toward a more capable future.

Investment in the people of the command takes many 

forms. A few examples include salary, benefits, professional 

development, buildings, equipment and supplies, and official 

travel. The command makes such investments realizing that 

they will have both immediate and long-term benefits. These 

investments pay off in the short term by enabling the workforce to fulfill our mission and vision. In the long term, they 

assist in establishing a solid base upon which to build the 

future. Through investment, we gain the physical and knowledge-based human capital necessary to provide exceptional 

Space and Missile Defense capabilities today, tomorrow, and 

the day after tomorrow.

It is true the United States as a nation is making some 

hard choices on government spending and that the Army 

is making significant changes to how it does business. 

While USASMDC/ARSTRAT is challenged to 

think differently as well, the commitment to 

our people remains strong and enduring.

A powerful and potent force is created when the people of USASMDC/

ARSTRAT come together as a focused 

team. The force becomes even a more 

powerful tool when a cross-cutting 

team of all four chords–Operations, 

FWC, Technical Center and staff–is 

formed leveraging the different skills 

and perspectives of the command. 

The command’s leaders look to each 

and every person for contributions to 

fulfilling our mission.

Lest I forget, we are also blessed with 

the critical support from some of our sister and even foreign military services. Now, for 

the first time, Australian officers and 

soldiers serve as key partners and 

allies in offering us the tremendous 

opportunity to expand our horizons 

and the richness of our personnel 

treasure. We salute you all and thank 

you for your service. 

The 

Sun 

Never 

Sets on 

USASMDC /

AR STRAT

er

Through investment, we gain the physical and knowledgebased tools necessary to provide exceptional Space and 

Missile Defense capabilities today, tomorrow, and the 

day after tomorrow.
12 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

iSpace

Operational Utility of 

Smart Phones

arket analysts estimate that more than 90 percent of all Americans 

have some type of wireless services contract and about five billion of the earth’s 6.9 billion people have wireless access. Military 

studies show that not only do the majority of Soldiers entering the 

military own handheld devices, but they rely on them both in garrison and in combat. Some studies1

 show that Soldiers equipped 

with handhelds protect the devices as they do their weapons, a solid 

indication of how much they value these devices.

The Space and Missile Defense Battle Lab (SMDBL) in 

Colorado Springs has been experimenting with handheld devices, such as smart phones and tablets, and exploring ways to use 

them in Space operations and other mission areas. Based on the 

SMDBL’s Scouts program, a continuing effort to identify shortfalls, gaps, and relevant technologies, an opportunity arose to 

co-develop technology jointly with Air Force Space Command 

(AFSPC). The AFSPC A3/Irregular Warfare Division and Space 

and Innovation Development Center (SIDC) approached the 

Battle Lab in the fall of 2010 with an idea for developing operational Space capabilities for handheld devices. The idea gave rise 

to a Joint Technology Exchange Program (JTEP) between SIDC 

and SMDBL to exploit handheld devices to serve Army, Air 

Force, Joint, and host-nation mission requirements.

The JTEP’s initial project, named iSpace, was focused on 

developing Space Situational Awareness (SSA) functions on 

Android handheld devices. Less than a year later, SMBDL took 

its handheld capability to Panamax 11 (PMX 11), a military exercise that took place in Stennis, Miss., with foreign nation partners.

The Battle Lab experimented with a variety of handheld 

devices and operating systems and determined that the Android 

operating system (OS) offered greater versatility both in the number of different devices supported and the internal flexibility of 

the OS. Furthermore, Android has been selected by the Army’s 

M

Future Warfare Center

Larry Burger

Director 
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 13

Connecting Soldiers with Digital Applications (CSDA)2 program as the OS of choice. SMDBL also leveraged relationships with national organizations and laboratories to 

understand how their “mobility” work and development roadmaps could be used for iSpace. SMDBL also connected with 

CSDA at Fort Bliss, Texas, and Fort Gordon, Ga., to ensure 

synchronization across programs.

SSA Android applications (“apps”) currently being developed jointly with SIDC (based on porting of the Integrated 

Space Situational Awareness tool set) include Position 

Dilution of Precision and Circular Error Probable current status and predictions for GPS. Also under development is an 

app for Overflight predictions for unclassified imaging and 

communications satellites (Satellite Reconnaissance Advanced 

Notifications). Another emerging application will help determine selection and launch criteria for GPS-guided munitions 

by mapping GPS signal strength and interference conditions 

to requirements for the employment of specific mortar and 

artillery munitions and platforms.

The success of iSpace quickly led to another project, a 

variant of iSpace, called the Advanced Visual Information 

System (AVIS). AVIS is a tactically deployable handheld system that supports global Beyond Line of Sight (BLOS) communications, Situational Awareness–including imagery and 

basic mission planning, and Grey Force Tracking (GFT) in 

austere conditions (e.g., no cell phone towers and limited or 

no commercial power). AVIS uses Android tablets to support 

operations and in the absence of WiFi or cellular service, links 

them via Bluetooth to Iridium and Inmarsat satellite communications (SATCOM).

The kits are designed to be used by host-nation security 

and military forces supporting Foreign Internal Defense missions. They are built entirely from commercial, off-the-shelf 

components, are not classified, and have no export restrictions. AVIS systems, when brought to a country by U.S. military personnel, also support the larger objective of building 

partnership capacity. PMX 11 provided an ideal environment 

to test and evaluate early versions of the AVIS kit because of 

the bilateral nature of the exercise and the expertise of the 

participants. A team of SMDBL and SIDC members deployed 

to Stennis, Miss., in August 2011 to participate in PMX 11 and 

give U.S. and foreign Warfighters the chance to test the program’s equipment and operational concepts.

The AVIS System

An AVIS system consists of a Hub Kit and one or more Edge 

Kits. The Hub Kit contains everything you need to establish a 

mobile headquarters, including a 7- or 10-inch tablet (such as 

the Samsung Galaxy) and a Broadband Global Access Network 

(BGAN) 700 terminal that provides Inmarsat connectivity to 

the Internet. The BGAN also serves as a WiFi hot spot at the 

hub. Imagery of the area is stored on 16-gigabyte SD cards 

and transmitted wirelessly to the tablet using an AirStashTM–a 

mini storage device. Independent power consists of a 50-watt 

lithium polymer battery which can be recharged from a variety of sources including a 60-watt solar panel. Spare batteries, car chargers, and kinetic (hand-cranked) power solutions 

are also included in the Hub Kit. The iSpace team partnered 

with DigitalGlobe during the recent Panamax exercise to take 

advantage of live collects over the area of interest that could 

be processed and sent to the Hub tablets using Inmarsat as 

the transport.

Edge Kits are smaller and lighter than Hub Kits and are 

used by field operators at the team, squad, or platoon level 

to communicate with the Hub. Currently, Edge Kits are configured with Dell Streak handheld devices, Iridium modems, 

and a commercial tracking device. The current tracking device 

is the SPOT GPS which enables Friendly and Gray Force 

Tracking from Edge Kits by providing tracks to a central web 

service. The web service then can be accessed from anywhere, 

including at the Hub. Edge Kit power solutions are similar to 

those of the Hub Kits; a variety of batteries, car chargers, and 

kinetic devices make up the power solution. Using apps readily 

available on the Android market, data packets can be sent to 

and from the Hub and Edge Kits over Iridium and Inmarsat 

and displayed as tracks on the handheld devices. In this way, 

mission planners can route or re-route, track, or command 

operations from the Hub to the Edge.

PMX 11 Field Trials

PMX 11 is an annual U.S. Southern Command-sponsored exercise that focuses on ensuring the defense of the Panama Canal. 

It includes naval special operations forces from Panama, 

Guatemala, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, and the Dominican 

Republic. During PMX11 SMDBL personnel MAJ Tim Haynie, 

Miller Belmont, Bill Coffey, and Jamie Dunlap equipped select 

iSpace Page 16 >> 

The Battle Lab experimented with a variety of handheld devices and 

operating systems and determined that the Android operating system 

(OS) offered greater versatility both in the number of different 

devices supported and the internal flexibility of the OS.
14 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Technical Center

Director 

Debra G. Wymer

s director of the Technical Center at U.S. Army Space and 

Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command, 

I lead an organization of scientists and engineers responsible 

for the development of advanced Space, Missile Defense, high 

altitude, and directed-energy technologies. We strive to provide unsurpassed Space and Missile Defense capabilities to the 

nation by, first and foremost, directly supporting the Warfighters 

on the battlefield.

This is an exciting time for our team, as we embark upon a 

new phase of the Technical Center at USASMDC/ARSTRAT. 

After careful deliberation, senior leaders found it to be in the 

best interest of achieving maximum productivity to merge the 

two organizations formerly known as the Technology Center 

and the Test and Warfighter Solutions Center into what is 

now known as the Technical Center. Adapting and evolving to 

meet the technological needs of the Warfighter is a constant 

challenge for USASMDC/ARSTRAT, and I am confident 

that this merger will increase effectiveness and efficiencies, 

compensate for reduced budgets, and allow us to continue to 

give our Soldiers the best possible support. The merger corresponds with the Commanding General’s vision and guidance to align our operations with Department of Defense and 

Army priorities. Our fee-for-service business model dictates 

continual change, and by implementing this merger, we are 

remaining relevant to the needs of our most important customer, the Warfighter.

As the command’s technical arm, the new Technical Center is 

focused on providing critical technologies that meet today’s 

requirements and address future needs, planning and executing test and evaluation programs and performing related analyses, and most importantly supporting operational 

Working Each & 

Every Day for 

Technical Superiority

A

A New Phas
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 15

elements. The U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll and Ronald Reagan 

Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site (USAKA/RTS), a subordinate element of the Technical Center, plays a key role in 

test and evaluation and in operational support. Not only is 

USAKA/RTS critical to the testing of Missile Defense, ballistic missile, and hypersonic systems, it also plays a vital role 

in accomplishing U.S. Strategic Command’s Space Object 

Identification/Space Surveillance Network. Our Space and 

Cyberspace Technology and Emerging Technology directorates develop, integrate, and transition Space, Missile Defense, 

high altitude, cyberspace, and directed-energy technologies 

and conduct high-energy laser testing. Additionally, we have 

separate divisions that are dedicated to the transition of specific products to the Warfighter and our customers as rapidly 

as possible. Because our primary customer base is constantly 

changing, we are shifting to more in-house engineering work, 

which also allows each of the Technical Center subordinate 

elements to create and maintain closer relationships with 

their customers.

Another major advantage of shifting to more in-house 

engineering work is the opportunity to train new employees 

through hands-on experience. The Concepts Analysis Lab 

(CAL) division of the Technical Center is especially committed to hiring and training student interns and young engineers 

who work on summer breaks and part-time throughout the 

school year. The CAL offers young people the opportunity to 

gain technical hands-on work experience early in their career, 

such as performing ground station operations for Space and 

Missile Defense Command-Operational Nanosatellite Effect 

(SMDC-ONE). The SMDC-ONE is a low-cost, lightweight 

communications satellite, which was designed to provide a 

rapidly responsive, gap-filling capability to the Army’s disadvantaged users. The first flight of SMDC-ONE was hugely 

successful and demonstrated the military relevance of a small 

satellite. We intend to fly several more SMDC-ONE satellites 

in various configurations and roles in the near future, and we 

also have new technology efforts ongoing to expand the capabilities of nanosatellites.

The successes of this small satellite program are expected 

to have a positive near-term impact on the Warfighter while 

giving us a fantastic opportunity to draw in many college students and young engineers who would like to gain experience 

in technical fields. This mutually beneficial relationship also 

allows the Technical Center to better prepare for the challenge posed by a retiring workforce. We work closely with 

the Student Temporary Employment Program and Science, 

Mathematics, and Research for Transformation Scholarship 

program to ensure that many of the engineering interns we 

hire will become full-time USASMDC/ARSTRAT employees 

in the future.

While our future workforce and the development of 

technologies to meet future needs are critical, we also are dedicated to getting systems into the hands of Warfighters without 

delay. An example of one of our rapid transition programs 

is the Long Endurance Multi-Intelligence Vehicle (LEMV). 

The LEMV is an unmanned hybrid airship approximately the 

width and length of a football field and stands seven stories 

high. This lighter-than-air platform will stay aloft for weeks 

at a time, carry more than a ton of payload, and operate at an 

altitude of more than 20,000 feet. It is equipped with radar 

to detect the movement and location of enemy vehicles or 

personnel, and that information is then downloaded to units 

on the ground. The program specifics include a very short 

18-month development schedule that began in June 2010 and 

is being carried out by a group of engineers and analysts from 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT, other government agencies, and the 

Northrop Grumman team. The LEMV program will provide 

a tremendous capability to Warfighters.

The Technical Center has a rich legacy of technology 

development and transition, especially in the field of Missile 

Defense, and we remain proud of our heritage. While my 

short-term priority is fully implementing the new organization, we will remain focused on providing the Warfighter 

with dominant Space and Missile Defense capabilities and supporting U.S. Strategic Command and 

the geographic combatant commanders. We 

are expanding our portfolio by developing a 

focused role in cyberspace and providing 

nontraditional and innovative capabilities 

to rapidly assess systems and operational concepts. We are making the directedenergy path to weaponization a priority 

and are shortening the timeline to bring 

Space and high altitude capabilities to the 

field. We will continue to seek new business opportunities that align with core missions and adapt to changing and emerging 

requirements. Within the Technical Center, 

we are dedicated to meeting the needs of the 

Warfighter, and we will continue to work each 

and every day to ensure continued technical superiority on the battlefield.

S E C U R E T H E H I G H G R O U N D

The 

Sun 

Never 

Sets on 

USASMDC /

AR STRAT

se

The Technical Center has a rich legacy of technology development 

and transition, especially in the field of Missile Defense, and we 

remain proud of our heritage.
16 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

From iSpace 

>> Page 13

U.S. and Partner Nation (PN) “live forces” with AVIS kits in 

order to gain observations, insights, lessons, and recommendations into how best to employ and upgrade AVIS capabilities.

Throughout all phases of PMX11, AVIS provided BLOS 

situational awareness, GFT, and “SOS” personnel recovery 

capabilities to the U.S. Navy Special Warfare Development 

Group-4, Special Operations Command SOUTHCOM, 

and select PNs. Using AVIS kits, these forces conducted air, 

ground, and naval counter-terrorism, security, and surveillance operations throughout a variety of locations in southern 

Mississippi (which replicated an area of Colombia’s Northwest 

coast), in and around the John C. Stennis Space Center, the 

Gulf of Mississippi, and Camp Shelby, Miss. Edge Kits were 

provided to Navy SEALS, Special Boat Teams, and select forces from the Chilean and Colombian navies. AVIS was used to 

collaborate between U.S. and PN forces to neutralize simulated threats from a terrorist organization. The devices allowed 

exercise participants to track and communicate with their 

forces throughout all phases of PMX 11.

The AVIS team partnered once more with DigitalGlobe 

during PMX 11 to collect, format, and disseminate unclassified commercial imagery. One of these efforts was a live collect over the PMX 11 area of interest that could be processed 

and sent to the Hub Kit tablets via Inmarsat.

AVIS Featured at SMD Conference

AVIS kits also were demonstrated at this year’s Space and Missile 

Defense Conference in Huntsville, Ala., where the iSpace team 

shared a booth with fellow Future Warfare Center personnel. 

Of particular interest was the Iridium Short Burst Data device 

that was built in the Battle Lab to provide SATCOM capability 

to smart phones. The device features a battery, Bluetooth unit, 

and Iridium transmitter/receiver built into a small Pelican case. 

The device offers a choice of antennas, including a car-mounted 

antenna and an omni-directional antenna.

The Next Generation iSpace and AVIS

Based on the success of the iSpace and AVIS prototypes in 

fiscal year 2011, AFSPC is continuing fiscal year 2012 teaming and partnering with SMDBL. In addition to teaming with 

external organizations, SMDBL is cross-walking iSpace/AVIS 

development within the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense 

Command/Army Forces Strategic Command to include the 

Future Warfare Center’s Future Innovations Group, Missile 

Defense Directorate, etc.

SMDBL will continue to work with CSDA app developers at Fort Gordon and leverage companies such as Google, 

Analytical Graphics, DigitalGlobe, GeoEye, Lattitude, and 

General Dynamics as well as national and other Department 

of Defense organizations. Future plans for iSpace and 

AVIS include support to Eagle Vision and experimentation/demonstration at venues such as the Coalition Warrior 

Interoperability Demonstration.

SMDBL continues to work closely with DigitalGlobe to 

provide an Android version of the Portable Dissemination of 

Geospatial Data, and with AGI to develop new SSA capabilities. High on the list for the upcoming year is the processing 

and dissemination of classified Space data and pursuing iSpace 

accreditation for classified use as well as developing more apps 

focused on the Space and Missile Warning missions.

Emerging commercial technologies such as smart phones 

and tablets, new and improved power options, and the continuous miniaturization of once large devices offer enormous 

potential to today’s military. If we can make handheld apps 

that support training, situational awareness, and operational 

readiness, then we can tap into a huge resource already available at very little cost. Further, if we can develop the means 

to support classified data at rest and transmission using small, 

self-sustaining compact kits, comprised of smart phones, tablets, and SATCOM devices, we can seriously reduce the huge 

mix of tools, laptops, network equipment, mobile ground stations, satellite dishes, batteries, and other technologies that 

Soldiers are obligated to carry around with them to perform 

their mission.

Footnotes

1 Studies were conducted at Fort Bliss, Texas, by teams supporting the project known as 

Connecting Soldiers to Digital Apps.

2 CSDA is sponsored by the Mission Command Center of Excellence and the Army CIO/G6, with 

support from U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, the TRADOC deputy commanding 

general for Initial Military Training, and other Army organizations, including the U.S. Army Space 

and Missile Defense Command/Army Strategic Forces Command.
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 17

SMDBL continues to work closely with 

DigitalGlobe to provide an Android 

version of the Portable Dissemination 

of Geospatial Data, and with AGI to 

develop new SSA capabilities.

Screen capture from the AVIS Hub Kit showing tracks of a 

SEAL Team and supporting PN forces

SMDC Soldier SFC Gabriel 

Cardenas demonstrates 

iSpace functions on a 

Samsung Galaxy tablet.

SMDBL’s Miller Belmont and Jamie 

Dunlap follow tracks from AVIS Edge Kits

USN Lieutenant Sean Norton, NSWG-4, 

prepares an AVIS Edge Kit for operations 

in the recent PMX 11 exercise

AVIS Edge Kits fit in a camera-sized backpack
18 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

OPERATION 

NEW DAWN End s

Army Tactical and Operational 

Space Faces a Strategic Crossroads

contributors

to the article

BG Kurt S. Story 

Deputy J3 

U.S. Forces Iraq

COL(R) Glenn Collins 

former Director 

Force Development 

Integration Center

LTC Brian Moore 

18th Airborne Corps Space 

Support Element Chief

LTC Jeff Douds 

25th Infantry Division Space 

Support Element Chief

LTC Annie Merfalen 

4th Infantry Division Space 

Support Element Chief

MAJ Thomas Amodeo 

4th Infantry Division Space 

Support Element Deputy

Partnerships prove 

essential during 

Operation New Dawn. 

All photos are courtesy 

of USF-I Joint Combat 

Camera and DoD.
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 19

editor’s note

This article resulted from a 

Space After Action Review 

June 24 at the Al Faw Palace in 

Baghdad, Iraq, by Space professionals serving in the Iraq Joint 

Operations Area. The review 

assessed the status of the roles, 

missions and functions of SSEs, 

Space integration and Space 

force structure in Army Divisions 

and Corps’. Attendees included 

members of the Space Support 

Elements from U.S. Forces 

– Iraq from the 18th Airborne 

Corps, Fort Bragg, NC; U.S. 

Division - North from the 4th 

Infantry Division, Fort Carson, 

Colo.; U.S. Division – Central 

from the 25th Infantry Division, 

Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; and 

U.S. Division - South from the 

36th Infantry Division, Texas.

This article would not have been 

possible without the special 

effort of all the contributors. 

Since the United States invaded Iraq in 2003, numerous Army Space professionals served with distinction in the Iraqi Joint Operations 

Area (IJOA). Army Space professionals have made significant and lasting 

contributions to both combat and stability operations during Operation 

Iraqi Freedom ending August 2010 and Operation New Dawn which ends 

this year. The purpose of New Dawn has been to support “Iraq’s continued development into a sovereign, stable, and long- term self-reliant 

strategic partner that contributes to peace and security in the region.”

While the current experience and quality of the Army Space Cadre, 

both Space Professionals and Space Enablers, across the U.S. Army is 

unparalleled, contributions of the Army Space professionals during U.S. 

Forces-Iraq (USF-I) stability operations provides an excellent case study 

for professional assessment. Now is a good time to consider the maturing 

of the Space force that has occurred over the last eight years in Iraq. One 

way to consider Space operations officers today – those serving on the 

USF-I Space team supporting stability operations – are as utility infielders on their corps and division staffs. They each bring Space expertise to a 

variety of jobs critical to the effort.

Surveyed Space professionals anonymously responded that their primary missions during New Dawn included Integrated Joint Special Technical 

Operations (IJSTO) chief or planner, Alternate Compensatory Control 

Measures (ACCM) program manager, general staff planner, monitoring 

the Space environment, and Information Operations planner. Additionally, 

every Space professional and enabler serving in a Space Support Element 

agrees that the IJOA is a mature theater. Five major Space force enhancement functions are well understood by the staffs: Communications; 

Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT); Intelligence Surveillance and 

Reconnaissance (ISR); Missile Warning; and Environmental Monitoring. 

An additional function that is less understood, but still equally important, 

is Space Control which includes Offensive Space Control, Defensive Space 

Control, and Space Situational Awareness.
20 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

3

Question s

With this as a starting point, Space professionals need to help clearly 

define the role of Space in the Army’s tactical and operational headquarters in the future. The options are: 1) maintain the current force structure 

and functions, 2) modify the force structure to accomplish current and 

likely future requirements, or 3) merge Space with related career fields 

to provide a strategic enabler or technical enabler staff generalists that 

shapes integration of unique, technical, national capabilities in the operating force. To assist in the analysis of the options, this article begins with 

an overview of the evolution of tactical and operational Space in the U.S. 

Army and assesses the future in light of the US Army organizational and 

proponency constructs.

Overview of tactical 

and operational Space evolution

Before 2005, the only Space operations officers or FA40s assigned within 

the operating force were majors assigned to Corps G3s – one Space professional per organization. Since 2005, the expertise that was organic to an 

organization has grown to a Space Support Element (SSE). This element 

now includes two FA40 officers in a division and three in a corps, along 

with a satellite communications NCO in each headquarters. The primary 

function of all deployed division and corps SSEs became that of managing 

Integrated Joint Special Technical Operations (IJSTO) and focal point programs classified with the Alternative or Compensatory Control Measures 

(ACCM) caveat. This was primarily out of operational need. It was a natural 

fit for FA40s since they had the required security clearances for IJSTO and 

co-locating the ACCM mission with the IJSTO vault made sense since it 

provided a secure location for ACCM operations.

This situation of the Space professional needing flexibility becomes 

the overarching theme that emerges from looking at the Army Space team 

in Iraq. The 2008 Spring edition of the Army Space Journal included a 

bellwether article Successes from the Field: OIF V that presented an informative overview of employing division SSEs and four recommendations. 

Based on the situation in 2010 and 2011, SSEs in New Dawn, and likely 

the rest of the Army, appear to have embraced these recommendations.

What is the crossroad as you see it?

Story – For Army Space professionals, we must 

listen to the lessons learned from eight-plus years 

of war with deployments of Army Space units and 

personnel. These lessons can help us adapt our 

training, equipment and Army Space Force structure for the future. We must change to maintain 

our relevance into the future. The next war will not 

necessarily be like this war–especially if it is against 

an enemy with sophisticated Space capabilities. We 

must develop the training and capabilities to successfully operate in a denied, degraded, disrupted 

Space environment. In a full spectrum operation 

against a sophisticated adversary, Space professionals will be fully engaged in Space and in a lesser 

conflict or during stability operations in a mature 

theater–space professionals will work across the 

warfighting staff as “utility infielders”.

For the Iraqi people, the crossroad is when 

the Iraqi government and people have to make 

a choice after the retrograde of U.S. Forces is 

complete. The security agreement states that U.S. 

Forces must be out of Iraq by Dec. 31, 2011. The 

U.S. invested precious lives and national treasure 

to oust a dictator and allow the Iraqi people to 

enjoy freedom. It is now up to the Iraqis whether 

or not they will nurture the seed of democracy 

where people have a voice or whether they will 

back slide into days of the past.

Now that US forces will be out of Iraq, 

what does that mean to us in terms of Space 

with the Iraqi forces?

Story – Space is not really in the consciousness 

of most Iraqis. Iraqis currently have no national 

Space program and they rely on others for both 

military and commercial space. Realize that the 

Iraqis do not yet have air or missile defense systems–military Space is not currently on their 

agenda. Iraqi forces will purchase Space support 

and Space enabled equipment from other countries.

BG Kurt S. Story in Iraq
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 21

•	 Get smart on Special Technical Operations 

and Alternative or Compensatory Control Measures

•	 Leverage Corps Space Element 

and supporting Army Space Support Team

•	 Don’t worry too much about the 

Space Support Element Toolset-Light

•	 Expect opportunities to do other things and 

do the best at them

In 2009, however, the Army established the FA29 electronic warfare 

career field and assigned it as the Army proponent for IJSTO. This means 

that division and corps electronic warfare officers will likely become 

responsible for IJSTO in the future. Since SSEs are currently responsible for IJSTO within virtually all US Army division and corps, Army 

Space professionals find themselves at a crossroads requiring a strategic 

assessment and redesign of tactical and operational Space staff support.

To better understand this dynamic, it is necessary to understand 

the integration of Space capabilities into the Army since the 1990s. This 

will help in examining the purpose and factors that influenced the creation of the SSEs and Army Space Support Teams prior to military 

operations in Iraq.

In 1998, the Army began a critical phase of integrating Space 

capabilities into the Army by establishing the Functional Area 40 or 

Army Space Operations officer. At the time, there were many officers 

with the 3Y or Space Additional Skill Identifier signifying significant 

expertise in Army Signal, Military Intelligence, and Aviation branches. But that meant Space was a secondary skill and their assignments 

were not actually conducive to further development as a Space professional. Many felt this factor hindered Army efforts to work with the 

Air Force in developing Space systems and improving Space support 

to Army operations. So the establishment of Army Space moved the 

Army forward significantly in its desire to ensure the Army was a Spaceenabled force. With the establishment of just over 120 FA40 billets and 

a Qualifications Course established in 2000 based in Colorado Springs, 

the Army entered a new phase of Space operations.

The going-in concept for this phase came from a concept U.S. Air 

Force General Howell Estes implemented the Joint Space Force (JSF). 

What do you see as the primary point of 

this article in relation to the Space community 

and Iraq?

Story – There are several take-away points:

•	 Army Space contributed greatly to and enabled 

our highly successful efforts in Iraq in both 

combat and stability operations. Space facilitates 

our ability to find, fix, and kill the enemy while

enabling force protection of friendly forces.

•	 Army and Joint Forces rely heavily on Space 

based capabilities to effectively operate.

•	 Army Space professionals and their families 

sacrificed a lot.

•	 Army Space matured greatly over the last eightplus years of war.

•	 As a theater of operations matures, Space becomes 

normalized – or operationalized – so that Space 

professionals are not solely focused on space, 

but contributing across all battlefield functions

as utility infielders.

•	 Lesson learned in this conflict may or may not

apply to a future conflict–especially against a

sophisticated Space fairing enemy. We must 

evolve to maintain our relevance.

•	 Army Space cannot rest on its laurels we must 

posture ourselves for the future by adapting our 

Space formations and improving the training of 

our Space professionals.

I am extremely proud of the outstanding contributions and sacrifices made by Army Space 

Professionals in support of Operation New Dawn 

(OND). FA40’s made significant and lasting contributions to United State Forces-Iraq (USF-I) combat and stability operations in support of “Iraq’s 

continued development into a sovereign, stable and 

long-term self reliant strategic partner that contributes peace and security in the region.”

To use an analogy, I consider Space Operations 

officers supporting OND to be ‘utility infielders,’ players on a baseball team who do not have a 

starting role on the field (not a primary staff officer), but one who is capable of playing more than 

one of four defensive infield positions: second 

base (J2) third base (J3), shortstop (J6) and less 

typical first base (J5).

Contributors wrote with the freedom to 

express the role of Space in OND as they saw it.

Space After Action Review June 24 at the Al Faw Palace in Baghdad, 

Iraq, by Space professionals serving in the Iraq Joint Operations Area.
22 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Estes, who served as the commander-in-chief of U.S. Space 

Command from 1996-1998, told his staff to “operationalize, 

normalize, and institutionalize” the JSF. One of the contributors to this article (COL (R) Glen Collins, then a U.S. Army 

lieutenant colonel) was responsible for implementing Estes’ 

guidance. The solution was to identify precedents and paradigms used by the terrestrial Joint Forces from the Army, 

Navy, Marines, and Air Force and apply them to the Space 

Force concept. In a matter of a few years, the JSF implemented Space campaign plans, Space operational orders and, for 

the Air Force, Space tasking orders. All were based on proven 

joint doctrine. U.S. Space Command published a commandand-control concept of operations for Space Forces and 

developed the Space Battle Manager Core Systems (SBMCS) 

to maintain Space Order of Battle information on the Global 

SATCOM Support Centers.

This experience came to US Army Space and Missile 

Defense Command in 2000 when Collins became the director of Force Development and Integration Center. The same 

“operationalize, normalize, and institutionalize” Space philosophy from U.S. Space Command became instrumental in 

integrating Space into Army operations. All of these programs 

had the objective to make Army Space Forces like the rest of 

the Army. If it was good for the field artillery, infantry, signal, 

and other professional fields in the Army, it was good for the 

Army Space forces. Tthe effort resulted in the following programs being initiated over the next years:

•	 Space Officer Qualification Course

•	 Space Force Management Analysis (FORMAL) and the establishment of the Army Space Cadre

•	 Establishment of 1st Space BDE, the 100th GMD BDE, the 1st

Space BN, the 117th Space BN (CO NG), the 49th Missile Defense BN, and the 53rd SIG BN as MTOE units. All were TDA 

or didn’t exist before.

•	 The creation and publishing of the Army Space Journal.

•	 The establishment and location of additional Space training 

courses in Colorado Springs with the goal of forming a virtual 

“Fort Space.”

As these programs developed, they were very important in 

addressing an experience issue. Initially, FA40s assignments 

were concentrated in Colorado Springs within U.S. Space 

Command and U.S. Army Space Command. There was a single 

FA40 major assigned to the Corps Headquarters with additional 

reach back Space support provided by Army Space Support 

Teams assigned to Army Space Command. At the first FA40 

Conference in 2001, there were many complaints from the 

Corps FA40s that their G3 and other staffs didn’t know how to 

best utilize their skills and that they often were assigned additional duties that basically relegated Space to a secondary priority. A major contributing factor was that most of the officers 

assigned to the outside units had minimal Space experience. 

Compounding that, leaders in the units where the FA40s were 

assigned had little idea how to maximize Space capabilities.

As the Army Space force grew, another problem was to 

address how to support the operational Army. The augmentation support for the corps came from an ARSST that did 

not routinely provide support during routine training and 

exercises. As a result, the ARSSTs were not well integrated 

with the supported corps when they arrived for deployments 

or the occasional large exercise. This problem was no different than other branches of the Army in integrating with the 

maneuver force, so FDIC developed the concept of having 

a Space Operations Cell of FA40s that would be permanently assigned to the Army, corps, and division headquarters. To 

avoid confusion with the Special Operations Forces, the name 

was changed to Space Support Element. It was modeled on 

the Fire Support Element concept. Like the FSE, the SSE was 

intended to be the integrator of Space support, and a “plug” 

that augmenting Space forces such as an ARSST would connect through to the supported unit. The SSE both institutionalized and more importantly normalized Space support to the 

Army unit.

The work began to make the SSE part of the Objective 

Force, under development starting in 2000. In 2001, though, 

a critical demonstration moved the idea forward. TRADOC 

was building the Interim Division (I-DIV) as a transition step 

to the Objective Force. During a wargame, a question came up 

about using commercial satellite communication to support 

the division – would the necessary bandwidth be available. 

The senior military leader asked: “Exactly what satellites are 

available to support the I-DIV?” No one was able to answer 

him except Collins, representing Army Space. After briefing 

Space support for the I-DIV – including military and civilian 

satellite communication, the SSE concept was approved.
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 23

As the command built the manpower & 

equipment requirements for the SSE, a 

few simple rules guided the effort:

•	 Have enough rank to survive and be heard in the HQs staff.

•	 Ensure enough personnel were assigned so that a Space Officer was on duty 24x7 during field operations and could support 

both a TAC and the TOC.

•	 For the SSE Toolkit (SSET) developed by the Battle Lab by LTC 

Baehr, ensure the SSET had independent communications capability so that the Space Officer was always connected to the 

JSF and the SBMCS. This supported our CONOPS for Space 

Officers to have a small footprint forward and to reachback to 

the JSF for information, taskings, and support.

In some minds, the SSE replaced the need for the ARSST, so 

the role of the ARSST came into question. TRADOC viewed 

the ARSST billets as bill payers for the SSE. This presented a 

challenge, so SMDC/ARSTRAT proposed that Army Space 

forces were to battle roster to augment the SSE, as needed, for 

extend operations. Over time, the ARSST adapted to support 

other Services (such as the U.S. Marine Corps) and units not 

assigned an SSE (such as the Coalition Provisional Authority 

during OIF), and saved themselves from being eliminated.

Assessing the future 

in light of the present

The next step in understanding where the Space effort is today 

in terms of integration into Army operations is in grasping 

the status of the elements of Space force enhancement. A 

quote from Success from the Field OIF V, an article printed in the 

ASJ in the 2008 Spring Edition, provides an entry perspective. 

“Traditional Space force enhancement has matured greatly on 

the corps and division staffs, freeing up SSEs to focus on other 

tasks.” This trend has held steady since 2006 so that today Army 

leaders both inside the Space community and outside have a 

greater realization of the five Space force enhancement functions: communications, PNT, ISR, missile warning, and environmental monitoring. Most of these Space -related functions 

are performed in the G2 and G6 staffs. While the establishment 

of SSEs envisioned a great deal of Space requirements for tactical and operational headquarters, this has not been shown in 

Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation New Dawn – hence the 

present SSE emphasis on IJSTO and ACCM.

A few thoughts on the traditional 

SSEs during Operation New Dawn

Communications There has been little need for SSEs to 

supplement the Division G6. The SSEs role in communications has been a supporting role in GPS electromagnetic interference (EMI) resolution. EMI recognition, battle drills and 

resolution all require improvements.

PNT PNT at the Corps and Division level consists of applications involving devices that use GPS. Primary among these 

are Friendly Force Tracking (FFT) equipment, precision-guided munitions and UAVs. FFT equipment is handled by the 

G6s who well understands and has the personnel to troubleshoot issues such as signal latency. SSEs can assist with reports 

which provide GPS accuracy predictions [Position Dilution of 

Precision (PDOP) reports], but the Air Liaison Officer (ALO) 

and the Staff Weather Officer (SWO) are also conversant in 

this information. The UAVs that the Division G2 Collection 

Manager controls use the GPS signal for navigation and payload operation.

ISR The Corps and Division G2 Collection Managers are 

experts on ISR. They control all of the ISR assets. There 

are some niche ISR-related tasks that the SSE can perform. 

The SSE can provide confirmation of an infrared event. This 

information may be used to assist in locating a downed aircraft if there was an explosion. If the adversary had satellites 

and ground stations that were potential targets, the SSE could 

assist in monitoring the status of these targets.

Missile Warning The corps and division staff ’s have a section devoted to AMD which maintains a presence in the operations center. The SSE can monitor the publicaly available 

SIPR Website that tracks events for situational awareness and 

as a backup.

Environmental Monitoring SSEs monitor the Space environment by reviewing the daily Space slides sent out by the 

CAOC to see if there are any effects to operations. Very rarely, scintillation may cause some negative effects with communications. Other than that, Space weather did not generally 

impact operations.

Army Space Support 

Elements were an 

integral part of the 

team training Iraqi 

forces as part of 

Operation New Dawn.
24 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

The above breakdown of Space Force Enhancement shows 

that the Corps and Division G2 and G6 staffs understand and 

accept the Space-related portion of their function as just another necessary function. The fact that the capabilities depend on 

something in orbit are justifiably transparent for most cases.

Requirements for the SSE were also driven by the fact 

that Space support to Operation New Dawn was conducted 

in a mature theater. It is important to note that staff officers 

– to include FA40s – may be operational generalists or functional experts from a training and personnel management perspective. However, when the expertise does not match the 

requirement for an organization, a staff officer should develop expertise and assume roles that are critical for his or her 

unit. These facts are universal. This is specifically why so many 

FA40s have developed high levels of expertise in IJSTO and 

Alternative Compensatory Control Measures (ACCM) or been 

assigned to generalist position, such as a division liaison to its 

higher headquarters. This fact is a testament to the quality of 

the FA40, as well as the strength of the Army officer corps.

From this perspective, the Space professional community should avoid trying to organize as an operations career field force. The Space professional doesn’t 

need a widget or daily Space action to be relevant – they 

are part of staffs which help commanders solve problems. Space professionals solve problems by providing 

Space expertise.

The importance of staff interaction cannot be overemphasized. However, it is important to note that interaction with 

fellow division SSEs is just as invaluable. Aside from participating in regular Space and special programs VTCs, the division and corps SSE chiefs routinely corresponded with each 

other on all aspects of the job. Each individual brought unique 

experiences, pulled together, and shared ideas, products, and 

information to assist each other in any way possible in executing their respective unit missions. Reaching out to fellow SSEs 

did not stop at the IJOA boundary. The SSE from 1st Cavalry 

Division at Fort Hood, Texas provided invaluable assistance 

to 4ID SSE by assisting with the train-up and indoctrination 

requirements for key personnel from 2HBCT, 1CD prior to 

their deployment to USD-N. Their assistance saved valuable 

time, and facilitated a seamless Relief In Place/Transfer of 

Authority between 2/25 ID and 2/1 CD as they assumed their 

mission as one of USD-North’s Advise and Assist Brigades.

Lessons Learned

•	 Success is as much personality driven as any capability you 

can provide. Space professionals must find and coordinate with 

the right people within the organizational structure to succeed.–

Communicate with the unit you are replacing as early and as 

often as possible.

•	 Create an SOP and continuity book for your successors. It is 

important to capture the lessons you have learned and pass 

them on. The SOP can be modified as needed, and becomes a 

living document to assist the Space community.

•	 While in garrison, take advantage of as many training and 

schooling opportunities as possible. The Space and Missile 

Defense Battle Lab Futures and Wargames section participates 

in a series of wargames and seminars each year. Attendance at 

some of these events enhances the Space professional’s basic 

knowledge of available systems and encourages non-standard 

solutions to complex scenarios. This serves the FA40 well during a deployment. It also provides the Battle Lab with current 

and relevant experience to direct their programs.

•	 Network amongst peers.

Current vs. Future Fight

As mentioned earlier, Operation New Dawn was conducted in 

a mature theater and in a threat environment with low probability of insurgent access to counter-Space systems. This will not 

always be the case. As adversaries gain more and more access to 

the electromagnetic spectrum and Space is normalized, the vulnerability of US Army reliance on Space assets becomes more 

apparent. Knowledge and employment of Space protection systems are only partial solutions. Operations in a contested Space 

domain will not result in the assured capabilities most US forces 

currently enjoy. In lieu of the traditional blue-on-blue interference, we will also face issues from grey and red systems. This 

may degrade communications, ISR, and precision engagement. 

A thorough link and node analysis may take some time to conduct, but the results will provide US forces a basic architecture 

from which to troubleshoot.

Another area requiring examination is the SSE force 

structure. The lieutenant colonel billet must continue to be 

filled with experienced, senior FA40s, primarily to ensure that 

the headquarters is effective. But, the seasoned FA40 also 

benefits junior FA40s with mentoring. The changes to some 

of the SSE positions from major to captain, combined with 

Success is as much personality driven as any capability you can provide. 

Space professionals must find and coordinate with the right people 

within the organizational structure to succeed.–Communicate with the 

unit you are replacing as early and as often as possible.
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 25

the four-year career field designation, will require assessing a 

true career model that describes how to achieve success and 

where SSE service fits into success.

Closing

The beginning of this article described three options for the 

future of Army Space: hold what we have, modify force structure within the Space construct, or look at where Space broadly 

fits into our Army formations with other enabling career fields. 

While this article did not address these options directly, it did 

provide a necessary discussion about integrating Space in Army 

operations – a background that is necessary for taking things 

forward. A final consideration is this: To date, 4,481 Americans 

have given their lives and the ultimate sacrifice in military operations in Iraq. Concepts for the Army Space Cadre, Army Space 

Support Teams and Space Support Elements were forged and 

tested during eight years of combat and stability operations 

in Iraq. They were weighed, measured and tested – the 

contributions are unquestionably invaluable to our Army’s 

exceptional success.

As Operation New Dawn ends, it is appropriate for 

our Army and USASMDC/ARSTRAT to conduct a holistic, “pitot tube to tail rotor”, “soup to nuts” assessment of 

Army Space activities to ensure we are trained, organized, and 

equipped to support the next challenge. As our Army adapts 

for the future in support of combined arms maneuver and 

wide area security missions so must Army Space. The Army 

must understand its requirements for Space based assets and 

Space forces in support of full spectrum operations. Yogi 

Bera said it best–“If you don’t know where you are going, 

you might wind up someplace else”. We have come too far 

to drown in irrelevance – now is the perfect time to comprehensively review the Army Space enterprise and prepare for 

the future.

U.S. and Iraqi Military partnerships provides a broader perspective for the future.
26 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Sto ry by WGCDR (05), RAAF, 

PAtrick J. Del Guidice, 

AUS CPP SATCOM Division

United State s 

An Old Alliance, 

Fortified through 

SATCOM

The United States (US) and Australia (AUS) have been allies for a very long time. 

“Australia is in fact the only country that has participated side by 

side with the United States in every conflict of any degree in which the 

United States has been involved since we first fought together at the 

Battle of Hamel on the Fourth of July in 1918.” 1

The alliance between the two countries is fortified on, amongst 

other things, the basis of closely-shared cultural ideals, a profound 

belief in a democratic system of government and a genuine desire 

to share the burden of ensuring that our way of life is safeguarded 

from those who would otherwise see us fall. The foundation of this 

close relationship is codified in formal agreements such as the AUS, 

New Zealand (NZ), US (ANZUS) Security Treaty. 

& Austra lia

LTG Richard P. Formica, and MAJGEN Mike Milford 

speak with Corporal David Boucaut (RAAF) at the 

opening of the Wideband Satellite Communications 

Operation Center in Wahiawa, HI. 
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 27

The ANZUS Treaty: 

“was signed in San Francisco, Calif., on Sept. 1, 1951, for the 

purpose of providing mutual aid in the event of aggression and for 

settling disputes by peaceful means. It came into force in 1952. The 

three countries’ initials provided the acronyms for the treaty and the 

organization that grew out of it. The United States offered the pact 

to Australia as compensation for the prospect of Japanese rearmament. Under the terms of the treaty, the three nations maintain a 

consultative relationship with each other and strive to ensure their 

collective security in the Pacific region.” 2

However, to date the treaty has been invoked beyond the Pacific 

region – for example, it was invoked shortly after 11 Sep 2001 

by Prime Minister Howard (Prime Minister of Australia 1996-

2007) as an international statement that Australia was standing 

ready to cooperate within the limits of its capability concerning 

any response that the United States may regard as necessary3. 

Hence, ANZUS was the political force behind AUS’s involvement in both Gulf Wars and in Afghanistan:

“Australia made a point of using ANZUS to justify sending troops to Afghanistan, ... Shortly afterwards, Howard sent 

Australian troops and bombers into Iraq...” 4

Interestingly, to date AUS has been the largest participating, 

non-NATO ally in Afghanistan5. 

Consequently, AUS’ and military forces conduct a variety 

of Joint activities including Military Exercises (e.g. Talisman 

Sabre 2011) and operate several joint defense facilities in 

AUS associated with things such as Intelligence6 and Satellite 

Communications (SATCOM). As a benefit of the strong relationship and the need to ensure that the two countries employ 

compatible and interoperable capabilities in operations, the 

US and AUS also share military technology through numerous cooperative arrangements such as US Foreign Military 

Sales programs (e.g. Joint Strike Fighter, C-17, CREW Vehicle 

Receiver Jammer, etc.) and joint partnerships such as the 

Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS) program. The US-AUS 

WGS partnership is the focus of the remainder of this article.

In November 2007, the US and AUS entered into a 

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to: 

“cooperatively enhance the WGS System through addition of an 

AS-funded, sixth satellite (including all required activities) to provide to each Participant, Assured Access to worldwide SATCOM 

resources for their national use over the operational life of the constellation, commensurate with each Participant’s contribution.” 7

For the US, it meant there was an opportunity to procure a sixth 

WGS satellite prior to the expiration of its contract option with 

Boeing and increase the WGS constellation resulting in muchneeded additional SATCOM capacity. This was very significant 

for the US Warfighter because only five had been approved for 

procurement by the US Government at that time. For AUS, 

it provided a global SATCOM capability in military X-band 

and Ka-band , that met AUS’ increasing SATCOM requirements. Based on AUS’ reliance on the OPTUS-C1 satellite for 

its X-band and Ka-band coverage within the Australasian region 

as well as its dependence on various commercial SATCOM and 

legacy US MILSATCOM systems (where agreements were in 

place), the WGS MoU represented a significant increase in the 

Australian Defence Force’s (ADF) SATCOM capability with 

major global, operational implications, 

“permitting the ADF to conduct multiple and simultaneous military operations independently or as part of a coalition force via 

secure and reliable SATCOM, available to deployed forces, operational command and Australian headquarters.” 8

The undertaking from the AUS perspective is approximately 

a $1 Billion investment and is anticipated to further strengthen the AUS-US alliance by enhancing, “the close ties and high 

level of cooperation that already exists between AUS and US 

defense force personnel.”9 Under this MOU, AS is responsible 

for funding the procurement and life cycle costs of adding a 

sixth WGS satellite, the associated launch services, and costs 

associated with connectivity. However, this should be framed as 

a financial contribution to the cost of the constellation; that is, it 

would be a mistake to associate the AUS investment with AUS 

ownership of WGS-6. AUS’ investment entitles it to shared use 

of the entire WGS constellation commensurate with its investment – the US still owns and operates the WGS system in total. 

Also, AUS was given the prospect to place and fund 

personnel – as Cooperative Project Personnel (CPP) – in 

the Acquisition Project Office (APO), Operational Project 

Office (OPO), and Operations Centers, including the 

Global SATCOM Support Center, the Regional SATCOM 

Support Centers, and the Wideband SATCOM Operations 

Centers (WSOCs). Hence, to date AUS has placed ten CPPs 

in the US as a result of the MoU. One, an O4, is in the J66 

in STRATCOM at Offutt, Nebraska. There are two CPPs in 

Colorado Springs; an O5 in the SATCOM Division Staff and 

a GS-14 (00391) equivalent (AUS Public Servant - APS) in the 

Wideband Branch of SATCOM Division. In Hawaii, there are 

two CPPs in the RSSC-PAC at Wheeler AFB, an O3 and an 

E6. Finally, there are five more CPPs in the WSOC at Wahiawa 

working within D Co., 53rd SIG BN, an E8, an E6 and three 

E5s. By 2013, the number of AUS CPPs will total sixteen; 

Corporal David Boucaut (RAAF) is a CPP with D Company, 

53rd Signal Battalion at WSOC Wahiawa.
28 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

footnotes

1 The Honorable John Howard, Prime 

Minister of Australia 1996-2007, The 

Anglosphere and the Advance of Freedom, 

- Published on January 3, 2011, http://www.

heritage.org/research/lecture/2011/01/theanglosphere-and-the-advance-of-freedom.

2 http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/

topic/29147/ANZUS-Pact, accessed 22 

Jun 2011.

3 Government Invokes ANZUS Treaty 

- Prime Minister’s Press Conference, 

September 14, 2001, http://www.

australianpolitics.com/foreign/anzus/01-09-

14anzus-invoked.shtml, website accessed 30 

Jun 2011.

4 ANZUS Alliance, http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/

h2g2/A5648998, website accessed 30 Jun 

2011.

5 Note: on 9 June 2011, Georgia’s Defence 

Minister Bacho Akhalaia confirmed his 

country’s willingness to increase its 

military contingent in Afghanistan... from 

its current contingent of 925 personnel 

with another battalion of 725 soldiers 

as of 2012...which will make Georgian 

forces larger in number than the current 

largest non-NATO contingent, that of 

1550 Australian soldiers. Article from: 

EASTWEEK, Analytical Newsletter for 

Eastern Europe, Russia, Caucasus and 

Central Asia, Issue 21 (256), 17 June 2011, 

published by Centre for Eastern Studies, 

p.7.

6 For more information about the 

intelligence relationship between Australia 

and the U.S.A., refer: The U.S. – Australian 

Intelligence Relationship, PAX Americana 

Institute; Policy Department, by Drew 

Davis, Executive Director, PAX Americana 

Institute, Spring 2009.

7 Memorandum of Understanding 

between the Department of Defense 

of the United States of America and the 

Department of Defence of Australia 

concerning joint production, operations, 

and support of Wideband Global Satellite 

Communications, dated 14 November 

2007, p.7.

8 Australia To Join With United States In 

Defence Global Satellite Communications 

Capability, dated 09 Oct 07 Canberra, 

Australia (SPX), http://www.spacewar.com/

reports/Australia_To_Join_With_United_

States_In_Defence_Global_Satellite_

Communications_Capability_999.html 

accessed on 21 June 2011

9 ibid.

10 Definition of Cooperative Program 

Personnel, AR 380–10 • 22 June 2005, p. 78.

11 USASMDC/ARSTRAT OPORD 11-07 

(Integration of Australian CPP Personnel), 

dated 252300ZJAN2011, p.4.

fifteen of whom will work for USASMDC/

ARSTRAT (note: the yet-to-arrive, six CPPs 

will all PCS to the WSOC at Wahiawa). 

CPPs are defined in AR 380-10 as, “foreign government personnel assigned to a 

multinational program office hosted by the 

Department of the Army...for the purpose 

of carrying out a multinational project or program.”10 CPPs are not foreign government 

liaison officers or observers; they report to 

and take direction from their host nation (US) 

supervisor — although they may act from 

time to time on behalf of their respective 

country if authorized in writing. The benefit 

of this arrangement is twofold; the US is provided with cost-free resources to contribute 

to joint US-AUS WGS objectives and AUS 

is afforded the opportunity for its personnel 

to gain much-needed space/SATCOM experience; something that can be leveraged by 

the Australian Defence Organisation (ADO) 

when CPPs eventually PCS back to AUS.

The inclusion of AUS CPPs in 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT’s daily-business is a 

relatively new endeavor for the Command. 

In order meet the objectives of the US-AUS 

WGS MoU, the Commanding General’s 

intent, through the G3, promulgated OPORD 

07-11 (Integration of AUS CPP Personnel),

“to integrate all assigned AUS CPPs as 

embedded USASMDC/ARSTRAT staff 

as soon as possible from their time of arrival, to make maximum use of the knowledge and skills they bring to the command...

and that all possible Wideband SATCOM 

planning and operations be conducted as REL 

to USA, AUS and that US-only Wideband 

planning and operations be conducted 

by exception.” 11

The OPORD acknowledges that the 

MoU represents a partnership of approximately 22 more years over which time 

AUS CPPs will be a part of USASMDC/

ARSTRAT. Consequently, G-3 is coordinating development of a Concept of Operations 

and Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures 

(TTP) to successfully integrate AUS DoD 

members into the Command.

Since the arrival of the first AUS CPPs 

in 2009, USASMDC/ARSTRAT has made 

increasing strides to integrate CPPs. In fact, 

it has been openly reported that the CPPs in 

D Co., 53rd SIG BN (WSOC at Wahiawa, 

HI) are very well integrated and are highly 

respected and productive members of D Co. 

Additionally, recent break-throughs regarding 

other objectives of OPORD 07-11 will see 

CPPs participate in even more WGS activities throughout the Command and with other 

external-to-the-Command stakeholders. The 

partnership is blossoming and the intent of 

the MoU is being realized more and more 

every day.

The launch of WGS-4 is scheduled in 

the first quarter of 2012, followed closely by 

WGS-5 (Oct 2012) and WGS-6 (Mar 2013). 

Furthermore, the US is funding additional 

increases to the WGS constellation through 

procurement and life-cycle costs for WGS-7 

and WGS-8. The US is also finalizing new 

partnerships with other close allies to jointly 

procure WGS-9. These increases to the WGS 

constellation will make WGS an even more 

powerful communications-enabler, globally 

for Military Operations. Additionally, lessons 

learned from the AUS-US partnership, such 

as how SATCOM entitlements for the partners are to be determined and how SATCOM 

resources are to be managed in congested 

joint operations areas, will be readily applied 

in the new arrangement.

The relationship between the US and 

AUS is cherished by both nations and extends 

back in time, and is forged in blood. The 

WGS program is just one example of many, 

where the friendship and dedication to each 

other has resulted in a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. AUS and US 

both benefit by cooperatively participating 

this technologically superior and imminently 

capable WGS SATCOM program. Through 

continued cooperation and support of this 

program, we will prolong each other’s ability to better enable our national and coalition military operations, globally. By means of 

employment of advanced SATCOM capabilities, we will be better able to protect our way 

of life, effectively provide aid to those in need 

and further fortify our already strong and 

loyal relationship to one another.
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 29

The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has both X- (~7 

to 8 GHz) and Ka-band (~20 GHz and ~30 GHz) capabilities on the Singtel/Optus C1 satellite (Figure 1). The 

ADF would like to exploit both capabilities, but the current land and marine satellite terminals (i.e. antennas) do 

not include Ka-band. Accordingly the ADF would like 

to upgrade their satellite terminals to be able to operate 

simultaneously at X- and Ka-band to minimise duplication with equipment and personnel. The ADF has contracted the Defence Science & Technology Organisation 

(DSTO) and the CSIRO to provide a new X/Ka-band 

capability for one of its existing mobile land terminals 

(the PARRAKEET – Figure 2).

During the initial design study several feed configurations were considered but the final design approach 

employs a coaxial structure (Figures 3 and 4) which was 

designed and optimised using both CSIRO proprietary 

and commercial electromagnetic analysis software. The 

new design provides for optimum performance in both 

X and Ka bands from one antenna, giving an equivalent 

performance of two single band antennas.

A NEW X AND Ka

BAND SATELL ITE 

CAPABILITY FOR 

THE AUS TRALIAN 

DEFENCE FORCE

courtesy of Defence Science & 

Technolog y Orga nizat ion

Figure 1: The Singtel/Optus C1 Satellite

Figure 2: The PARAKEET terminal

Figure 3: Cross sectional view of the coaxial feed

Figure 4: The X/Ka-band feed chain
30 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

For American and Australian Soldiers taking part in Exercise Talisman Sabre, satellites can make the difference between winning or losing.

“Space Operations help the commanders visualize movement on the battlefield using commercial topographical imagery, but it isn’t just about terrain features and maps,” said 

MAJ Courtney Henderson, U.S. Army, Pacific, Space Support 

Element, Fort Shafter, Hawaii.

“Space capabilities enhance the military’s ability to communicate, navigate terrain, engage the enemy with better accuracy, and protect its forces,” Henderson stressed.

Space Operations Soldiers retrieve and interpret data 

and develop products that help commanders navigate on 

the battlefield, whether they’re tracking convoys, establishing landing zones and distribution networks, or mapping 

critical infrastructure to locate obstacles, bridges, and crossings, to name a few, Henderson said.

Talisman Sabre is a biennial training exercise designed to 

bring the different branches of the U.S. and Australian militaries together in a combined environment to train and enhance 

their combined and joint war-fighting skills.

As a combined joint task force, roughly 14,000 U.S. and 

9,000 Australian military personnel conducted maritime, land, 

and air operations exercises July 11-29.

Satellite and Space technologies have a wide range of 

application, not only as an asset to commanders on the 

ground in a combat environment and pilots in the air, but also 

for emergency and humanitarian assistance.

Before a commander can decide which contingent of 

troops will descend to the east or if they will fan out on a 

western ridge or which tank formation is chosen to mount a 

Provide an Edge In 

Australia - U.S. Exercise

By MSG Corine Lom bardo , New Yo rk Army Nat ional Guard

Space Systems 

Space systems give an edge to the 

commanders of Soldiers such as 

Australian Pvt. Brendan Venables, 

a member of Northwest Mobile 

Force, Northern Australia, and 

SPC Jason Gutshall, a Maryland 

National Guard Soldier from 

Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 

158th Long Range Surveillance 

Cavalry in Hagerstown, Md.

Photos by MSG Corine Lombardo
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 31

direct assault, he needs to ensure the terrain will support the 

movement.

Satellite imagery allows him to know in advance if a riverbed is flooding or an area is experiencing extreme drought 

conditions, both of which have a huge impact on a commander’s decisions.

A significant asset is the ability to use current imagery 

to visualize and assess battle damage using computer images 

rather than sending personnel and aircraft to determine how 

effective weapons systems were.

“These systems enhance timing, effectiveness, and efficiency for commanders in the air as well as on the ground,” said 

Squadron Leader Steven Henry from the Australian Defence 

Forces Air and Space Operations Center, Headquarters, Joint 

Operations Command.

“Whether it’s the navigation system in a cockpit or a locator beacon during a search and rescue mission, they are critical 

to our success,” Henry said.

Understanding these capabilities and interpreting the data 

that’s collected is no easy task.

Army Space Support Teams, or ARSSTs, from the 1st 

Space Brigade continually monitor satellite conditions, locations, atmospheric weather conditions, and environmental factors, such as solar flares, that may impact their systems’ ability 

to collect or send information.

Teams provide a tailored support package of personnel 

and equipment including six members, two officers and four 

enlisted Soldiers, each specializing in his or her own fields; 

from communications, intelligence, and computer technology 

to topographic analysis.

Soldiers undergo months of additional training that 

focuses on Space-related knowledge and skills.

“What makes us unique is that every one of our Soldiers 

can step in and perform any function on the team,” said 1SG 

Chuck Meens, 1158th Space Company, Colorado National 

Guard, Colorado Springs, Colo.

These highly trained teams use their skills and various 

systems to advise a commander on precision engagements, 

geospatial intelligence, and environmental effects on satellite 

communications and imaging capabilities, said MAJ Joseph 

Paladino, commander of the Colorado Army National Guard’s 

217th Space Company, Colorado Springs, Colo.

This is the first time Space Operations have been fully 

integrated in a Talisman Sabre exercise, with components 

from the U.S. Army and Air Force and the Royal Australian 

Air Force.

“The ARSST has been a huge benefit in demonstrating Space operations capabilities,” Henderson said. “The 

exchange of this technology with our Australian counterparts 

through Talisman Sabre has helped demonstrate the need for 

this asset in a combined ground force campaign. Theater security cooperation is a major initiative for U.S. Army, Pacific. The 

relationships we are building and the exchange of information we receive is essential to providing Space Operations professional training and development, which we foresee going 

beyond this exercise.”

“Space Operations is relatively new to the Australian 

Defence Forces. We have a limited number of personnel at 

this point, so the training and experience we gain from U.S. 

Army, Pacific is critical to our development,” Henry said.

“The exchange of this technology 

with our Australian counterparts

through Talisman Sabre has helped

demonstrate the need for this asset

in a combined ground force campaign ... .”

— MAJ Courtney Henderson
32 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Pacific Space Support Element 

Reaches Three Goals in Exercise

Aussie s & Yank s

A sapper from Australia’s 1st Combat 

Engineers Regiment, 1st Field Squadron, 

2nd Troop plants a block of explosives 

to cut through a metal structure during 

Talisman Sabre 2011. Talisman Sabre 

11 is a biennial training event aimed at 

improving and validating the Australian 

Defense Force and the United States 

combat readiness and interoperability 

as a joint task force. U.S. Navy photo 

by Mass Communication Specialist 1st 

Class Woody Paschall

By MAJ Thomas Pugs ley, MAJ Courtney Henderso n, Capt . 

Ro bert McConnell, and Squad ron Lead er Steve Henry
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 33

Last summer the U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) Space Support Element participated in the multinational training exercise Talisman Sabre 11 with support from an Army 

Space Support Team. The exercise was designed to practice Combined Joint Task Force operations in a high-end 

warfighting environment in order to improve combat readiness, enhance interoperability, and test emerging capabilities.

The Australian-hosted biennial exercise is one of the largest such exercises in the Pacific region and included more than 

35,000 U.S. and Australian forces participating throughout the 

entire theater. Because Space was to play a more significant role 

in this year’s exercise, Space forces from both the U.S. Army and 

Air Force were asked to reinforce the newly formed Australian 

Joint Space Operations Cell (JSOC), which officially stood up 

in June 2010.

Why would a theater Army Space Support Element (SSE) 

take part in such an exercise? Simply put, doing so met many of 

our primary objectives. First, the exercise allowed U.S. forces to 

support the development of an ally’s Space capability and assist 

the newly formed Australian Space cadre in supporting the 

Combined Air and Space Operations Center. Second, the exercise gave us the opportunity to support the USARPAC Theater 

Security Cooperation Plan (TSCP) goals by further developing relationships with one of America’s closest allies. Third, 

the exercise allowed the USARPAC SSE to exercise its Title 10 

responsibilities. And finally, it gave us the opportunity to develop Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) and Standard 

Operating Procedures (SOPs) in support of an expanded role 

in current operations in the USARPAC Main Command Post.

While the use of an SSE and an Army Space Support Team 

(ARSST) in support of a foreign Space element, specifically an 

Air and Space Operations Center (AOC), is not doctrinal, the 

exercise provided great utility and value to both the U.S. Space 

forces and the Australians. The overall results had a much greater impact than we had expected and reinforced one key fact: 

For SSEs to remain relevant they need to be flexible and able to 

adapt and integrate into any headquarters element where there 

is a need for Space expertise. But before we get to the specifics 

of the exercise, let’s look quickly at the road that brought a theater Army SSE and an ARSST to augment the JSOC, the highest echelon Space operations organization within the Australian 

Defense Forces.

Background

Space integration into Talisman Sabre 11 started simply enough. 

Following after-action review comments from exercise Schriever 

2010, the need to help bolster the Space operations capability of 

the Australian Defense Forces was identified. This need, coupled 

with the requirement for the USARPAC SSE to seek out opportunities to integrate Space into theater-wide activities in the U.S. 

Pacific Command region in support of its TSCP, led to a mutually beneficial situation. Using the pre-existing bilateral Talisman 

Sabre exercises as a vehicle, the USARPAC SSE presented a plan 

to integrate a more robust Space support package in support 

of the Australians. This would facilitate fulfilling theater Army 

functions by executing the TSCP as well as helping foster a more 

robust Space and Space activities relationship with a top ally. The 

two were mutually beneficial, and the plan was approved by the 

Australians who were specifically interested in the prospect of 

U.S. support and augmentation to their newly formed Joint Space 

Operations Cell.

The SSE then approached the PACOM Director of Space 

Forces (DS4) and asked if the Pacific Air Forces, who were 

already involved in the planning process for the exercise, would 

be interested in supplementing the U.S. Army Space personnel 

augmenting the Australian JSOC, and they accepted, putting 

the full weight of the DS4 behind the exercise. From that point 

forward, plans were set in motion for the first-ever Combined 

Space Operations Cell providing Space-specific support to a 

Combined Air and Space Operations Center.

The Exercise

The 2011 iteration of Talisman Sabre provided many firsts with 

regard to U.S. and Australian relationships. First, it was an inaugural opportunity for collaboration between Pacific Air Forces, 

U.S. Army Pacific, and Australian Defense Forces (ADF) Space 

personnel into a single combined Space cell. In Talisman Sabre 

2009, only U.S. Air Force Space personnel worked alongside 

Members of the U.S. Army 

Pacific Space Support Element, 

U.S. Air Force Pacific and Army 

Space Support Team #23 join 

their Australian colleagues at 

the Australian Defence Forces 

Headquarters Joint Operations 

Command Air and Space Operations 

Centre during Exercise Talisman 

Sabre 2011. Photo by MSG Corine 

Lombardo from the NY ARNG
34 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

ADF personnel to provide Space support, and 

at a much reduced level. The diverse grouping 

of Space personnel for this year’s exercise from 

across the services provided valuable lessons for 

all parties involved. Simply put, this was possibly the best integration of Space into Combined 

Force Air Component Command (CFACC) planning ever seen during a non-U.S. exercise.

Integration of an Army Space Support Team 

in support to the CFACC – critical to the overall 

success of the exercise – was another successful 

first for Talisman Sabre. The ARSST provided a 

broad base of capabilities focused on maintaining Space situational awareness, producing daily 

products that supported strike planning and timing, and providing communications and reach 

back to supporting organizations. The ARSST 

facilitated successful planning and integration of 

Space mission areas into planning by providing 

navigation accuracy plots and satellite modeling. 

This allowed the SSE and Air Force Space personnel to focus on current and future operations 

planning, staff integration, participation in various key working groups, and produce and execute 

general officer-level decision briefings. Without 

these products or support from the ARSST, the 

Space team’s input into CFACC planning process 

would have been greatly reduced.

The ADF Space personnel’s establishment 

of a permanent position on the AOC operations 

floor for a Space duty officer marked another 

first. This is a significant step, and a sign that 

the ADF is beginning to take Space impacts on 

operations seriously. Unfortunately, prior to the 

execution of Talisman Sabre 2011, no SOPs or 

TTPs existed for this position, and the Space 

team was forced to develop and refine SOPs and 

TTPs during the course of the exercise. This was 

deemed a “huge success” by the PACOM DS4, 

Col. Alan Rebholz, USAF, who was in attendance for the exercise as the night AOC director. Having helped develop the SOPs and TTPs, 

the USARPAC SSE member who recently was 

tasked with standing up a similar Space duty officer position on the USARPAC Main Command 

Post floor used these documents as the basis for 

refining his own SOPs and TTPs.

Another critical first came from an Australian 

Air Force officer, Squadron Leader Steve Henry, 

acting as the DS4 for the exercise. He organized 

spin-up training for all personnel prior to the 

exercise and directly advised the Joint Force Air 

Component Commander (JFACC) throughout 

the exercise. Additionally, he provided guidance 

to the Space team, directing day-to-day operations and was personally responsible for the 

superb integration observed during this execution. A key factor in his success was the availability of the PACOM DS4 and his many years of 

Space experience as a senior adviser and mentor. 

This provided the JSOC with a vector and reference point when we found ourselves stuck in the 

wrong orbit and needing a delta V.

Overall the 2011 exercise for the JSOC was 

an unparalleled success with a hard-working and 

well-prepared team accomplishing the many 

firsts. Combined with competent staff and an 

efficient battle rhythm, JSOC members were recognized for all their efforts and expertise during 

the exercise and setting the standard for a Space 

cell’s role in AOC operations. Additionally, the 

exercise showed how Army Space forces can 

integrate successfully into any organization to 

provide Space expertise. All these achievements 

considered, there were still plenty of lessons 

learned that must be addressed.

Challenges and Lessons Learned

There were some major challenges pointed out 

during the execution of Talisman Sabre 2011. 

While each of these challenges had varying effects 

on operational capabilities, they all had major 

impacts that degraded the overall ability of the 

JSOC to execute its mission. We must take a serious look at the root causes of these issues to be 

able to address and mitigate them in the future.

The first and most apparent of these issues 

was the inability to share information. It is hard 

to fathom how policies make it into place that 

allow free and open sharing of information 

at the Top Secret/Special Compartmentalized 

Information classification level, but also make 

it nearly impossible to share information at the 

Secret level. We found that release questions were 

the single largest roadblock encountered during 

the exercise. Many of the required products that 

we produced through the ARSST or requested 

through the U.S. Joint Space Operations Center 

or Global Positioning System Operations Center 

were classified above our ability to share them 

with the Australians. You would think that this 

must be some mistake, a bureaucratic blunder, 

especially with Australian officers and noncommissioned officers working at many of the same 

MAJ Thomas Pugsley 

is the USARPAC SSE 

training and exercises 

officer. He provides 

current operations 

support to the Main 

Command Post, the 

Space integration 

and planning of all 

USARPAC-supported 

exercises, as well as the 

planning, coordination, 

and execution of Space 

support to Army forces 

in the Pacific theater.

MAJ Courtney 

Henderson is the 

USARPAC SSE 

training and exercises 

officer. He provides 

current operations 

support to the Main 

Command Post, the 

Space integration 

and planning of all 

USARPAC-supported 

exercises, as well as the 

planning, coordination, 

and execution of Space 

support to Army forces 

in the Pacific theater.

ARSS T 

facilitated 

successful 

planning and 

integration of 

Space mission 

areas ... . 

BIOs

AUTHOR
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 35

organizations that produced these products. But 

it is not, and even after two different presidents, 

Ronald Reagan (in 1983) and George W. Bush 

(in 2006), declared that information should flow 

without hindrance to our closest allies, we still 

find ourselves in an environment where we can’t 

share the most basic of information freely.

The second challenge we faced was not having an onsite Foreign Disclosure Officer available for the exercise. Though this issue is tied to 

the first, it is still an item that must and can be 

addressed while the first is being discussed. The 

main setback of not having a disclosure officer onsite was that everything had to be sent to 

an offsite officer for approval before we could 

officially share the product. This caused delays 

in the production of time-sensitive information 

that could have helped in decision points being 

made during the pre-Master Air Attack Plan process that would affect the air tasking order. There 

were several instances where we lost the initiative 

due to non-timely product presentation.

The third challenge was with regards to 

authorities. While we worked through many 

of these issues by making some pretty broad 

assumptions, there are still some important 

questions left unanswered following this exercise. For example, would ADF personnel acting as the DS4 have the permission to execute 

Space Coordinating Authority actions? Also, 

would the coordinating authority be delegated to an Australian Combined/Joint Force 

Air Component Commander? At the heart of 

these questions is the relationship an Australian 

commander and DS4 would have with the 

U.S. Strategic Command and Joint Functional 

Component Command for Space (JFCC-Space), 

and the Australians’ ability to get support from 

the Joint Space Operations Center. Without 

memorandums of agreement and understanding 

between Strategic Command and JFCC-Space, 

there can be no sharing of information due to 

legislative limits placed upon military and government agencies. The solutions to these questions should be worked out and implemented 

during planning and execution for the next exercise in 2013, and lessons learned applied to our 

Space operations relationships with other allies.

Way Forward

The U.S. and Australian governments have a 

long history of Space cooperation, yet the Space 

operations relationship needs to move forward. 

Both nations worked together across multiple programs for many years. Continued and expanded 

cooperation at the operational planning level is 

now necessary in order to increase the opportunities and overall capabilities of both sides. The 

Australians have been active partners in Space 

activities with the United States for more than 40 

years, and their current integration includes participation in programs such as Overhead Persistent 

Infrared, missile warning, satellite communication systems (Wideband Global Communications 

System and UHF), and Space situational awareness opportunities including electro-optical and 

radar sites in Australia. Yet many more opportunities exist to further refine the relationship between 

the United States and Australia, but the last few 

remaining roadblocks must be removed for this 

to happen. U.S. and Australian national strategies 

point to the importance of bilateral cooperation 

in the Space domain to face the challenges of the 

21st century. Memorandums of agreement and 

understanding must be put in place to allow the 

interaction of U.S. Strategic Command and JFCCSpace with the Australian Defense Forces. These 

actions need to be taken today and should not 

be postponed for tomorrow’s military leaders to 

address.

Conclusion

The overall results of the exercise were very 

promising and further reinforced the knowledge 

that Space Support Elements, regardless of organizational level, need to remain flexible and able 

to adapt and integrate into any headquarters element where a need for Space expertise is needed. 

The intent of Space integration for the Talisman 

Sabre 2011 exercise was threefold, and all goals 

were met. This exercise gave U.S. Space forces a chance to assist our Australian partners in 

developing their fledgling Space cadre; gave the 

U.S. Army Pacific SSE the opportunity to meet 

its Theater Security Cooperation Plan goals by 

developing relationships with global partners; and 

allowed the SSE to exercise its Title 10 responsibilities. While the use of an SSE or an Army 

Space Support Team in support of a CFACC Air 

Operations Center and foreign Space element is 

not doctrinal, the overall impact on capabilities 

was without a doubt an exercise of great value to 

the Australians as well as the U.S. Space forces. 

Capt. Robert McConnell, 

USAF, is the Space 

and Special Technical 

Operations strategist for 

the 613th Air and Space 

Operations Center. His 

duties include planning 

and integrating Space 

and Special Technical 

Operations into the Joint 

Force Air Component 

Commander’s campaign 

strategy; providing 

subject-matter expertise 

for development 

of the component 

commander’s air 

and Space strategy, 

objectives, and 

courses of action; and 

synchronizing theater 

requirements with the 

Joint Space Operations 

Center and national 

agencies.

Squadron Leader 

Steve Henry, Royal 

Australian Air Force, is 

Staff Officer 2–Space in 

the Headquarters Joint 

Operations Command 

Joint Space Operations 

Cell, in Bungendore, 

New South Wales. He 

plans and monitors 

Space support to 

Australian operations, 

exercises, and activities, 

with a primary focus 

of developing the 

Australian Defense 

Forces’ Space 

capabilities and 

increasing the level 

of understanding of 

Space operations.

Continued and expanded cooperation at the operational 

planning level is now necessary in order to increase the 

opportunities and overall capabilities of both sides. 
36 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Knowin g 

NORTHCOM

The simplest way of understanding any organization, job, or unit is to first understand who they work for. That will usually go a 

long way to clarify things. However, when it comes to the complex command relationship of the 100th Missile Defense Brigade and defending 

the homeland from ballistic missiles, the answer to “who do you work 

for?” doesn’t give the clarity you would expect.

The brigade’s missile defenders consist of approximately 300 activeduty National Guardsmen located in Colorado, Alaska, and California as 

well as a small number of regular Army Soldiers. They serve the governors of their respective states, work for U.S. Army Space and Missile 

Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command, and operationally support U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM).

The deputy director of operations for NORTHCOM, Air Force 

Brig. Gen. Kenneth E. Todorov, is very familiar with defending the 

homeland and how the 100th Missile Defense Brigade and 49th Missile 

Defense Battalion fulfill a portion of that mission.

“As the supported command, NORTHCOM provides several roles. 

We are very much focused on the current state of play with the architecture,” said Todorov. “Defending the homeland today, knowing that 

the Soldiers of the 100th are ready to pull the trigger if the President, 

the Secretary of Defense, or the NORTHCOM commander asks them 

to. What is the health and status of the sensors and the interceptors? 

What is the health and status of the system? What are the indications 

and warnings of our adversaries? How likely are they to put a threat into 

the air?

“We also take interest in the future state of play of the architecture. We work very closely with the Missile Defense Agency and Army 

Space and Missile Defense Command to look at sensors, shooters, and 

interceptors and the architecture for future decisions and investments 

we have to make in order to stay ahead of the threat. There’s a financial 

role; where do we make the investments? There’s a policy role; where do 

By CPT Michael Odg ers, 

100th Miss ile Defense 

Brigad e Public Affa irs

The deputy director of operations 

for NORTHCOM, Air Force Brig. 

Gen. Kenneth E. Todorov

Deputy 

Operations 

Director 

Reveals 

Missile 

Defense 

Importance
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 37

we put sensors and shooters? And there’s a current operations 

role; what is the health and status of the system to defend 

North America?”

The Missile Defense Agency is responsible for research, 

test, and development of the ballistic missile defense system, as well as delivering an operational system to the 

Warfighter. USASMDC/ARSTRAT is responsible for providing trained operators. As the supported combatant command, 

NORTHCOM is concerned about all aspects of the system 

and its future.

“We have full operational confidence in the systems 

today, but as threats develop the future of global-based missile defense is going to have to develop as well,” Todorov said. 

“There are a lot of efforts under way at a level above ours here 

at the combatant command. Efforts are under way with the 

Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and the 

Missile Defense Agency to determine where our investments 

will be best suited.”

USNORTHCOM is the supported combatant command for defense of the contiguous United States, Alaska, and 

Hawaii. As such, it is the command’s job to identify the operational requirements for defense of the United States against 

intercontinental ballistic missiles. U.S. Northern Command 

has the responsibility to identify those requirements; the 

Missile Defense Agency (MDA) develops and fields requisite 

capabilities.

“With the MDA it’s very much a collaborative relationship. Our focuses are different. MDA is the technical experts, 

the thousand-pound brains out there doing the grunt work 

and really more focused on the futures decision. And here at 

NORTHCOM we’re primarily focused on current operations,” 

Todorov added. “The two are obviously interwoven. We’ve 

got a great working relationship with the MDA. I talk weekly with the deputy director, Rear Adm. Randy Hendrickson. 

He’s very willing to listen to our positions, very willing to make 

changes to some of their plans and programs based on a combatant commander’s needs. And he’s always willing to reach 

out and get our views on things, even with decisions they don’t 

need our opinion on. It’s a very collaborative, very cordial, and 

collegial relationship.”

The ground-based mid-course defense system will remain 

a vital component of the ballistic missile defense system. 

USNORTHCOM is working closely with the Under Secretary 

of Defense for Policy and the Missile Defense Agency in 

developing hedge options ensuring the United States remains 

ahead of tomorrow’s threat.

MDA is scheduled to complete construction of a new 

interceptor field in Alaska this year to replace the original 

prototype field. Additionally, the agency is currently funded 

to construct an interceptor communications site on the East 

Coast which will improve U.S. defensive capability against any 

emergent Middle East threats. MDA will continue to upgrade 

existing ground-based interceptors and emplace new ones to 

ensure the United States has the best defensive capabilities 

possible to defeat intercontinental ballistic missile threats. All 

of these efforts, coupled with upgrades to the sensor network, 

will ensure ground-based missile defense remains a viable 

means of defending the homeland well into the future.

The European Phased Adaptive Approach (EPAA) is an 

important cooperative effort with European allies, according 

to Todorov. It will provide protection to them as well as to 

U.S. forces deployed in the region. EPAA initially focuses on 

regional protection but expands over time, with the emplacement of additional assets, to provide the foundation that could 

enable homeland defense against threats from Southwest Asia.

“There have been some misperceptions out there that this 

shield is to defend Europe. Clearly the initial focus, the initial 

emphasis on the EPAA has been focused on regional defense 

of that theater,” remarked Todorov. “But as we see our adversaries in Southwest Asia or some rogue nations develop their 

capabilities, we’re more and more concerned that those capabilities might have an impact on the homeland. The EPAA 

ensures that this is an away game.

“While at the same time we are providing for defense of 

that theater, if an adversary decides to be bold and fire a missile that can reach the homeland, we can use theater-based 

architecture to take out that threat. The sooner we can take the 

threat out the better. Working with our European partners will 

go a long way in ensuring that.”

This phased approach is designed to ensure components 

of the ballistic missile defense system (i.e., sensors, shooters/

interceptors, battle managers, and communications) are delivered ahead of projected threats. This approach allows the 

United States to incrementally enhance its regional and global ballistic missile defense capabilities. Northern Command 

will continue to work closely with its counterparts in U.S. 

European Command to ensure the United States can effectively integrate limited forward-based capabilities in support 

of the homeland defense mission, said Todorov.

“We have a great relationship in the homeland with the 

National Guard in general, but to have the Guard here in 

Colorado, California, and Fort Greely be part of our organization is special,” he said. “Overall I am very impressed with 

the job they do and the relationship we have with the National 

Guard. They do a phenomenal job executing this mission.

“I’m very proud as a citizen of this nation and as an officer of the military to be part of this mission. I’m continually 

impressed by the great Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and 

Civilians involved on the mission end as well as the technical 

side,” said Todorov. “I’m really proud to be a part of it. It will 

be challenging going forward as threats develop. We’ve got to 

stay ahead of them, and I know we will.” 
38 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Missile Defen se 

exercise s

By SGT Benjam in Crane, 100th Miss ile 

Defense Brigad e Public Affa irs

When it comes to defending the nation from foreign missiles, the units associated with the Groundbased Midcourse Defense System do a great job of being at 

the ready and making sure that no missile ever gets in range 

to harm the citizens of the United States.

One of the ways the 100th Missile Defense Brigade ensures 

its readiness is to take part in a monthly Ballistic Missile Defense 

Exercise, or BMDX, which involves several entities that stretch 

from Colorado to Alaska and even the Asian-Pacific region.

“The BMDX is a Navy-specific exercise that we support 

them in doing,” said WO2 2 Kale Murray, a command and control systems integrator for the 100th brigade. “It is a chance to 

exercise our real-world communications with the Long Range 

Surveillance and Tracking ships.”

Within the realm of ballistic missile defense there are typically two types of Navy vessels used: the shooter ships and the 

tracking ships. Communication between the fire-control operators in Colorado, Fort Greely in Alaska, and these ships is a key 

element to keeping the skies safe.

To make sure that both the Navy and Army forces work 

together seamlessly and effectively, there has to be a clear and 

open line of communication between the two. Since naval personnel in the U.S. Pacific Command and Army personnel in 

Alaska are so far apart, finding ways to talk to each other is 

sometimes a challenge. So not only does the language that is 

used between the two military components need to be the same, 

a dependable means in which to get that communication across 

is necessary as well.

“It’s not just a luxury, it’s a requirement for the mission,” 

said Murray.

An exercise such as this one allows for practice in communicating and gets the two groups closer to their end-state.

“The goal is to have a common operating picture and to 

have successful engagements,” said Murray. “That’s the bottom line.”

Since this type of training began two years ago, the Soldiers 

with the 100th brigade have adapted to the ever-changing world 

of technology and communication. Taking ideas from the Navy, 

as well as sharing their own, the 100th’s techniques, tactics, and 

procedures have been refined and the understanding of the two 

components has grown.

“The evolution of our architecture is an ongoing challenge,” said Murray. “Just like any time you get updates for your 

phone or even Outlook, there are new bells and whistles that 

you have to figure out. So, it’s all that figuring out that’s the real 

challenge.”

The participation of the 100th was recognized by the lead 

naval officer for the exercise. While debriefing the exercise, 6th 

Fleet’s lead ballistic missile defense officer, Lt. Cmdr. Jesse Mink, 

gave a salute to the team for a job well done.

“This was the best training I’ve seen for ballistic missile 

defense ships. These ships are three to four weeks ahead of 

where I’ve seen past deployers arriving in the 6th Fleet (area of 

operation),” said Mink.

Warfighters Learn 

Better Communication
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 39

spans globe
40 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 41

On February 12, 2006, the Los Angeles Times reported on the difficulty of fielding a new system to counter 

improvised explosive devices (IED). The article discussed 

difficulties in the acquisitions and fielding process, but what 

transpired next made the thesis moot. Within the article, Mark 

Mazzetti, the Times staff writer, reported the unique functions of the Joint IED Neutralizer (JIN). According to the 

description, “A metal boom that extends from the vehicle’s 

chassis emits high-powered electric pulses – military officials 

call it ‘man-made lightning’ – that set off the detonators on 

the bombs. The JIN is a spinoff technology of a larger U.S. 

government effort to develop energy-based weapons that 

include lasers, electric shocks, and microwaves.” 1 Less than a 

week later, insurgents already had a way to counter the JIN.2

Only a small portion of the article discussed JIN’s capabilities; the focus was on problems with fielding. This small 

mention of capability compromised the technology. In this 

case, the technology involved was not revolutionary but still 

needed protection. The contractor’s application of technology 

proved sensitive. After the article was published, the enemy 

effectively countered the JIN.

Required Assessments

This disclosure of key performance information may have 

been in ignorance of Department of Defense (DOD) guidance. The DOD has established guidance that, if correctly 

applied, will prevent the adversary’s ability to counter or duplicate a system’s unique capability. In Department of Defense 

Instruction 5200.39, “Critical Program Information (CPI) 

Protection Within the Department of Defense,” the mission is 

clear: “To provide uncompromised and secure military systems 

to the Warfighter by performing comprehensive protection of 

Critical Program Information (CPI) through the integrated and 

synchronized application of Counterintelligence, Intelligence, 

Security, systems engineering, and other defensive countermeasures to mitigate risk. Failure to apply consistent protection of 

CPI may result in the loss of confidentiality, integrity, or availability of CPI, resulting in the impairment of the Warfighter’s 

capability and the DOD’s technological superiority.” 3

Implementing and directing a research and technology 

protection program designed to safeguard technology and its 

application will enable more successful acquisitions. In the 

case of research and development, technologies should be 

assessed properly, and as soon as practical. The government 

can only expect its defense contractors to protect technologies 

and programs after they identify what needs protecting and 

how to protect it.

Assessing Classification Level

This process begins with the original classification authority’s 

(OCA) determination of whether or not the technology is 

classified. This process is a deliberate and proactive five-step 

assessment undertaken by the program manager (PM). If the 

technology is classified, then the PM builds a security classification guide for the OCA to sign. If the technology is not 

classified, the assessment is still valid as identified unclassified 

technical data can be properly protected.

Assessing Unclassified Information and 

Export-Controlled Information

Controlled unclassified information should be identified for 

protection to prevent it falling into the wrong hands. Items 

that are For Official Use Only (FOUO) should be identified as 

such. Additionally, if FOUO should not be shared outside of 

contractor or government circles, it should be further identified 

with Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemptions. Without 

such guidance, technical data could be released upon a simple 

request. Once released, it becomes public domain and cannot 

be properly protected.

Under this system, when a FOIA request is made, the 

OCA reviews the material and determines whether or not 

unclassified information can be released. If there is no identified FOIA exemption, all FOUO and unclassified information 

is eligible for release. When documents are marked correctly, 

FOIA-exempted material also is protected from the requested 

action. When technologies are not assessed or marked, technical data that should be protected could be released.

Defense contractors, universities, licensees, and grantees 

should understand specifically which technical data should be 

protected under Department of State export-control laws. In 

By Jeff rey W. Bennett , 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT Technolog y 

Protect ion Off icer
42 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

a 2004 DOD Inspector General report, surveyed contractors 

stated that they relied on their contracts to specifically state 

whether or not government technology should be export 

controlled.4

 Uninformed defense contractors could easily, 

although inadvertently, disclose technical data to foreign entities without authorization.

Another issue with research and development is the discrepancy with how technology is handled between government 

to contractor versus government to university efforts. In a 

March 2004 report, the Inspector General for the Department 

of Commerce noted that, “a course on design and manufacture of high-performance machine tools would not be subject to the EAR (Export Administration Regulations) if taught 

to foreign nationals as part of a university graduate course. 

However, this same information, if taught as a proprietary 

course by a U.S. company to foreign nationals, would require 

a license because the company does not qualify as an ‘academic institution.’ ”5

 When working with universities, the U.S. 

government should direct exactly how the university will use 

technical data under the contract and what type of research 

will be conducted. Depending on the research level, the university should include foreign entities only with the required 

permissions from the program and the Department of State 

or Commerce.

Assessing Critical Program Information

The PM should form an integrated protection team with the 

U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces 

Strategic Command technology protection officer (TPO) to 

conduct a critical program information assessment (CPIA) to 

determine whether technologies contain CPI. For acquisitions, 

the Milestone Decision Authority (MDA) requires the assessment prior to reaching Milestone B.6

 Where CPI is identified, 

a program protection plan (PPP) is required and countermeasures are implemented prior to meeting deadlines. The schedule 

should include time enough to assess for CPI and put in place 

the requirements of a PPP before Milestone B.

For research and development and pre-systems acquisitions the requirements are less defined; the CPI assessment 

is to be conducted as early as possible. According to the 

Department of the Army guidance, if CPI is identified, a PPP 

must be submitted within nine months of the CPI discovery.7

The challenge here is for the technology manager to determine at what point in the research and development process 

the technology is mature enough to assess.

Great technological advances are not always discovered at 

well-established cleared defense contractors with a wealth of 

policies on how to protect it. Many advancements are made 

in small uncleared companies where lack of a timely CPIA 

could place technology in jeopardy. Advanced technology 

occurs in the most unlikely places. Almost certainly, state-ofthe-art technology is created in large defense contractor organizations. Equally, a small contractor’s garage, university lab, or 

tin building in the middle of an industrial complex provides 

fertile ground for research. Contract vehicles such as broad 

area announcements and Small Business Innovative Research 

(SBIR) provide opportunities for the government to benefit 

from the levels of genius found within entrepreneurs. With 

that benefit comes the responsibility of the government to 

help the less-experienced contractor get to the level of security 

maturity to protect its technology and process.

The SBIR or other small contractor may understand how 

to protect proprietary information and how to use firewalls 

and secure e-mail. Many of these organizations are extremely small, however, and without a mature security structure. 

Small contractors may be a sole proprietor or a small group 

of scientists dedicated to developing the technology. Without 

the PM’s involvement, they may not understand the specific 

threat to the technology or how to develop a company culture to recognize threats and who to report to. Without the 

PM’s explicit direction, their efforts may fail to properly protect export-controlled, critical, or sensitive technology. In fact, 

without direction found in contracts or through involvement 

of knowledgeable government technical representatives, they 

may not know how to protect it.

Technology is extremely vulnerable during the research 

and development phase. Proper and required CPIA mitigate 

vulnerabilities. To wait until the technology transfers into the 

acquisitions phase could be too late. An adversary’s discovery of sensitive, export-controlled, or critical program information before it is even assessed could doom a technology’s 

development. The impact may not even be discovered until 

later in the production or fielding phases.

When to Assess

In contrast, a technology manager’s early CPIA is non-intrusive 

and should be conducted as early as possible. The benefit of 

assessing early is understanding how to protect the technology 

when it proves successful. The CPIA findings could contain 

statements indicating that the technology could become classified, contain export-controlled information, or could contain 

CPI should the research prove successful. In other words, the 
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 43

research and development efforts related to the technology can still 

be protected in the event that a breakthrough occurs.

The result of an early assessment is a clear understanding 

between the government and the contractor that the technology 

development should continue with focus on protecting the CPI. 

The PM and TPO can help the contractor with countermeasures 

as well as recommend Department of Defense, Federal Bureau 

of Investigation, and other available counterintelligence assistance. These assessments will help get the contractor to the level 

of maturity displayed at larger and more experienced defense 

contractors.

Providing Proper Oversight

Identifying technical data and how to protect it gives technologies a fighting chance to be developed without being compromised. Protection mitigates risk of unauthorized disclosure that 

occurs through security or export-control violations. Government 

Contracting Officer Technical Representatives/Contracting Officer 

Representatives/Contracting Officers (COTR/COR/KO) often 

take the lead on developing research and technology. Depending on 

their experience level, progress should be monitored by more-experienced contract officers to ensure that the technology is assessed. 

Without the oversight, it might not get done. When assigned as the 

technology lead, part of the COTR/COR/KO training should be 

the five-step OCA process.

Why should research and development efforts put so much 

effort into oversight? Here is why: Unlike research and development and pre-systems acquisitions, full acquisition programs are 

regulated by a Milestone Decision Authority that ensures this 

assessment takes place. During any phase of acquisitions, milestone requirements must be met prior to the technology advancing to the next phase. The assessments are required and progress 

is monitored. Pre-systems acquisitions and research and development items do not always fall under an MDA’s purview, however. 

Commands working with pre-systems acquisitions should develop their own internal MDA to ensure CPI assessments are conducted.

The incident with the Joint IED Neutralizer could have been 

prevented. The JIN article may very well have gone through an 

official public release process. Without the proper identification 

of sensitive, export-controlled, or technical data, however, the 

reviewers could not understand what would need protection. The 

technical managers and subject-matter experts should determine 

and identify technical data needing protection. Until that is done, 

programs are at risk before the acquisitions process even begins.

Identifying technical data and how 

to protect it gives technologies a 

fighting chance to be developed 

without being compromised.

Footnotes

1 Mark Mazzetti, “Bomb Buster for Iraq Hits 

Pentagon Snag,” Los Angeles Times, February 

12, 2006.

2 Rick Atkinson, “When ‘Physics Gets in the 

Way,’” Washington Post, October 2, 2007, 

p. A13.

3 Department of Defense Instruction 

5200.39, “Critical Program Information 

(CPI) Protection Within the Department of 

Defense,” July 16, 2008, p. 2.

4 Export-Controlled Technology at Contractor, 

University, and Federally Funded Research 

and Development Center Facilities (Arlington, 

Va.: Department of Defense, Office of the 

Inspector General, 2004).

5 Deemed Export Controls May Not Stop 

the Transfer of Sensitive Technology to 

Foreign Nationals in the U.S. (Washington, 

D.C.: Department of Commerce, Office of 

Inspections and Program Evaluations, 2004).

6 Department of Defense Instruction 5200.39.

7 Department of the Army Pamphlet 70-3, 

“Army Acquisition Procedures,” Jan. 28, 2008.

Jeff Bennett is the G-2 research and 

technology protection officer for U.S. 

Army Space and Missile Defense 

Command/Army Forces Strategic 

Command in Huntsville, Ala. He 

retired from the Army in 2005 after 

serving in numerous command and 

staff positions in the United States 

and Germany. He previously worked 

as a facility security officer for a 

defense contractor and is a published 

author of security certification books.

Biography
44 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Space Supp

European S

During Austere Challenge/Global Lightning 2011, the 1st Space Brigade sent Soldiers to Germany to support the exercise. The 

Army Space Journal spoke with COL Robert “Buff” Bruce, chief of the 

Space Support Element for U.S. Army Europe, about what support the 

Army Space community is providing to the European region. Below are 

his remarks.

What are some of the challenges you face while providing Space support 

to the Warfighter?

BRUCE We’ve got a limited amount of forces over here. We have four 

brigade combat teams, a number of brigade-sized enabler formations. In 

that I don’t have any Functional Area 40 Space Operations officers assigned

to them. We have a Space Support Element at the U.S. Army Europe level, 

one colonel, one lieutenant colonel, and two majors. We were sent over 

here in 2009 to establish the first Space Support Element in the U.S. Army

Europe area of responsibility. We’ve had some previous attempts to do that, 

but nothing as sustained as what we have right now. We have established 

ourselves to be able to work across a number of the staff organizations.

The focus on what we do day to day is where do we link into Space; how 

do we do plans and policies; where is the Army perspective on all of those. 

So we respond back to our combatant commander, U.S. Army Europe, so 

they understand what we need from the Army here in terms of Army Space 

support and support from the rest of the U.S. security Space architecture. We 

integrate into training and exercises not just for the U.S. formation, but we’re 

also involved in forces that go forward to support the International Security 

Support Element Chief Highlights 

Challenges, Joint Operations

Interview and Photos

By Rac hel L. Griff ith, 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT 

Public Affa irs
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 45

COL Robert “Buff” Bruce second from left, Chief, Space Support Element, US Army Europe, sits with Mike Connolly, director of the Army 

Space Personnel Development Office; Brig. Gen Teresa A.H Djuric, Deputy Director, Space and Intelligence Office, Office of the Under 

Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics; and COL Timothy R. Coffin, Deputy Commander for Operations, U.S. 

Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command, during the 2011 Space Cadre Symposium.

port, 

Style

European Style >> 48
46 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

The Soldiers assigned to Joint Tactical Ground Station Detachment C, 1st Space Company, 

1st Space Battalion stationed at Osan Air Base, Korea 

maintain 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week operation 

to provide in-theatre early missile warning support to 

Soldiers in the United States Army Forces, Korea region 

and world-wide. Led by Detachment Commander CPT 

Corey H. Ruckdeschel and Noncommissioned Officer 

in Charge, SFC Christopher L. Barber, these soldiers 

have the unique classification of being part of the only 

in-theater missile warning unit in South Korea.

When the soldiers are not on shift, they perform 

maintenance on their equipment; conduct individual 

and collective training and stay up-to-date on all Warrior 

tasks and drills, all while maintaining their proficiency 

on their JTAGS mission. The detachment leadership 

also finds time to fit personal and professional development into the unit’s schedule.

Sto ry by Rac hel L. Griff ith, 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT Public Affa irs
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 47

Special thanks to the Soldiers pictured 

in the photos SPC Trenton C. Huntsinger, SPC Jonas L. Knehans, 

CPL Daniel Romero, SGT Robert D. Marks, SGT Kenneth M. Graw, 

SPC Brandon Schoen, SFC Christopher L. Barber.

Photos by Rac hel L. Griff ith, 

CPT Corey H. Ruckdesc hel 

& SSG Jaso n Pitre.
48 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Assistance Force in Afghanistan 

to make sure they understand 

what Space capabilities are 

available to them, how do they access them, and who do 

they need to talk to when they get into theater. We maintain 

close communication with the guys in U.S. Central Command 

both on the Army side and down range so that when these 

units go into a location they’ll already know who is the Space 

representative that they’ll be able to tap into. None of these 

guys have Space officers, so now they know who to ask if

there’s a question. Sometimes the units will call back here, 

so at least they’re remembering who we are, and then we can 

hook them up with the guys in the Central Command theater.

You work in a primarily joint environment, what do you 

see as your role?

BRUCE We also get involved in the Joint Capabilities 

Integration and Development System, and these are the 

formal products that we use to determine what are the 

capabilities that need to be developed in the nation. They set 

out the requirement so we work on the futures piece. As we 

get into operations those joint urgent operational needs have 

to be responded to. We help validate the Space portion of that 

and run that through the system. Then we get into the crisis 

actions. What’s the issue at the moment, how do we respond 

to it, what’s the concern of the joint force commander, what 

can we do to either answer the concern, or what can we do 

to get someone else to work it.

Inside the U.S. European Command (EUCOM) area of 

responsibility (AOR), I tap into the EUCOM element, LTC 

Sam Russ, he’s in charge of Space and Special Technical 

Operations up there. We haven’t had a demand signal for 

Space in this AOR, in the AOR that has the second largest 

collection of Space-faring nations outside of North America. 

We’re pretty much letting U.S. Strategic Command and the 

Department of Defense interact for Space without any input 

from the geographical combatant commander in charge of 

this AOR. Whatever Strategic Command and the Office of

the Secretary of Defense come up with, we’re okay with that. 

That may have been okay in the past, but it’s no longer so in the 

future. The interactions between the European Space Agency 

and European Space-faring nations, we’re having a tighter 

relationship with those guys. The combatant commander 

of EUCOM is working on building partnership capacities. 

There is room for us to add to that and step in there and 

bring Space, particularly Army Space, as a part of that when 

we do our military-to-military engagements with these partner 

nations. That’s providing us lots of opportunities, and we 

roll that into training and exercises. For Austere Challenge 

2011 we’re actually exercising one portion of Space with 

one of our partner nations. So that’s Army Space in action.

So your customer base goes far beyond the Army spectrum?

BRUCE We work closely with the designated Space 

Coordinating Authority in U.S. Air Forces in Europe based 

out of Ramstein air base. Collectively you’re talking about 

less than ten people working Space day to day in this AOR, 

but we work together as a team to develop the procedures 

and the techniques for leveraging the rest of the nation’s 

investment in Space to this AOR, whether it’s submitting a 

Space support request to the Joint Space Operations Center 

(JSPOC) out at U.S. Strategic Command to bring about 

Space support effects in a ship movement in one operation 

or another. And that’s pretty interesting when you have to 

help the Navy.

It’s really neat when you get a request from the Navy in 

Europe that says, “I have a problem with electromagnetic 

interference. I had it at this port, I’m going to another port, 

what can you do to help me?” We’re working with the U.S. Air 

Forces in Europe guys to come up with tactics, techniques, 

and procedures that we’ve used down range before. Set that 

in motion with the JSPOC—we coordinate with the EUCOM 

J6 (Joint communications section) and other respective J6s so 

we know what we need to do. So when they start to report the 

interference from the ship, we’re all ready to go and have those 

resources in place focused to help them solve that problem.

Do you support anyone outside of the EUCOM theater?

BRUCE We also provide support to U.S. Army Africa. 

They do not have a Space Support Element or even a Space 

officer. They’ll get one this summer. For the Combined Joint

Task Force-Horn of Africa noncombatant evacuation and 

repatriation operations (NEO), we began that planning in 

December. U.S. Army Europe was asked to provide Space 

assistance. We helped develop the appropriate planning 

materials, working with each of the staffs to ensure they 

could take advantage of the latest capabilities we have and 

Collectively you’re talking about less than ten people working 

Space day to day in this AOR, but we work together as a team to 

develop the procedures and the techniques for leveraging the rest 

of the nation’s investment in Space to this AOR, ... .

From European 

Style >> 45
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 49

in some of the tactics, techniques, and procedures that have 

been developed over time, so when they go to execute the 

mission they have the latest and greatest to work with. We 

set up those capabilities with the JSPOC so if and when the 

NEO was activated, then we could turn those capabilities 

on and have a flood of information.

It’s the same way with Operation Odyssey Dawn in Libya. 

We were able to take the basic information, understand 

what the initial commander’s guidance was, but then U.S. 

Air Forces in Europe pretty much had the lead. You’re a 

sounding board—“does this make sense;” “have you come 

across this before”—so we come up with a good Concept 

of Operations that they can integrate into their air tasking 

order. As the planes are flying, we were able to integrate the

Space effects associated with it to facilitate their operations, 

or to enhance the operations. That’s now transitioned into 

Operation Unified Protector under the NATO hat. It gives

us a few more challenges going through NATO because it’s a 

little command system with different authorities, but we have 

to set the condition for the successful use of Space as well.

Inside this theater, now that we have the Space structure 

set up, this has given me the freedom to start focusing on 

those specific Army Space issues in this theater. Whether

it’s dealing with electromagnetic interference, how do I 

know that it’s going on, how do I locate the source of the 

disturbance, how do I rectify. That approach has caused a 

crossed community of support from EUCOM, from Army 

Space forces out in Landstuhl, back in JSPOC through the 

Global Satellite Communications Support Center. It’s been a 

collective effort to do that. Previously it’s been hit and miss; if 

you’ve been working frequency management here, you’d solve 

that but you wouldn’t get who did or what the ramifications

were. But if you take that into purposeful interference and an 

adversary coming after you, then you lose that whole piece 

if you’re only trying to restore the service.

We’ve had success in laying the foundation to mitigate 

electromagnetic interference. We’re going to take that across 

the rest of the Space force enhancement so if any interference 

occurs anywhere along the way we’ll have tactics, techniques, 

and procedures that we can react to that. React is not good 

enough for me, though. We need to take the fight to the

enemy at times, which means we have to understand how 

everyone uses Space. Physics is physics. It’s important. 

You’re limited in certain ways you can do that. Space guys 

understand that. They understand the architecture. So even 

though you can brief that you’ve got your adversary using 

a piece of equipment, he can’t put it in context, because he 

doesn’t know how it would be used. Space guys could come 

in and say this is how we would normally use this. Now, it 

doesn’t get in the adversary’s way of thinking, but at least a 

good way of coming at it. And they can help you identify 

vulnerabilities, that you could potentially exploit and take 

away your adversary’s ability to use Space.

What’s the biggest project you’re working right now?

BRUCE The biggest project we have right now is 

implementing the Army Geospatial Enterprises policy inside 

this theater. How do you transfer geospatial information 

across all of the Army battle command systems and how do 

you use that to develop a common operational picture across 

the board and to serve as a basis for decision-making and 

situational awareness? How do you develop that for all to 

use? We are all over the map. What we’ve found is we’ve got 

some organizational challenges, we’ve got some equipment 

challenges, we have some procedure challenges.

This isn’t just a Space issue, this is across the command. 

The Space officer is the one who has the broader picture,

can see across the staff boundaries, and say here is how I can 

pull the team together, across the staff to solve a common 

problem. And then when you start them down the road and 

you have a little success these guys are smart enough. They 

understand their portion of how they use Space inside and 

how it’s all pulled together. Then the Space guy can help them 

see the range of possibilities. Then it’s really neat when the 

light bulb comes on and they start pulling things together and 

start pulling in from other sources – not necessarily, though, 

as Space sources, but when you pull them together through 

another product it starts to take on a whole stronger flavor.

We’ve actually had impacts on how operations go down 

because of our ability to pull information from a variety 

of authoritative data sources that when you look at in a 

stovepipe it’s okay. But when you look at them together 

you get a different aspect that will cause you to go back and 

say is this really what I want to do, is this really the effect 

I want to have. So it makes a much tighter, cleaner scheme 

of maneuver so when you go through rehearsal you’ve got 

a closer solution to reality without really going through it. 

Then you can execute with minimum surprises.

The Space officer is the one who has the broader picture, can 

see across the staff boundaries, and say here is how I can pull 

the team together, across the staff to solve a common problem.
50 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal
Access to satellite communication resources is vital to 

Warfighters in theater. Without it, phone calls, Global 

Positioning System usage, and important data wouldn’t be 

available. Without regulation of the satellite resources, however, military units could run into some major problems, namely, 

the inability to get what they need, because the bandwidth is 

being used elsewhere. This is where Regional Communications 

Satellite Support Centers (RSSC) come into play.

Located at Patch Barracks, Germany, RSSC Europe plays 

a special role in the satellite communication field. Its mission 

is unique, serving a theater made up of 93 nations. The support center is set up to be a single point of contact for the 

units it supports, planning usage for satellite communications 

(SATCOM) resources.

“I think the uniqueness is who we support and where we 

support,” said John Pipkin, RSSC Europe manager. “Each one 

of the RSSCs can do the exact same things for a customer. 

It boils down to the theater. We support the U.S. European 

Command which has 93 countries. We also support U.S. Africa 

Command and Central Command areas of responsibility; we 

reach far out there to support our customers. It’s the theaterunique things you have to do and the little idiosyncrasies that 

come with the countries. In Europe, I have to deal with 93 different personalities. It’s the same thing with Africa.”

While each center supports the same mission for their 

customer, the location in Stuttgart is vital to the success and 

customer support.

Each RSSC can take over the mission of another RSSC– 

it’s called a virtual continuity of operations plan. However, the 

difference is being closer to your customer base and the ability 

to provide real-time support.

“If I was stateside, and I had a EUCOM issue to support, 

it’s an eight-hour time difference,” said Pipkin. “Over here, I 

can meet that customer face to face. I can literally sit down 

with them and figure out exactly what it is they want. If we 

have a point of discussion, both of my combatant commands 

are within 15 minutes of here.”

RSSCs are in place essentially to plan usage of all satellite resources, including those utilized by commercial industry. At RSSC Europe, Air Force Civilians, Army Civilians, 

Soldiers, and Navy contractors work in the same location, all 

supporting the same type of mission for their particular areas 

of control.

In this location, the Air Force has five Civilians in place to 

manage the resources of the Extreme High Frequency protective band satellites.

“We support EUCOM and AFRICOM with satellite 

resources they use when they deploy and strategic usage for 

nuclear command and control. They both have units that 

deploy, and they both have requests for satellite resources, 

and we give it to them based on guidance,” said Wes Costello, 

Extreme High Frequency chief.

While each section has its own chief, and their missions 

don’t overlap, they all support the same essential function: 

resource management.

“If this was Dish Network, or a commercial industry, and 

there were a million people who wanted to use the satellite but 

they could only allow access to 500,000, in commercial industry, they take the first 500,000,” Costello said. “But we can’t do 

that. We have to determine, based on needs and priorities, who 

gets the access. That’s where management comes into play.”

Access to satellite resources is finite, as only a portion of 

the resources are available for military use. So, it is essential to 

have the RSSCs in place to plan how to distribute the satellites’ use. To avoid conflicts, the requests are ranked by mission priority, ensuring the resources are given to the most vital 

mission first.

“With greater bandwidth requirements . . . proper planning and regulation are essential in order to support all combat 

and contingency operations,” said MSG Doug Bram, noncommissioned officer in charge of RSSC-Europe.

In total, there are three RSSCs worldwide, located at 

MacDill Air Force Base, Fla.; Patch Barracks, Germany; and 

Wheeler Army Airfield, Hawaii. Additionally, there is a Global 

Satellite Support Center located on Peterson Air Force Base, 

Colo. These centers are staffed by U.S. Army Space and 

Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command 

Soldiers and joint-service Civilians.

The support centers were first established in 1988 to provide SATCOM services to ground-mobile forces. Their mission has evolved over the last couple of decades to include 

narrowband, protected, and commercial spectrums.

The RSSC is only one step in the SATCOM resource 

system. Once their plan is set, it is passed on to an operations center for execution. In the case of RSSC Europe, their 

plans are passed on to the Wideband Satellite Communication 

Operations center in Landstuhl, Germany, operated by Charlie 

Company, 53rd Signal Battalion.

By Rac hel L. Griff ith, 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT 

Public Affa irs

Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 51
Located in a nondescript cement building, the only indication the 53rd Signal 

Battalion is in operation is the telltale orange 

color of the sign, signaling the outfit is a signal battalion. Charlie Company, 53rd Signal 

Battalion, 1st Space Brigade is responsible 

for the Wideband Satellite Communications 

Operations Center (WSOC) in Landstuhl, 

Germany.

“Our mission is to provide payload 

assuring for the Department of Defense 

wideband satellite constellations. We basically 

monitor the health and welfare of the data 

streams coming off of satellites providing 

communications for major commands around 

the globe,” said CPT Theodore E. Perry III, 

former company commander.

The WSOC is responsible for executing 

and monitoring the usage plans put forth 

by the Regional Satellite Communications 

Support Center Europe. About 60 Soldiers 

are assigned to the company and are mostly 

satellite operator/maintainers, who take the 

importance of their mission seriously. The 

operations floor is home to a sea of monitors, 

displaying information the Soldiers have been 

specifically trained to decipher.

“Our mission is to ensure the health and 

welfare of the satellite is maintained properly, 

so the soldiers on the ground can have proper 

support,” SGT Lowell Sitez explained.

The mission in Landstuhl is unique, 

offering Soldiers there a view few others 

can access.

“With the satellites that we see into, we 

can take a look at upwards of two-thirds of 

the globe at any given time. This is a capability 

that most sites, if any others, do not have,” 

Perry said.

The WSOC operates in a partnership of 

sorts with the Regional SATCOM Support 

Center Europe, executing and monitoring the 

payload access plan set forth by the RSSC. 

The mission executed at their location is in 

support of more than 30 countries, making it 

one of the most diverse locations in terms of 

the customers it serves.

Charlie Company is one of six companies 

worldwide that make up the 53rd Signal 

Battalion which is headquartered in Colorado 

Springs, Colo. Each has the same mission 

responsibilities, though the location in Hawaii 

is the first with access to the Wideband 

Global Satellite resources.

Charlie Company Reaches TwoThirds of Globe through Satellites

Sto ry and Photos by 

Rac hel L. Griff ith, 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT 

Public Affa irs

In Touch with Mo st of the Wor ld

52 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

below PFC Jason Myers looks over training information.
53

above SPC Russel Malinsky 

stands ready to explain his mission 

requirements during a recent 

command visit by 1st Space 

Brigade leadership.

left 1SG Christopher Harbach 

briefs 1st Space 

Brigade leadership.

bottom left SSG David Blotter 

smiles while discussing his role 

with COL Eric P. Henderson during 

a command visit to the company.

left Soldiers of 

Charlie Company, 

53rd Signal Battalion, 

1st Space Brigade, led 

by commander CPT 

Ted Perry and 1SG 

Christopher Harbach, 

pose outside of their 

building in Landstuhl, 

Germany.
54 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Commercial 

Imagery Allows 

Sharing with 

Partners, Aid 

Organizations

Acting as One Team

When GEN David H. Petraeus, commander of the International Security Assistance Force in 

2010-11, published his guidance for conducting counterinsurgency operations in Afghanistan, one of his main points 

was the need to act as one team. He encouraged U.S. forces 

to work closely with their international and Afghan partners, stating the absolute need for acting in cooperation. 

Working together in a joint operating environment with 

coalition and Afghan partners requires the ability to share 

products, such as satellite imagery.

Access to satellite imagery is a key component to planning and conducting operations, but many times U.S. forces 

obtain classified imagery from National Technical Means, 

severely limiting the ability to share it with partners. A solution to this problem is the use of commercial imagery. The 

U.S. Army Commercial Imagery Team (CIT) is a specialized 

team providing high-resolution, unclassified commercial 

satellite imagery to U.S. forces, coalition forces, and nongovernmental organizations that can be openly shared with 

coalition partners and Afghan and Iraqi counterparts.

The CIT is an operational element of the 1st Space 

Brigade, a subordinate command of the U.S. Army Space 

and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic 

Command. The team is under operational control to U.S. 

Central Command (CENTCOM) and works in conjunction 

with the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), 

topographic community, intelligence community, and 

CENTCOM’s commercial imagery collection managers.

CPT Mike Ha nce

Comm ercial Imag ery Team OIC
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 55

The CIT has a unique, direct relationship with the NGA 

and the commercial imagery providers, DigitalGlobe and 

GeoEye. The CIT has an agreement with the NGA that 

allows the receipt of raw imagery directly from DigitalGlobe 

and GeoEye over a 45 megabytes per second connection 

into a Virtual Ground Terminal that automatically processes the raw imagery into an ortho-rectified National Imagery 

Transmission Format Standard accompanied by subimages, 

symbols, labels, text and other information. This minimally processed imagery can be provided to units with organic 

geospatial support (S2/J2, Topographical Teams, Geospatial 

Support Teams, etc.) so they can manipulate the images themselves. Or the CIT can package imagery into a finished format, 

such as GeoPDF, GeoTiff, JPEG, Multi-resolution Seamless 

Image Database, and hard-copy maps, for units lacking organic geospatial assets.

The CIT has 72 terrabytes of archived commercial imagery covering a large portion of the CENTCOM area of 

responsibility. This allows the CIT to rapidly process and deliver imagery requests, many times within hours of the request. 

This archive grows each month with updated collections of 

pan-chromatic (black and white) and multi-spectral (color) 

images. All of the archived imagery is less than one year old, 

ensuring the relevancy of the products provided. The CIT 

also has a direct access relationship with NGA Source for the 

submission of commercial imagery new collects.

A second key task of the CIT is to provide mobile training teams to Iraq and Afghanistan to teach TalonView mission planning and mapping software to requesting units. This 

training focuses on teaching users how to request commercial 

imagery and how to use TalonView to manipulate the imagery 

to create their own products.

The CIT has been deployed to CENTCOM since 2004, 

answering thousands of requests for imagery, providing 

education to hundreds of coalition partners, and supporting hundreds of military units, coalition partners, and nongovernmental organizations. Even though deployed to U.S. 

Central Command, the CIT has provided products to U.S. 

Africa Command in an effort to thwart would-be pirates, and 

products in support of humanitarian relief efforts for the 

Haiti and Japan earthquakes for U.S. Southern Command and 

U.S. Pacific Command.

The Commercial Imagery Team can be contacted with 

questions or to request imagery by NIPR e-mail at cit.rfi.centcom@me.navy.mil or SIPR e-mail at cit.rfi.centcom@me.navy.

smil.mil. The CIT can be reached by DSN at (318) 439-6215. 

Or visit the Commercial Imagery Team SIPR Web site at 

http://gil.nga.smil.mil/cit.

A member of the Commercial 

Imagery team, in support of 

Operation Iraqi Freedom, shares 

imagery with coalition forces. 

The images accessed by the Iraqi 

forces were used, in part, to assess 

damage from an oil explosion over 

a month-long period .

m
56 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

TIPof the

2.0

Since the inception of functional areas, the U.S. Army 

Human Resources Command (HRC) assignments officer for 

Functional Area 40 has been assigned excess to U.S. Army 

Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic 

Command with duty at HRC. During recent discussions to 

gain efficiencies and reduce over-strength within the command, the decision was made to billet the assignments officer 

against a major position within the ASPDO. This has resulted 

in the assignments officer becoming an integral part of the 

ASPDO organizational structure and more importantly, no 

longer excess.

ASPDO

Efficiencies

Army Space

 Cadre News

to submit an item for this section:

 Mike Connolly /// Section Coordinator

michael.connolly@smdc-cs.army.mil

719 - 554 - 0452

Mike Connolly is Director of 

the Army Space Personnel 

Development Office. He 

was an Army aviator and 

Space operations officer, with 

assignments to the Cheyenne 

Mountain Operations Center, 

U.S. Strategic Command, 

and U.S. Space Command.
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 57

Army Space Cadre Symposium

The ASPDO conducted the annual Army Space Cadre 

Symposium Aug. 1 to 5 in Colorado Springs, Colo. A total of 

236 personnel, including students in Space Operations Officer 

Qualifying Course 11-01, participated throughout the symposium 

with a good representation of Space Professionals and Enablers 

(145 officers, 77 Civilians, five enlisted, and nine contractors). 

Post-symposium comments ranged from “fabulous” to “we need 

to continue to build on this each year.” Planning for next year’s 

symposium already has begun.

We Have Moved

The Army Space Personnel 

Development Office has moved back 

into Building 3 on Peterson Air Force 

Base. We are now located on the 

south side of the first floor in the old 

1st Space Battalion area. During the 

move, some of our phone numbers 

have changed.

Mike Connolly (719) 554-0452

Kyle Ramsey (719) 554-0455

Greg Piper (402) 294-4534

Jerry Pepin (719) 554-0457

Jim Schlichting (719) 554-1905

Bob Kyniston (719) 554-0459

Dave Hagedorn (719) 554-1909

Al Hughes (719) 554-1915

Fax (719) 554-1906

Reading through the 1951 Officer’s Guide is not only interesting but in a way humorous in how certain topics, many that 

we now take for granted, are addressed. The similarities in its 

editions 60 years ago and today are what provide the greatest 

insight, however. Officers who served in both World War II 

and Korea were in an era of persistent conflict stretching over 

a ten-year period. They faced the challenge of completing the 

requirements of their life-cycle development to include training, education, and experience. They were held to the highest standard and deemed service to the Nation as a matter of 

selfless behavior. They were professional and patriotic. Today’s 

Functional Area 40 (FA40) Space Operations officers could be 

described in much the same way.

Army Space Cadre members must continuously strive to 

improve themselves through professional development opportunities, increased education, and challenging assignments 

while they contribute unique operational capabilities to the 

Warfighter. The Army Space Personnel Development Office 

(ASPDO) is focused on assisting FA40s and other Space 

Cadre members in meeting these requirements. Although providing FA40s with recommendations and guidance to meet 

their career goals is relatively straightforward, providing the 

same service to other military and Civilian Space Cadre members is more challenging; not impossible, just challenging.

The ASPDO has requirements to help prepare Space 

Cadre members to meet their professional responsibilities 

of providing Space-based capabilities in military operations. 

Through professional development events such as the recently 

completed Army Space Cadre Symposium, the management 

of Space-related education such as Space 200 and Space 300, 

and information sharing through links such as the Army Space 

Knowledge Management Site, the ASPDO is committed to 

achieving our vision of providing a trained and ready Army 

Space Cadre.

The Regular officer and his brother of the National Guard and Officers’ Reserve Corps

may take great pride in their privilege of being an officer. The service they render is

beyond price. The “military mind” need not be back from comparison with any type of

mind; when the chips are down these minds have delivered what was required.

The Officer ’s Guide , March 1951 Edition

Providing Capabilities through a Trained & Ready Army Space Cadre By Mike Connolly
58 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

TIPof the

2.0

Larry Mize is Chief of 

Space and Ground-based 

Midcourse Defense Education 

Training and the Deputy 

Directorate of Training and 

Doctrine. As a U.S. Navy 

officer, he specialized 

in naval intelligence, 

aircraft carrier operations, 

naval special warfare (SEALs), and Space 

operations, including assignments at U.S. Space 

Command and U.S. Strategic Command. Okay, you’re given the option in learning a new subject: 

Death by PowerPoint or play with LEGOs® and pipe 

cleaners? Who doesn’t like LEGOs?

As instructors we face the challenge of making the materials we present relevant, interesting, 

and, most importantly, help our students grasp 

concepts. The first step is for us as instructors to 

understand how we learn. So how do we learn? 

The simple answer is someone teaches us something, and we retain the information and master the skills. The truth is trial and error. Think 

about it. When you were a baby and were learning 

to walk did you sit in a class and take notes from 

your parents before you took your first steps? Of 

course not. You teetered, you tottered, you fell 

down and went boom. But eventually, for the most 

part, you mastered it.

Now jump ahead a few years when you really had 

to go to class and learn about things that were not at 

all familiar to you. Reading, grammar, chemistry, calculus, physics, the rules to floor hockey...okay, maybe the last 

one wasn’t so hard, but the rest took time and effort. And 

Training Insights By Joan Rousseau 

& Norm Reich

Alternative 

Methodologies 

for Learning

Simple as LEGOs 

& Pipe Cleaners

to submit an item for this section:

Larry Mize /// Section Coordinator

larry.mize@smdc-cs.army.mil

719 - 554 - 4545
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

not everyone learns the same way. Some learn through listening; some through seeing; and some through doing. Most people combine these learning styles in order 

to better retain the information. Our challenge as instructors is to find the right 

blend of these learning styles to make the training both memorable and fun.

So now let’s talk about some boring, but relevant, stuff. You know, the information you are told you need to know but in reality have no desire whatsoever 

to sit through...sort of like British Literature in high school. Let’s talk specifically 

about Space Systems Acquisition. To quote Charlie Brown, “Ugh!” What is this 

thing we call “Space Systems Acquisition” and the “Joint Capabilities Integration 

and Development System?” And what about this other nightmare, “Planning, 

Programming, Budgeting, and Execution System?” I know many Acquisition 

Corps officers and noncommissioned officers are saying to themselves, “Oh no! I 

feel myself getting ready to be physically ill.” If they feel that way about these processes just imagine how our students, many of them junior enlisted personnel, feel 

when we present this in the Army Space Cadre Basic Course. As a primary instructor for this topic I must be honest and tell you I felt the same way. To make this 

topic more enjoyable and memorable it was time to think outside of the box, literally and figuratively.

The answer is LEGOs. By taking these simple toys and bringing them into the 

class I introduced our students to the critical thinking required for a successful new 

system design and acquisition.

Acquisition starts with identifying and defining your requirements. Imagine 

you want a new car. Are you going to let the dealer tell you what you want? Of 

course not, you’re going to tell him what you want; otherwise you could end up 

with a Barney Purple minivan when what you really wanted was a red Audi TT.

The task to our students is simple. The students are divided into two groups, 

those with a requirement and those who are the developers. The requirements 

group is given a picture of something they want the developer to build, in this 

case a LEGO truck or helicopter. The students have to define their requirement, 

not just their wish list but the “no kidding what you need” requirement. Then they 

hand off their requirements to the developer who builds what they want.

Simple, right? This is not as easy as it seems. Students not only have to interpret the requirements, but they have to come up with alternative solutions should 

they not have all the parts to their system. And wait, I haven’t even thrown in the 

cost restrictions. What if a green LEGO costs $5,000 and all the requirements 

group has to spend is $1,000? We all know the syndrome, a “Mercedes taste with a 

Ford budget.” What to do, what to do?

The objects to be built are always relatively common things that we see in 

our day-to-day lives. The students define their requirements and pass them to the 

developers to build the product. But sometimes we have to wonder what they were 

thinking.

Not everyone learns the 

same way. Some learn through 

listening; some through seeing; 

and some through doing. 

59
60 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Speaking of lecture; isn’t that the very instruction 

method we are to avoid using in our classrooms? Of course it is.

When I first started bringing out the LEGOs I got exactly 

the response I expected...eyes rolled as far back in people’s 

heads as is humanly possible (both students and instructors 

alike). In the words of a co-worker, “Are you crazy? I’m 50 

years old and you want me to play with LEGOs?” But ten minutes into the exercise, students are engaged, actually enjoying 

the process of requirements definition, systems engineering, 

and product development. Other instructors now teach this 

lesson and use the LEGOs. My co-worker is a LEGO convert.

Similarly, the AN/TPY-2 (Forward Based Mode [FBM]) 

Sensor Manager Qualification Course was faced with a dry 

topic to teach–communications architecture. We all have had 

to receive such lessons, the ones that show line and block 

charts representing equipment, network lines, message types, 

and those amazing “clouds.” Many of these charts are merely copy-pasted from someone else’s presentation and contain 

an abundance of graphics irrelevant to the learning objective. 

Given to the instructor to use, it is intended that they guide 

students’ attention toward just the right boxes and lines meaningful to the lesson, but oftentimes the instructors’ broad 

hand gestures never make it clear. Quickly, students tune out 

the lecture and finish the lesson having learned little.

Speaking of lecture; isn’t that the very instruction method 

we are to avoid using in our classrooms? Of course it is. But 

how else can an instructor teach how radar data flows all the 

way from Japan to Hawaii to North America? You can’t exactly have the student physically walk the path of the lines. That 

would be a long trip, especially when it came time to go under 

the ocean or into Space.

Consider that any graphic on a PowerPoint slide can be 

made into something physical. Why not print the block graphics of the communication equipment and those “clouds” and 

cut them out like pieces of a game that can be picked up and 

moved around? The letters of message format types such as 

“XML” or “VMF” can be written onto small blocks of wood. 

Communication lines on a slide also can be made into something tangible through the use of string or wire. Locations 

where these pieces are really found can be printed maps. Voila! 

You now have a great way to teach communication architecture that is hands-on, a preferred method of instruction.

Here is what we did in the AN/TPY-2 (FBM) Sensor 

Manager Qualification Course. We printed photographs of 

each piece of equipment and operations center included in the 

architecture. Each photo was mirrored so that when cut out, it 

could be folded over, making it double sided. Then using those 

black binder clips (a.k.a. butterfly clips) that we all have in our 

supply cabinets, we clipped the paper, removed the “wings” of 

the clips, and had a nice base to make the paper piece stand up. 

We even put labels on the bottom of the clip with the equipment or operations center name so it could be clearly identified by students who couldn’t remember the exact title. Then, 

using wire from coat hangers, we created the surface cables 

that run between the components–“z” shaped ones for satellite signals. Using half-inch cubes of wood purchased from 

a hobby store, we wrote the letters of message format types 

on the sides. Finally, we printed maps of the countries where 

these components are located and taped them down to a table.

Our lesson starts with a quick line-and-block chart to 

give the students their first look at the architecture, then we 

all move to the table where the instructor repeats the instruction by picking up and placing down each piece in the order 

that the data flows from the starting point to the end. After 

this demonstration, the table is wiped clean of the pieces and a 

student is asked to do the same. It is surprising how many students start confidently but then quickly realize that they don’t 

understand things as well as they thought. With the pieces in 

front of them, it doesn’t take long for them to work through 

their own shortcomings by themselves, reasoning through the 

architecture by using problem-solving methods that work for 

them; eliminating pieces they know are not part of the architecture, establishing connections mid-way, working backward, 

or by putting together small links that lead toward a complete 

path in the end.

Watching the students use the “game board,” it is easy to 

see additional benefits beyond the learning objective; benefits 

that naturally come from practical exercises such as better rapport with their classmates and leadership through peer-to-peer 

instruction. Also, instructors become quickly aware of individual student shortcomings and can quickly tailor a new exercise 

for them by simply re-arranging the game board.

Student feedback regarding the use of our game board 

has been overwhelmingly positive. Students frequently tell the 

instructors that the game board helped them learn because 

they were able to put their hands on something. Leaders who 

have come through the course have even asked for copies of 

the pieces so they may use the game board for their own unit 

training. Mission accomplished.

Joan Rousseau is the course manager for Tactical Space 

Operations courses and Norm Reich is course manager for the 

AN/TPY-2 FBM Sensor Manager Course, both in the Future 

Warfare Center Directorate of Training and Doctrine.
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 61

SPC Anthony Moore, Alpha Detachment, 1st Space Company, 

in product production. The objects to be built are always 

relatively common things that we see in our day to day lives... .
62 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Daryl Breitbach //// Bio

Daryl Breitbach is the 

Directorate of Training and 

Doctrine (DOTD) Chief 

of the Space Training 

Division, responsible for 

managing Space training 

and education courses. 

He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1996. Upon 

completion of Officer Candidate School in 

1999, Mr. Breitbach was commissioned as a 

signal officer and served as a platoon leader and operations officer for a tactical signal company. He was assigned to the U.S. 

Army Space and Missile Defense Command 

(USASMDC) in 2001 and served as a Space 

electronic warfare detachment operations officer; aide de camp to the Deputy 

Commanding General for Operations; Army 

Space Support Team operations officer and 

team leader; and company executive officer. Mr. Breitbach completed deployments 

in support of Operation Enduring Freedom 

and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Prior to joining the DOTD training team, Mr. Breitbach 

worked as a senior military analyst supporting the USASMDC Battle Lab.

daryl.breitbach@smdc-cs.army.mil

Course Listings

The creation of the Directorate of Training and Doctrine (DOTD) 

on Oct. 1, 2010, allowed for unity of effort in delivering the highest quality of Space and Missile Defense education to Soldiers. 

The new organization established two institutional schools 

within DOTD–the Space Training Division and the Missile 

Defense Training Division. This implementation was critical 

in the organization’s effort to meet its mission to provide training, education, and doctrine to enable Space, Missile Defense, 

and high altitude full-spectrum operations by Army Space and 

Missile Defense forces in support of combatant commanders. 

This is the third installment of focused articles on DOTD in the 

Army Space Journal and highlights current and future developments in the Space Training Division.

FWC DOTD Organization

In 2001 when the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command’s institutional 

training began it did so with one course, the Functional Area 40 (FA40) Space 

Operations Officer Qualification Course (SOOQC) which graduated 14 students 

that year. In 2011 the Army’s Space and Missile Defense schoolhouse, within 

the Future Warfare Center’s Directorate of Training and Doctrine, offers more 

than 24 courses and will train and graduate some 1,400 students. Additionally, 

the instructors and faculty will deliver Space knowledge and leader development education to another 1,800 Soldiers and Civilians across the Army and the 

Department of Defense through a variety of training venues outside the Space 

and Missile Defense schoolhouse.

Course Manager Contact Information

SOOQC Dave Berge: david.berge@smdc-cs.army.mil

SSLS Mike Russell: michael.russell@smdc-cs.army.mil

ASCBC Mike Hillam: michael.hillman@smdc-cs.army.mil

TSOC and TAVs Joan Rousseau: joan.rousseau@smdc-cs.army.mil

SATCOM EMI and ACSOC LTC Rob Berg: robert.berg@smdc-cs.army.mil

JTAGS IQT Greg Hatfield: gregory.hatfield@smdc-cs.army.mil

JTAGS LDC Keese Pond: keese.pond@smdc-cs.army.mil

Space Knowledge Tom Coleman: thomas.coleman@smdc-cs.army.mil

CGSC Space Leader Development Tom Gray: thomas-gray@us.army.mil 

ASCB

Space 

Training Division

Directorate of 

Training & Doctrine
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 63

SOO QC

Space Senior 

Leader Seminar

The one-week ASCBC Phase I is a Space 

fundamentals course recommended for all 

command Soldiers, Civilian staff, and contractor 

employees who require a foundational 

understanding of Space mission areas, Space 

systems, Space organizations, and operations. 

The ASCBC foundational Space knowledge is 

a prerequisite for the Tactical Space Operations 

Courses. The one-week ASCBC Phase II builds 

upon phase I topics and provides education in 

advanced Space mission areas to include Space 

control, Missile Defense, missile warning, Space 

acquisition, Annex N, and special program areas.

Phase I and II or Phase I along with a functional 

area initial qualification training (Army 

Space Support Team, Joint Tactical Ground 

Station, Army Communication Systems, AN/

TPY-2 Sensor Manager, or Ground-based 

Midcourse Defense Operator) satisfies Soldiers’ 

education requirements for the Army Basic 

Space Badge. Completion of Phase I and II 

satisfies the education requirements for the 

Civilian level I Space Cadre Certification.

The 11-week SOOQC continues to evolve to 

keep pace with the dynamic Space technologies 

and capabilities while also remaining relevant with 

respect to the current operational environment. 

Today as part of the SOOQC each FA40 student 

endures the rigors of multiple briefings, examinations, 

and numerous course exercises to demonstrate 

proficiency and understanding of satellite-based 

capabilities and the tactics, techniques, and procedures 

to provide Space operations support to full-spectrum 

operations. In fiscal year 2012, DOTD will conduct the 

first SOOQC designed for U.S. Army Reserve and 

Army National Guard FA40s conducted over a twoyear period to meet the reserve component training 

requirements and civilian job responsibilities. 

During year one students will complete the 

Space 200 portion of the SOOQC and during 

year two students will complete the Army 

instruction portion of the SOOQC.

Beginning in 2010 and offered annually, 

the SSLS is a four-day course designed to 

provide Space cadre in key senior Space 

positions a greater advanced and strategic 

understanding of the Army’s role in Space. 

The seminar-style format includes guided 

discussion and student reading to facilitate 

discussion on current issues and themes, 

including Space cadre leader development and 

mentorship; the Space enterprise and Space 

mission area contributions to Army and Joint, 

Interagency, Intergovernmental, and Multinational 

operations; strategic skills for Joint and 

Army assignments; and Joint Capabilities 

Integration and Development System 

concepts and perspective. Students attend 

Space 300 in conjunction with the SSLS.

Army Space Cadre 

Basic Course 

Phase I and Phase II

Space Operations Officer 

Qualification Course

BC

SSLS
64 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

When requested, the DOTD deploys a 

tailored Space training team to support unit 

training and leadership education for units 

preparing to deploy in support of Operation 

Enduring Freedom or Operation New Dawn. 

Over the past seven years support to corps, 

division and brigade combat team units has 

focused on in-theater Space resources and 

capabilities, and Space TTPs. The DOTD Space 

Training Division continually strives to provide 

challenging, relevant training and education 

for members of the Space cadre, USASMDC/

ARSTRAT staff, as well as, Soldiers and 

Civilians across the Army. Additional information 

about these and other Missile Defense courses 

is found on the Command Net Training Link 

or in Army Training Requirements and 

Resources System under school code 129.

Training Assistance Visits

Space Operations System (SOS) migration to the 

Distributive Common Ground System–Army: The 

two-week TSOC-SOS training focuses on the Space 

analytical tools and software applications Space 

Support Elements and Army Space Support Teams use 

to provide Space force enhancement products, analysis, 

and planning support to full-spectrum operations. Students 

receive hands-on application training and complete an 

end-of-course practical exercise that requires them to apply 

critical thinking, demonstrate knowledge, apply the various 

SOS capabilities and other reach-back Space capabilities 

in a tactical Space force enhancement scenario.

In 2011 the Space analytical software tool capabilities of 

the SOS migrated to the Distributive Common Ground 

System–Army (DCGS-A) program of record. The 

DOTD will continue to train Army Space operators 

on Space analytical software tools once integrated 

with DCGS-A. The DOTD recently completed 

the construction of a classroom dedicated to 

DCGS-A training that includes a DCGS-A training 

server and workstations for 12 students.

The one-week TSOC-TTP course 

instructs deploying Army Space Support 

Teams and Space Support Elements how 

to plan and integrate Space capabilities to 

support and enhance tactical, operational, 

and joint military operations. Initially focused on 

the U.S. Central Command area of operations, 

the course has evolved to cover Soldiers preparing 

for other mission areas and continues to evolve and 

update as new Space-based capabilities emerge 

and new TTPs are developed to meet the everchanging current operations environment.

Beginning in fiscal year 2012 the TSOC DCGS-A 

and TTP courses will be offered in a combined 

hybrid course training Space software 

tool, reach-back resources, and TTPs.

Tactical Space 

Operations Courses

The seven-week JTAGS course 

prepares operators for their 24/7, 

in-theater, assured early missile-warning 

mission. Instruction focuses on capabilities 

and operations of JTAGS equipment to include 

major components, controls, and indicators; and 

missile event processing. Hands-on instruction 

allows students to practice processing real-world 

missile events from the theater they will support.

Joint Tactical 

Ground Station Initial 

Qualification Course

JTAG S-IQT

TTP

TAV

TSOC

Space Tactics, 

Techniques,& ProcedureS
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 65

In 2010 the first JTAGS Leader 

Development Course was conducted 

to provide advanced training in 

certification, missile event processing, 

mission operations, system 

administrations, communication, 

and maintenance of the JTAGS 

system. The two-week JTAGS 

LDC immediately follows the IQT 

for Soldiers assigned to crew and 

detachment leadership positions.

The ACSOC teaches 

Soldiers to conduct 

ground mobile surveillance 

and assessment of Space 

systems in support of military 

and civilian operations.

Army Space 

Communications System 

Operator’s Course

Because Space is a critical enabler across all warfighting 

functions, the presence of Space knowledge and leader 

development continues to expand in the training curriculum of 

schools and centers across the Army. DOTD instructors support 

numerous school and centers, such as the U.S. Army Intelligence 

Center of Excellence with instruction in the Captains Career Course, 

Pre-Command Course, Imagery Intelligence, Signals Intelligence and 

Strategic Intelligence courses; and the U.S. Army Fires Center of Excellence 

in the Joint Operations Fires and Effects Course, Fires Support Coordination 

Course, Army Operational Electronic Warfare Course, Electronic Warfare 

Functional Area 29 Course and Fires Center of Excellence Pre-Command Course.

A resident DOTD instructor and an FA40 assigned to the Command and 

General Staff College (CGSC) provide daily Space education for the Combined 

Arms Center and CGSC schools, including the A537–Space Orientation and 

A543–Space Operations electives. Instructors provide educational support to the 

CGSC Master of Military Arts and Sciences program, Advanced Operational Arts 

Studies Fellowship program, and the School of Advanced Military Studies.

Building on the success of current Space knowledge and leader development 

efforts, U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic 

Command and Army Training and Doctrine Command have started an initiative 

as part of the Army Strategic Space Plan to expand Space knowledge across 

all Army centers and schools. Continuing into its seventh year is the strong 

partnership DOTD has established with the Air Force National Security 

Space Institute (NSSI) and Advanced Space Operations School (ASOpS). 

A DOTD FA40 and a civilian instructor assigned to the Air Force 

schools provide instructional support to the NSSI Space 200 and 

Space 300 courses and the numerous fundamental, deployment 

preparation, and advanced courses offered by the ASOpS.

Space Knowledge & Leader 

Development Education

The SATCOM EMI course 

covers the basic principles of 

electromagnetic interference 

and foundational SATCOM 

theory to understand the 

EMI effects within the 

Space environment.

JTAGS Leader 

Development Course

LDC

EMI

AC SOC

The TSOC-DSCA training focuses 

on Space force enhancement 

support to domestic events including 

a wide range of natural disasters 

as well as planned events (political 

conventions, sporting events, etc.). The 

TSOC-DSCA covers domestic operations 

events and planning as related to Space 

TTPs, DSCA organizations, and legal 

considerations. The TSOC-DSCA 

students include Active ARSSTs, 

National Guard ARSSTs and 

Space Support Elements, and 

U.S. Army North staff.

Defense Support to 

Civil Authorities

DSCA

SATCOM 

Electromagnetic 

Interference 

Fundamentals
66 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

The Directorate of Training and Doctrine conducted the AN/

TPY-2 (FBM) Sensor Manager Qualification Course in three 

sessions. The first pilot course took place in April with five 

students. Since then three additional classes have brought the 

trained and ready element total to 38. The course educates 

senior leaders and battle managers on the technical aspects of 

the AN/TPY-2 (FBM) radar. Graduates received 15 days of 

intense training consisting of ballistic Missile Defense systems 

and how radars are integrated to provide layered defenses, command and control operations, sensor management operations, 

and how to manage a missile event. 

Susan Bancroft, quality assurance and training developer, observed that the course kept the students totally engaged. 

“It taught the students how to develop operation plans and 

courses of action to present to their leadership and develop 

comprehensive tactics, techniques and procedures for their 

operational mission,” she said. 

During feedback the students commented that they 

thought having the system engineers participate in the dialog was really productive and that the format of the program 

when developing products was dynamic and rewarding.

The course was conducted at the directorate’s facility in 

Colorado Springs, and the sensor manager operators attended from across the Joint and Army community. The cadre 

for the course is Chris Berisford, Directorate of Training and 

Doctrine sensor management program manager; Norm Reich, 

course manager; William Koch, lead instructor; and Lindsey 

Lawton, instructor. 

38 Trained & Ready

AN/TP Y-2 (FB M) Sensor Manager Qualification Course

first row left to right CPT Iaasac Simpson, CW2 William Jackson, 

SFC Gregory Tidwell, SPC Michael Elmore, SSG Joanquin Mullins, 

1SG Gary Threets; back row left to right SGT Joshua Correll, 

SSG Andy Shaffer, 1LT Pedro Quintero-Mercado, SSG Benjamin 

Sharp, SSG Michael Watson, SSG Daniel Humphries, and SPC 

Ryan Hamlet.

If you are interested in attending this 

course or would like to inquire about 

other course offerings please contact 

Clem Morris, 719-622-2916 or e-mail 

clement.morris@smdc-cs.army.mil.

Course 11-008

DOTD 

Spac e & 

Missil e 

Defens e

C o n g r a t ul a t i o n s t o t h e 
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 67

Course 11-009

front row left to right Senior Airman Brittney Dickson, 

Staff Sgt. Edward Guiang, Senior Airman Ryan Coffey, 

Staff Sgt. Jimmy Lopez, Staff Sgt. David Bonilla, Airman 

1st Class Crystal Coleman; back row left to right SSG 

Michael Hoye, SSG Chad Kidwell, SSG Daniel Smith, and 

SSG James Smith.

Following the success of the September 2010 pilot course of 

the Army Space Senior Leader Seminar (SSLS), the first formal iteration was conducted in May 2011. SSLS serves to fulfill 

the request from senior Space cadre leaders to broaden leaders’ 

understanding of strategy at the Army, national, Department 

of Defense, services, and Joint levels. The course educates 

senior Army Space Cadre leaders, both military and government Civilians, on Army and Joint strategic topics such as indepth discussions and interpretation of the Capstone Concept 

for Joint Operations, Army Capstone and Operating concepts, 

and the Army Strategy.

Offered annually, the SSLS is a four-day course designed to 

provide Space cadre in key senior positions a greater advanced 

and strategic understanding of the Army’s role in Space. The 

seminar-style format includes guided discussion and student 

reading to facilitate discussion on current issues and themes, 

including Space cadre leader development and mentorship; the 

Space enterprise and Space mission area contributions to Army 

and Joint, Interagency, Intergovernmental, Multinational operations; strategic skills for Joint and Army assignments; Joint 

Capabilities Integration and Development System concepts 

and perspective. Students attend Space 300 at the National 

Security Space Institute in conjunction with the SSLS.

left to right Mike Russell, LTC 

Sam Russ, LTC Joseph Guzman, 

Bob Deivert, LTC Larry Roberts, 

COL George Wingfield, LTC Darius 

White, SGM John Mattie, LTC J. 

David Price, and Steve Ferrell.

Army Space Senior Leader Seminar Conducted

front row left to right SGT Jake Mumm, SSG Billy 

Rodgers Jr., SGT Dustin Spencer, SSG Michael 

Whitehead, SGT Billy Cooper; back row left to right

SGT Chad Phillips, SSG Curtis Jacobsen, SSG 

Reginald Corey, SGT Cody Kubischta, and SSG 

Kristopher Hodge.

Course 11-010
68 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Twenty-six students recently graduated from the Ballistic Missile 

Defense System (BMDS) Asset Management Course at Patrick 

Air Force Base, Fla. Members of the Air Force Technical 

Applications Center (AFTAC) attended the three-day course. 

The instructors provided in-depth training that covered BMDS 

capabilities, Readiness Conditions, Protection Capabilities, 

Operations Capabilities reporting and a host of other asset 

management functions. AFTAC will assume asset management 

responsibilities for one of the BMDS sensors that supports 

the Global Ballistic Missile Defense mission. Tim DeRamus, 

lead instructor for the course, stated that “these students were 

excited about their new role in the BMDS community and the 

responsibilities that they are undertaking.” The students rated 

the course overwhelmingly as “outstanding.” One of the students, TSgt Michael Walls, commented that “the course was 

an excellent introductory course and that the information was 

specific to their needs and extremely helpful.” If you are interested in attending future BMDS Asset Management courses or 

want more information, contact James Traverse, course manager at 719-622-2963, james.traverse@smdc-cs.army.mil or Tim 

DeRamus, instructor lead at 719-622-2929, timothy.deramus@

smdc-cs.army.mil.

Ballistic Missile Defense 

System Asset Management Course Graduates

Additional graduates of the Ballistic 

Missile Defense System Asset 

Management Course at Patrick Air Force 

Base, Fla., are left to right MSgt Ralph 

Himmelsbach, SSgt Russell Hultberg, 

and SSgt Peter Oliveri; and Timothy 

DeRamus, instructor lead.

Recent graduates of the Ballistic Missile Defense 

System Asset Management Course at Patrick Air 

Force Base, Fla., are left to right James Traverse, 

course manager; CMSgt Frank Woodard, Capt Richard 

Fancher, Capt Joel Neuber, TSgt Tonya Cobarruviaz, 

Capt Joshua Markland, Capt Matthew Lord, SSgt 

Timothy Mellon, 2d Lt Russell Maynard, Lt Col Lynn 

Bentley, SrA Alphonzo Doss II, Maj Scott Brandimore, 

SMSgt Gerald Mcfadden, kneeling SSgt Donald 

Freeman and A1C Marc Andrews.

DOTD 

Spac e & 

Missil e 

Defens e

C o n g r a t ul a t i o n s t o t h e 
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 69

The Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD) Operator Course 1-11 was conducted 2 

May to 17 June in Colorado Springs. The graduates include Soldiers from the 100th Missile 

Defense Brigade in Colorado and 49th Missile Defense Battalion in Alaska and officers 

from the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy. In addition, Jim Traverse, an Army Civilian, and 

Joe Evans, a contractor supporting the Department of Training and Doctrine at U.S. Army 

Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command, also attended.

Honor graduates were LCDR Douglas Pegher and SSG Benjamin Guritz. 

Distinguished graduates were LCDR Jeffery Weitz, SSG Steven Foley, Mr. Traverse, and 

Mr. Evans.

Air Force Lt. Col. Steven Krehbiel, class leader, will be assigned to the Joint 

Functional Component Command for Integrated Missile Defense. LCDR Weitz and 

LCDR Pegher will be assigned to U.S. Northern Command as missile defense officers. 

Mr. Traverse and Mr. Evans will become associate instructors for GMD Operator Course 

1-12 and primary instructors for GMD Operator Course 2-12.

USASMDC/ARSTRAT DOTD has initiated transfer of the GMD Operator 

Course from the Missile Defense Agency to the Army. As part of this plan, Mr. Traverse 

and Mr. Evans are the first of seven Army Civilians and contractors to attend training 

and become certified as GMD instructors.

The seven-week-long course trains officers and enlisted personnel in GMD operations. This mission is designed to defend the contiguous United States from intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) attack by rogue nations. Students are trained in ICBM 

fundamentals; the ICBM threat; sensors, including radars and Space Based Infrared 

Systems; ground-based interceptors; and operation of the GMD Fire Control System. 

This system of systems is designed to detect and track inbound ICBMs in flight, and to 

launch interceptors to shoot down the ICBMs during the ballistic phase of flight. The 

standard for this course is mastery, and the passing standard for all graded measurements 

(tests and exercises) is 90 percent.

Personnel from the 100th and 49th will report to their units and begin 45 days of 

certification training, where they will become part of a crew. These crews are on duty 

defending America 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

front row left to right 2LT Melkart 

Hawi, SSG Benjamin Guritz, SGT 

Scotty Rogers, CPT Scott Manson, 

CPT Michael Odgers, LCDR Jeffery 

Weitz, and LCDR Douglas Pegher; 

back row left to right SGT Wayne 

Chaput, SGT Jarrod Cuthbertson, 

Joe Evans, MAJ Kyle Zablocki, Jim 

Traverse, SGT Sean Clark, Lt. Col. 

Steven Krehbiel, SGT Brenden 

Good, and SSG Steven Foley.

Course 1-11

Ground-Based Midcourse 

Defense (GMD) Operator
70 2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

TIPof the

2.0

 FA40 Career 

Management

The Space Training Division of the Future Warfare 

Center, Directorate of Training and Doctrine conducted a Tactical Space Operations Course–Tactics, 

Techniques, and Procedures Mobile Training Team for 

the U.S. Army Central (ARCENT) Kuwait Space Support 

Element Current Operations Section in April 2011 

at the ARCENT headquarters, Fort McPherson, Ga. 

Students included two U.S. Army Reserve augmentees 

and one newly assigned Soldier, MAJ Brian Bolio, a 

Functional Area 40 graduate of the Space Operations 

Officer Qualification Course. The two augmentees, 

MAJ Van Bryan from Pennsylvania and CPT Joe White 

from Kentucky, were activated specifically to support 

the ARCENT Space Support Element (SSE) for a period of one year. SFC Casey Taylor, the ARCENT SSE 

noncommissioned officer in charge, also participated 

in the training. Immediately following this course the 

ARCENT team deployed to theater to participate in exercise Lucky Warrior.

Students received introductory and refresher training in a variety of topics, including orbital mechanics, 

satellite communications, Global Positioning System, 

and Space environmental impacts on Space systems. 

They also received instruction in areas such as submitting Space Support Requests, requesting tailored products through reach-back portals, and an overview of the 

various Space applications and Web sites that they will 

use in executing their mission for ARCENT.

ARCENT headquarters now is located at Shaw Air 

Force Base, S.C.

left to right MAJ Van Bryan, MAJ 

Brian Bolio, SFC Casey Taylor, CPT 

Joseph White, Joan Rousseau, and 

Mike Russell (Directorate of Training 

and Doctrine instructors).

ARCENT

SSE Training

C

o n g r a t

ul

a t i o n

s t o t h e 

DOTD 

Spac

e & 

Missil e

De

f

e

ns

e
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition 71

Human Resources Command has long been interested in the concept of “talent management” as it 

pertains to the assignment and employment process. In the past, the assignment process was more 

preference based, with little or no input from the 

gaining unit on which officer they would like to 

receive. The exception to this was joint or other 

nominative positions that require certain skill identifiers. This preference-based model did well in filling billets with people but ignored the important 

aspect of aligning certain skills and talent with 

available jobs.

HRC recently beta-tested a version of Green 

Pages, a Monster.com-like Web application that 

allows users to fill out profiles and state career 

achievements and goals which augment their 

already existing official Army information. 

Utilizing this tool, officers could submit “applications” to jobs they were interested in during a 

movement cycle, the units would have access to 

the profiles of all those who were interested and 

be able to rank order them based on required 

desired talents and skills. What the testing found 

was that preferences were still largely based on 

location. No surprise when you consider the 

options of Fort Bliss versus Stuttgart, or Fort 

Campbell versus Vandenberg Air Force Base. In 

the near future, Green Pages will likely be integrated into the assignment process, but there are 

many issues that still need to be addressed, one 

of which is a better understanding of preference 

selection.

In the next article I will address the special 

circumstances considered during the assignment 

process. I will touch briefly on some of them in 

this article to illustrate the problem set. In the 

past, the assignment process included sending 

out a list of all open or projected jobs to be filled. 

The officer considered for Permanent Change 

of Station was asked to rank order these jobs 

and return them. These preferences were then 

matched up against all other submitted preferences and the additional assignment considerations 

were applied.

The recurring problem was uninformed preference selection. For instance, an officer currently 

stationed at Colorado Springs selecting four jobs 

within Colorado Springs as his or her next assignment, an officer only rank ordering the first three 

of 15 available jobs, or an officer with high dwell 

time only selecting joint or non-deploying billets. 

There are a number of considerations applied during the assignment process, but realistically, officer preference ranks low behind Army Manning 

Guidance, Functional Area 40 priorities, placing 

the right skills and experience (talent) in the right 

jobs, Department of the Army-regulated considerations (Exceptional Family Member Program 

or the Married Army Couples Program) and tour 

equity.

It is important for FA40s to have a broad 

foundation of experience to be successful in any 

number of jobs. Jobs in the operating force and 

generating force level are equally important as 

are other broadening experiences (Training with 

Industry, fellowships, etc.). Part of the job as 

assignment officer is ensuring tour equity for personnel in order to build that population of diverse 

FA40s. We are still a Nation at war; submitting 

preferences of 1. Peterson Air Force Base 2. U.S. 

Northern Command 3. Vandenberg, etc., with 

an abnormally high dwell time is just not realistic 

given the number of deploying FA40 billets that 

need to be filled. Additionally, many officers with 

strong technical backgrounds apply to extend in 

jobs that utilize their technical expertise, but the 

FA40 community also needs these officers to be 

leaders and step up to lead the Space Support 

Elements. Joint billets are another concern; if an 

officer already has Joint credit, another Joint job 

does not in any way benefit him or her. While it 

certainly may happen, it is very rare and avoided 

when possible. Bottom line: Think about what 

you need for your career, and where the career 

field needs you, not just in terms of favored geographical locations.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns regarding assignments. E-mail is 

always the best and quickest option and will allow 

me to research your question or concern and give 

you a more complete answer.

Section Coordinator 

glen.r.hees@

conus.army.mil

502-613-6684

DSN 983-6684

MAJ Glen Hees is the 

FA40 Assignment Officer 

at the Human Resources 

Command, Fort Knox, 

Ky. Commissioned as 

an aviation officer, his 

Space assignments 

have included brigade 

Space planner, Space 

control division chief, 

and commander, 4th 

Space Company.

By MAJ Glen Hees

Assignment Preferences & Tour Equity

Transparency in Assignments  Part II
Submit an Article

space.journal@us.army.mil

Find us online

www.smdc-armyforces.army.mil\ASJ
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2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

Back to the Basics from page C1

are the reason we exist as a Command.

Our forward deployed and forward 

positioned Soldiers were not able to march 

down the parade route last week, but 

believe me when I share that they were 

with us in spirit, and appreciated by those 

in attendance. It is an honor to lead such 

a patriot formation as we marched down 

town, but is a much greater honor for a 

commander to be included in such a magnificent formation of heroes.

In 1944 at the surrender of German 

Army at the Battle of Bastogne, General 

Anthony McAuliffe was asked by the 

German Commander “for his credentials”.... McAuliffe gestured to the tough, 

seasoned war veterans around him. “These 

are my credentials”, he said.

When I am asked by friends and colleagues as to how Brigade Command is 

going, I often say, “ask my Soldiers, for 

they are the ones that do the heavy lifting 

every day”. They are the reason, we can 

legitimately say, “The Sun Never Sets on 

SMDC/ARSTRAT.”

Continuing Pride from page C1

compass and for you to embody the 

Warrior Ethos. If everyone is doing the 

right thing, it influences others to follow. 

As Professional Space Soldiers we will 

develop ethics to define our culture and 

enable Army Space to continue into the 

next decade.

We as leaders must ensure that every 

Soldier has balance in their day to day lives. 

Not only should our Soldiers be physically, 

mentally, and spiritually fit, they also must 

have a balance between Duty, Family, and 

Self. I will also place a high emphasis on 

fitness which will include Combatives. We 

will strive for all Soldiers in the Brigade to 

achieve level 1 certification. The imperative of Combatives is for every Soldier to 

have faith in one self to close and engage 

the enemy in Close Combat.

Each Command Sergeant Major 

comes with their own way of accomplishing things, and their own philosophy about 

how to do it. For me, this means fostering 

a command climate that focuses on Pride, 

Respect, Trust, and Loyalty–above all, creating a command that exudes a winning 

attitude. To the Soldiers of the 1st Space 

Brigade: Be Intense, Be Professional, and 

Be the Best. I look forward to serving with 

you all.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. 

COL Eric P. Henderson, 

commander of the 1st Space 

Brigade, leads Soldiers and Airmen 

in the Flight of Flags entry down 

Tejon Street during the Colorado 

Springs 2011 Veteran’s Day 

Parade on Saturday morning. The 

group, which was 8th in line, was 

composed of 30 Soldiers from 

the 1st Space Brigade, 11 Airman 

from Peterson Air Force Base, 10 

Airmen from Schriever Air Force 

Base, and 10 Soldiers from Fort 

Carson. ‘Pearl Harbor, 70 years in 

Remembrance’ was the theme for 

this year’s parade which boasted 

almost 100 entries.

Flight

 of the Flags

1st Space

Marches in

parade

By DJ Montoya, 

1st Space Brigade 

Public Affairs

18F

photo by Rachel L. Griffith photo by DJ Montoya
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

v

there already have been a number of vocal 

opponents speaking out about the supposed waste of having a Missile Defense 

system. They argue that it is too expensive, 

the technology is unproven, and that it is 

destabilizing in terms of deterrence and 

arms control.

While the critics articulate their arguments well, they ignore some important 

considerations. Yes, Missile Defense is 

expensive, but it is a “cheap insurance policy” if you think about it. As we marked 

the tenth anniversary of 9/11, consider the costs and damage to our economy from that attack. Now raise that by 

an order of magnitude if just one nuclear weapon impacts a densely populated 

region of the nation. Missile Defense is 

cheap by comparison. The technology has 

had challenges, but that is normal with any 

cutting-edge program. Consider America’s 

first imagery satellite, Corona. The first 

twelve launches failed for various reasons, 

but we did not quit. We perfected the technology. And lastly, the point about Missile 

Defense being destabilizing is not valid, 

provided the GMD system remains at 

about its current size and arrayed against 

limited threats. Growing it too large could 

have the effect of destabilizing deterrence 

vis-à-vis Russia and China, but in its current limited form, GMD actually enhances 

deterrence by complicating an adversary’s 

attack calculus.

As I write this, crews from the 100th 

Missile Defense Brigade and 49th Missile 

Defense Battalion are on duty, guarding 

the skies of America. They operate the 

GMD system 24/7/365, deployed in place, 

ready to execute their homeland defense 

mission on a moment’s notice. They 

work closely with our supported command, U.S. Northern Command, as well 

as with the GMD developer-the Missile 

Defense Agency and their industry team. As the GMD system 

continues to evolve, USASMDC/

ARSTRAT is providing critical 

capability to the Warfighter and to 

the citizens of our nation. 300 

defending 300 million ... securing 

the high ground.

Missile Defense — An Insurance Policy for the Nation from page 1F

Sun Doesn’t Set on the 100th from page 1F

FORT GREELY, Alaska—SSG 

Duane Ostrowski, a crew operator for 

the 49th Missile Defense Battalion, 

Alaska Army National Guard, explains 

his duties in the Fire Direction Center 

to GEN C. Robert Kehler, commander 

of U.S. Strategic Command, CSM 

Patrick Z. Alston, and Steve Callicutt, 

J8 director. Kehler visited Fort Greely 

on Aug. 30 to speak with Soldiers of 

the 49th and tour the missile defense 

complex. “This is a perfect mission 

for the Guard. It’s what the Guard was 

meant to do – protect the homeland,” 

he said. “I occasionally meet with our 

nation’s leaders. While they may not 

know your name, they know who you 

are.” Kehler and Alston also had lunch 

with battalion Soldiers.

GEN 

Kehler

Meets the 

Missile 

Defense 

Guards 

Story and photo by 

CPT Michael Odgers,

100th Missile Defense 

Brigade Public Affairs

for those regions, will protect U.S. Forces 

and our allies who are in those theatres as 

well as protect the population centers within those areas.

For strategic defense capability the 

Brigade is under the operation control of 

USNORTHCOM for executing our mission and linked in with the NORAD/

NOTHCOM command center. We are 

integrated within their communications 

nets for command and control (C2) to 

conduct that mission. If you take a look 

at those radar detachments again; for 

example, the USPACOM based AN/

TPY-2 Det. 10, their sensor managers 

for the radar are actually located within 

the air operations center for that combatant command. Similar situations will exist 

for our USEUCOM and USCENTCOM 

based assets. Because of that, anytime the 

PACOM, EUCOM or CENTCOM commands need missile defense information 

data regarding detection and tracking capabilities from those sensors, they only need 

to reach as far as their own operations 

center in order to get real time data from 

our Soldiers who are serving within that 

detachment command.

As our program has started to mature 

with our radar detachments and with the 

European phased adaptive approach capability, we are gradually starting to spread 

our capabilities into other geographic commands and with that, we are enforcing the 

mindset, just like the SMDC/ARSTRAT 

motto, that “the sun never sets” on the 

100th Missile Defense Brigade.

19F
2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

16F

LTG Richard P. Formica, commanding general, U.S. Army Space and Missile 

Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command, gives the opening remarks 

to officially kick off the 14th annual Space and Missile Defense Conference at the 

Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Ala.  Photo by Rachel L. Griffith

Spac e & 

Missi le Defens e 

Conf erenc e

HUNTSVILLE, Ala.—The Rocket City once again became 

the launching pad for leaders in the Space and Missile Defense 

universe.

With the theme of “Providing Capabilities to the 

Warfighter,” the 14th annual Space and Missile Defense 

Conference took place Aug. 15-18 at the Von Braun Center. 

The conference was presented by the Air, Space and Missile 

Defense Association, the National Defense Industrial 

Association’s Tennessee Valley Chapter, and the Air Defense 

Artillery Association.

“Our Space professionals are on point for our nation 

supporting the Warfighters and Civilians,” said LTG Richard 

P. Formica, commander of U.S. Army Space and Missile 

Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command, during 

the conference kickoff. “Today the Army has some 246,000-

plus Soldiers deployed and forward stationed with more than 

114,000 in operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Our Soldiers 

are focused, and they’re making progress every day under 

tough tactical conditions.”

“Our Space operations Soldiers are in the fight,” Formica 

added. “It’s to these Soldiers and the ones they support to 

whom we commit to providing timely, relevant Space and 

Missile Defense capabilities.”

Formica, along with USASMDC/ARSTRAT operations sergeant major, SGM John Mattie, introduced SSG 

Andrew Brown, 1st Space Company, 1st Space Battalion, 

Colorado Springs, Colo., and SPC Brandon Kitchen of B 

Company, 53rd Signal Battalion, Fort Meade, Md. Brown 

and Kitchen are the command’s 2011 Noncommissioned 

Officer of the Year and Soldier of the Year, respectively. 

Other speakers throughout the week included Huntsville 

Mayor Tommy Battle; LTG Patrick O’Reilly, director of the 

Missile Defense Agency; LTG Dennis Via, deputy commander of Army Materiel Command; and Lt. Gen. Susan Helms, 

the first female military astronaut and commander of Air 

Force Space Command and the Joint Functional Component 

Command for Space, U.S. Strategic Command, at Vandenberg 

Air Force Base, Calif.

During the week there were panel discussions with subject-matter experts, social receptions, and numerous other 

events to inform the public of the Space and Missile Defense 

community’s current and future endeavors.

At the conference, one SMDC leader talked about the 

importance that the week means to the men and women in 

uniform who are in harm’s way.

“The conference has been outstanding,” said COL Eric P. 

Henderson, 1st Space Brigade commander. “It is good to meet 

our partners in technology and industry and see what innovations they have, and to see if and when we will have capabilities that would apply to our mission set.”

“The work that is being done in the nanosatellite department looks like it will have an application that will benefit our 

Soldiers,” Henderson said. “I look forward to seeing how we 

can apply it to what the troops need.”

More than 250 companies, large and small, had booths 

featuring everything from full-size displays to computer simulations of future technologies. Companies presented military vehicles such as the Avenger weapon system, a Medium 

Extended Air Defense System Tactical Operations Center, a 

nanosatellite demonstration, and a mock battle command and 

control system.

By Jason B. Cutshaw, USASMDC/ARSTRAT Public Affairs

Highlights Innovations that Add 

Greater Capabilities to the Frontlines
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

17F

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – Saving time and money while performing a vital mission for national defense from half a world away 

is the goal of the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test 

Site Operations Center (ROC) located in Huntsville, Ala.

The ROC command and control facility at the U.S. Army 

Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic 

Command in Huntsville will soon become the primary command-and-control facility instead of its current location on 

Kwajalein Atoll. The communications upgrade focuses on the 

core networking and communications infrastructure linking 

Kwajalein to the United States. Building a reliable, high bandwidth, low latency network is crucial to a distributed range in 

which the sensors are operated from more than 7,000 miles 

away.

“Here at the ROC, we are performing Space and Missile 

Defense tracking and helping ensure the development of 

Missile Defense assets and systems, as well as helping verify 

that operational assets, whether offensive or defensive, are 

working correctly for the defense of both the nation and the 

Warfighters themselves,” said LTC Brian Soldon, U.S. Army 

Kwajalein Atoll and Reagan Test Site deputy commander 

(Continental United States), Kwajalein support director and 

Reagan Test Site (RTS) Space operation director.

The RTS Distributed Operations program will benefit 

Reagan Test Site customers in several key ways. RTS system 

engineers and mission planners will be available centrally in 

Huntsville, which is co-located with several major RTS customers. Customers will benefit from the range’s command 

and communication functions being “closer” through reduced 

flight times and fewer time zone differences for training, demonstrations, mission planning and mission execution than is 

experienced with Kwajalein-based RTS support.

RTS customers will have the ability to view missions in 

real-time from the Huntsville control center, and only those 

mission support functions requiring physical access to RTS 

and test assets will need to deploy to Kwajalein.

“The ability to quickly make operational command decisions is a benefit,” he added. “We will always have the requirement to have a significant presence, and a command presence, 

out on the range due to tactical safety concerns.” 

As the ROC mission continues to grow, one of the primary functions is to inform and support those organizations 

that monitor what takes place on the high ground. 

“The U.S. Strategic Command mission that we support 

is primarily Space situational awareness which includes metric 

observations of Space objects so we know exactly where those 

objects are,” Soldon said. He talked about how most Soldiers 

may not see how the ROC capabilities help them directly, but 

noted that the unseen benefits are immense and help them on 

several levels when they are deployed and in harm’s way.

“A lot of people have a hard time identifying how Space 

situational awareness affects the Soldiers on the ground,” 

Soldon said. “What it boils down to, is that satellites up in 

Space are executing critical support requirements for the 

Warfighter. Whether that is navigational support, in terms of 

(global positioning satellites) or whether it is communication 

satellites in low-earth orbit and those in higher orbits, there are 

also a number of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance 

assets that are up there and we need to know exactly where 

those are at all times.”

“One, so we can know exactly where they are, but also to 

ensure they don’t collide with any other objects. RTS is one 

of the sensors that provide that capability,” he added. “We are 

one of the critical Space surveillance sensors that ensure nothing collides so that assets continue to do their support functions for our Warfighters on the ground.”

By Jason B. Cutshaw, USASMDC/ARSTRAT Public Affairs

Operations Center

Watch es Sky

A digital recreation of the control center of the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site Operations Center located in Huntsville, 

Ala., as it tracks satellites from facilities located more than 7,000 miles away at the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site at 

Kwajalein Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands. U.S. Army graphic
2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

14F

Top Two Emerge 

Grueling Compet

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.—The top noncommissioned 

officer and Soldier from the U.S. Army Space and Missile 

Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command’s 2011 

NCO and Soldier of the Year competition have been named.

SSG Andrew Brown, 1st Space Company, 1st Space 

Battalion, is the command’s NCO of the Year, and SPC 

Brandon Kitchen, Company B, 53rd Signal Battalion, is the 

Soldier of the Year. Both battalions are part of the 1st Space 

Brigade.

“I’m excited and surprised,” Kitchen said. “There was so 

much knowledge among these Soldiers, I’m honored to have 

been able to compete and still come out on top.”

Brown said he was surprised also. “I’m surprised and 

speechless. This is such a wonderful group of Soldiers. I’m 

honored to compete with these guys. Now, we go back and 

complete the mission.”

The eight competitors, who first won at the regional level 

from within USASMDC/ARSTRAT’s units around the world, 

were put through four days of grueling events that included 

long hours and punishing physical activity. Members from all 

sections of the command pitched in during the competition to 

make the events happen, such as weapons qualification with 

the M16 rifle, written exam, and oral presentation to a board 

of sergeants major. Soldiers from the 1st Space Battalion provided the combatants as well as team members for the competitors during the Situational Training Exercise combat event.

“We had such a small squad for such a large mission, and 

there was so much gunfire,” Brown said. “It really pushed me 

to my limit.”

Kitchen said the easiest event for him was the run portion of the Army Physical Fitness Test. “I’m originally from 

Colorado, so I had an advantage,” he said. “It didn’t take me 

very long to acclimate to the altitude.”

The winners returned to Colorado Springs for a month 

of intense training to prepare them for the Sergeant Major of 

the Army’s Best Warrior Competition held at Fort Lee, Va., 

in October. The train-up focused heavily on combative training, based on feedback from previous USASMDC/ARSTRAT 

Soldier and NCO of the Year winners.

By Carrie David and Rachel L. Griffith, 

USASMDC/ARSTRAT Public Affairs

USASMDC/ARSTR AT’s Soldier and NCO of the Year
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

15F

CSM William C. Baker briefs 

the competitors following their 

stationary qualification range 

on Fort Carson, Colo.

Photo by Dottie White

SPC Brandon Kitchen 

concentrates as he answers 

multiple choice questions 

on the written exam. 

Photo by Carrie E. David

SSG Chauncey Carter 

uses a compass to plot points 

on a map during the land 

navigation competition .

Photo by Carrie E. David

SSG Christopher Miller 

goes over his land 

navigation equipment 

with his evaluator before 

beginning the course at 

Iron Horse Park on Fort 

Carson, Colo.

Photo by Dottie White

SSG Seamus Lynch 

does the push-up portion 

of the Army Physical 

Fitness Test administered 

to all candidates in 

the competition.

Photo by Carrie E. David

 After 

tition
2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

12F

FORT GREELY, Alaska – The military police Humvee 

rattled down the road of the Missile Defense Complex just 

as it usually would any other time. The night was crisp and 

clouds had rolled in, but it was still light enough to see the 

outlying fences. As the vehicle rounded the end of Alpha 

Sector, a loud bang rang out as an artillery round exploded. Seconds later there were insurgents swarming over the 

fences and onto the complex. This was definitely a night 

not like any other.

That was the effect the leadership of the 100th Missile 

Defense Brigade (Ground-Based Midcourse Defense) and 

the 49th Missile Defense Battalion was going for during 

the Global Lightning exercise April 29 to May 3.

Soldiers from the 100th MDB brigade, based in 

Colorado Springs, Colo., came to Alaska to aid the 49th 

MDB battalion in putting on this annual exercise. Various 

planned “attacks” on Fort Greely’s Missile Defense 

Complex were carried out to test the skills and proficiency of the Solders in the 49th’s Military Police Security 

Company.

“Our primary purpose here is to test the 49th Missile 

Defense Battalion,” said COL Gregory Bowen, 100th 

MDB brigade commander. “We typically do this once a 

year where we as a brigade headquarters come up here and 

run the battalion through its paces and give the battalion 

commander a good outside set of eyes on the result of his 

training program.”

The scenarios in the exercise made the Soldiers use 

that training and tried to find ways to get them out of their 

comfort zones to see how they do under pressure.

“We want to be able to really put together a scenario that will run the full gamut and test all their functions, 

from emergency procedures to actual combat operations, 

but also testing personnel actions, supply and logistics and 

actually supplying for the Warfighters on the ground, so 

we’re testing full spectrum,” said CSM Russell Hamilton, 

the brigade command sergeant major.

The mission and goal of the exercise was to provide 

realistic training, while keeping everyone involved safe.

During the exercise, there was allotted time to stop 

and give corrections where needed.

“By being here we are able to coach, train, and mentor 

them when we do see things that need to be improved,” 

said Bowen.

The Soldiers who participated got to break up the 

monotony of their day-to-day jobs and enjoy a change of 

pace compared to their regular day. Getting to put their 

training into action helped platoon sergeants see how well 

they are doing training their Soldiers.

And for the 2nd Platoon, they looked like they were 

trained well.

“I think the exercise went very well. I am proud of 

my Soldiers,” said SFC Robert Carson, 2nd Platoon, platoon sergeant.

Lightning and Th und er

Story and Photos by SGT Benjamin Crane, 

100th Missile Defense Brigade Public Affairs

Battalion MPs Train to 

Defend Missile Complex

MAJ Gary Casey, opposition forces leader and commander 

for the U.S. Army Reserve Strategic Command Troop 

Program Unit, lays out the plans of an “insurgent” attack on 

the Missile Defense Complex at Fort Greely, Alaska. 
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

13F

COL Gregory Bowen, 

commander of the 100th 

Missile Defense Brigade 

(Ground-Based Midcourse 

Defense), talks to Soldiers 

during the pre-exercise 

brief for exercise.

SPC Cristina Cost, 

100th Missile Defense 

Brigade, reviews wit 

SPC Carl Watson and 

SPC Trevor Cousino 

on their performance of 

first aid during the first 

day of the battalion’s 

external evaluation. 

Both Soldiers are 

military policemen with 

the 49th Missile Defense 

Battalion’s MP 

security company. 

During the four days, Carson’s Soldiers encountered a vehicle breakdown and rollover, an active shooter 

situation, several insurgent attacks and had to perform first aid 

on nominal casualties and handle a bomb threat.

But through all that, they hung tough.

“All the ones who were evaluated did really well, so I’m 

happy. They did a real good job,” said Carson.

Because the brigade is headquartered in Colorado Springs, 

Colo., and has operators working out of California and Alaska, 

getting Soldiers together from various units can be a challenge. 

But exercises like Global Lightning 11 allow all the moving parts 

to get to see each other.

“Any chance to work with higher headquarters face to face 

is good,” said LTC Joe Miley, the 49th’s commander. “We tend 

to be an electronic society, and of course we have the tyranny 

of geography. There is a long distance between here and the 

100th in Colorado Springs as well as 88th Troop Command in 

Anchorage, which are our two brigade headquarters.” (The unit 

falls under both the Alaska National Guard and the 100th brigade.)

After the four days were concluded, the staff from the 

100th put together their assessment of the 49th’s military police 

company and submitted it to the commander for his review. 

Then they had a large after-action review time to discuss the 

exercise. Through comments made during the after-action 

review, it appeared as though the training at the battalion level 

was to standard.

“I am very proud of them (2nd platoon). It’s not because 

of me, and it’s because of the things that the squad leaders and 

team leaders are out there doing every day,” said Carson. “Every 

shift, every cycle, we do training and physical training. We are 

going to have to obviously work on our communications over 

radio and other things but other than that, I am very proud of 

them and we just have to sustain that and keep it going.”

SPC Carl Watson 

(kneeling) practices 

first aid on SPC Trevor 

Cousino during the first 

day of exercise Global 

Lightning 11 at Fort 

Greely, Alaska. 

SPC Cristina Cost, 

100th Missile Defense 

Brigade, observes 

SPC Carl Watson 

(kneeling) as he 

performs first aid on 

SPC Trevor Cousino 

during the first day of 

the battalion’s annual 

external evaluation at 

Fort Greely, Alaska. 
2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

10F

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo.—Forty-five days 

after the 1st Space Brigade bid farewell to its top noncommissioned officer, CSM Thomas L. Eagan assumed responsibility for the role during a brief but important ceremony Aug. 

11 in the ballroom of The Club at Peterson Air Force Base, 

Colorado Springs, Colo.

In front of members of U.S. Army Space and Missile 

Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command, 

Soldiers, Air Force personnel, community leaders, and 

Family members, Eagan received the Noncommissioned 

Officer’s sword from COL Eric P. Henderson, brigade 

commander, signifying the assumption of senior enlisted 

responsibilities for the Army’s first and only Space brigade.

Henderson pointed to Eagan’s accomplishments over 

a 26-year career. He previously was the battalion command 

sergeant major with the 3rd Battalion, 6th Air Defense 

Artillery Brigade at Fort Sill, Okla.

“Though new to us, he is not new to the arena,” said 

Henderson.

“Since the 20th of August 1985 Command Sgt. Maj. 

Eagan has distinguished himself from his peers. Whether it 

is his assignments as a platoon sergeant, a brigade maintenance NCO, a Patriot weapon systems adviser and trainer, 

a first sergeant, an operations sergeant major, or battalion 

command sergeant major, Eagan’s resume is built upon the 

dust, sweat, and the blood that has taken him to become the 

professional noncommissioned officer that he is today.

“He just assumed the responsibility in becoming the 

command sergeant major of the world’s only Army Space 

brigade. He is worthy of the task, and he is here. And he is 

here for a reason. He will continue to motivate, train, lead, 

provide direction, and further develop today’s Soldiers of 

the 1st Space Brigade and more importantly the future leaders of our nation and of our Army.”

Eagan acknowledged the welcome and said, “To the 

leaders of our city (Colorado Springs) and our installation 

(Peterson Air Force Base) I look forward to working with 

both our civilian leaders and our brothers and sisters in 

arms to continue our great relationship and improving those 

to the next level. I will leave you with this from the Creed of 

the Noncommissioned Officer. Three letters form the foundation of the creed and begin each paragraph with a short 

sentence: No one is more professional than I. Competence 

is my watch-word. Officers of my unit will have maximum 

time to accomplish their duties; they will not have to accomplish mine.

“My word to the officers of the units, you will not have 

to accomplish my duties. To the leaders of the unit, competence is your watch-word and to all in the command, no one 

is more professional than you.

“It’s truly my honor to be your Command Sergeant 

Major. Crusher signing in!”

By DJ Montoya, 1st Space Brigade Public Affairs

Photos by Craig Dalton, USAF

Cru

CSMs May Come and Go, but the Sword Remains “Razor Sharp”

sher Signs IN
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

11F

1st Spac e Battalion Gets New Command er

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo.—A change of command ceremony for the 1st Space Battalion, 1st Space Brigade 

took place June 20 at the Peterson Air Force Base auditorium.

The outgoing commander, LTC J. Dave Price, turned 

over the battalion colors to COL Eric P. Henderson, commander of the 1st Space Brigade. Henderson then passed the 

colors to the incoming commander, LTC Patrick J. Mullin.

Prior to the ceremony Price received the Meritorious 

Service Medal for his service as battalion commander from 

July 2009 to June 2011.

Henderson reflected on Price’s tenure by saying, “As the 

operational arm of this command no other unit has done 

more to provide trained and ready Space forces than the 1st 

Space Battalion.

“Dave has deployed Soldiers consistently and systematically into theater numerous times. His battalion and staff have 

trained, equipped, prepared, deployed, performed, redeployed, 

and re-integrated Soldiers into theater. His Soldiers are trained, 

their units are ready, and they continue to provide Space-based 

products and services to those who need them the most–the 

sons and daughters of this great nation.”

Price was the sixth commander of the battalion and had 

previous ties to the unit when he served as commander of the 

1st Space Company from 2004 to 2006.

“Let me remind you that my real responsibility in command was only to build a team and serve Soldiers,” said Price. 

“But the feats of these Soldiers rest solely on their shoulders. 

And I give credit to all those deserving.”

Among his other assignments in the Space arena Price 

served as the chief of Special Technical Operations for the 

Joint Functional Component Command for Space, and as 

the first-ever joint senior Space duty officer at the Joint Space 

Operations Center, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., for U.S. 

Strategic Command.

The Army War College at Carlisle, Pa., is the next stop 

for Price.

Mullin comes to the battalion after serving as the S3 

(Operations) at the 1st Space Brigade for the past two years.

“To the Soldiers and Civilians of the 1st Space Battalion–

hooah!” said Mullin. “I have observed you from a close distance for the last two years. And I have to say, right now, to me 

you look better than ever.”

His previous assignment include commander, Missile 

Warning Center, Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, Colo.; 

chief of Space and missile operations for Cheyenne Mountain 

Operations Center; chief of the Space Support Element for 

the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Ky.; and chief 

of Space and Special Technical Operations, Combined Joint 

Task Force-101 and U.S. Forces-Afghanistan at Bagram Air 

Base, Afghanistan.

The 1st Space Battalion was activated on Dec. 15, 1999. It 

was formed to provide an operational headquarters for command and control of Army Space forces.

By DJ Montoya, 1st Space Brigade Public Affairs

Photos by Craig Dalton, USAF

N
2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

8F

Soldiers Support Commissary 

through Physical Endurance 

top SGT Vincent Samson 

focuses while trying to 

complete the “Egg Walk.”

left SSG Michael Landry, 

SGT Toby Hensley, and SPC 

Theodore Furrow start the 

“Commissary Sweep” 

for C Company, 

53rd Signal Battalion.

bottom left PFC Scott 

Fitzgibbons keeps pushing 

for C Company, 

53rd Signal Battalion.

bottom right CSM Richard 

Jessup watches while SGT 

Hensley does as many 

push-ups as possible.

Drop,

Then Shop

Photos by Rick Scavetta, 

U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

9F

left SGT Toby 

Hensley does 

his lap during 

the “Shopping 

Cart Relay.”

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Soldiers from Charlie 

Company, 53rd Signal Battalion, 1st Space Brigade joined 

Soldiers from U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern to show their 

appreciation for the local commissary by adding groceries to 

their morning physical training.

A team of ten C Company Soldiers competed against 

dozens of others during Commissary Appreciation Day, held 

June 24 at the Vogelweh commissary. The garrison’s Better 

Opportunities for Single Soldiers (BOSS) program supported 

the annual event. The commissary provided props for some 

unique competitions.

“It’s our business to support events like this through our 

industry partners,” said Defense Commissary Agency Europe 

spokeswoman Leslie Brown. “If it weren’t for the military 

men and women, we wouldn’t have a mission. We appreciate 

their patronage and their service to our country.”

The morning began with shopping cart relay races around 

the track. Each team had to complete two, one-third-mile 

laps while pushing a shopping cart weighed down with several packages of bottled water. C Company completed the race 

with the fastest time, winning the first event.

The day’s second event also had the Soldiers racing on 

foot, running a lap while balancing an egg on a spoon clenched 

between their teeth. C Company members again showed their 

dominance, winning the event. A pushup competition was 

made more interesting when Soldiers pressed to muscle failure 

with heavy sacks of dog food on their shoulders. C Company 

won the third event with 293 pushups.

“Thirty pounds of dog food was tough, but I really 

wanted to win this for the team,” said SSG Danial Zweifel.

Soldiers then broke for breakfast provided by the commissary and BOSS. The fourth event was the egg toss which 

consisted of three teams of two given the chance to drop only 

three eggs total. Alas, C Company was brought down from 

the top seed of this event and left with only a handful of yolk.

The last event of the day brought the Soldiers inside the 

commissary to compete in a shopping spree. Working in teams 

of three, they had two minutes to fill a cart. The highest dollar value would win. C Company once more triumphed, with 

a bill of $1,260.

In the end, it didn’t matter. The Vogelweh commissary–part of the Kaiserslautern-headquartered Defense 

Commissary Agency Europe–allowed each team to keep their 

haul.

The C Company team then took the groceries to the 

parking lot and divided it all up. First was to supply the Family 

Readiness Group with anything that could be useful for its 

members and deployed Soldiers. Then the single Soldiers in 

the barracks were supplied. Finally, what was left was divided 

between the team as the spoils of victory. C Company also 

was awarded the DeCA Europe Cup, which sits in the company’s trophy case.

C Company is one of six companies worldwide that 

make up the 53rd Signal Battalion which is headquartered 

in Colorado Springs, Colo. Their mission is to provide continuous communications transmissions and satellite payload 

control of the Department of Defense Wideband satellite 

communications constellation.

By SPC Simon Castillo, C Company, 53rd Signal Battalion
2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

6F

Activates, Changes Commanders

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – 

The 100th Missile Defense Brigade (Ground-based 

Midcourse Defense) officially unfurled the guidon for its 

Detachment One during an Activation and Change of 

Command ceremony May 13.

The unit is comprised of seven California National 

Guard Soldiers working together to defend the skies 

over America in case of a foreign missile attack. They 

work hand in hand with other brigade units in Colorado 

and Alaska to accomplish the mission of defending 

the homeland.

The detachment has actually been working together 

for the past four years out of California but it wasn’t 

recognized by the Army as an official unit.

“The original manning document had only Alaska 

and Colorado in it,” said COL Gregory Bowen, commander of the 100th MDB (GMD) to the Soldiers and 

families in attendance at the ceremony. “We couldn’t 

add California legally until we sent it (manning document) all the way back up to the Secretary of the Army 

and get his approval, which was a very long process that 

concluded about two months ago. So now we can formally activate Detachment One.”

And with that, Detachment One’s guidon was 

unfurled and handed to the outgoing commander, CPT 

Orlando Cobos.

“Bottom line, Orlando has done an absolutely 

phenomenal job as the detachment commander,” said 

Bowen. “If you think in terms of the responsibility he 

bears every day, this is a lot of pressure that we put on a 

captain to be out here in charge of this particular asset.”

As Cobos accepted the guidon his official command time was started. But it didn’t last long, as he 

stepped down and handed over the command to incoming commander CPT William Palermo.

Time in command 4 minutes, 31 seconds.

“It was an outstanding four minutes, it gave me 

very little time to screw up,” laughed Cobos. “The four 

minutes was actually almost four years, but it was an 

amazing four years.”

Cobos started coming out to California on temporary duty with six others Soldiers when the detachment 

first was formed and now as he leaves, it’s a full-time 

duty station with plans to add more Soldiers to handle 

the mission.

“It’s been a fun ride. We have had some challenges, 

especially integrating into the Air Force base here and 

the California National Guard, but overall I been very 

fortunate to be a part of this,” Cobos added.

Palermo is leaving his assignment in Colorado 

Springs, Colo., as the 100th MDB’s assistant intelligence 

officer. He has served in the unit since 2008 and has 

previously been deployed to Camp Arifjan, Kuwait.

“I’ve seen a lot of people come and go since I 

began working here. During my tenure, I’ve worked with 

some outstanding individuals and have been afforded 

Calif ornia

Missi le Defens e

Detachm ent

Story and Photos By SGT Benjamin Crane, 

100th Missile Defense Brigade Public Affairs
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

7F

great opportunities. That said, I will surely miss 

it here (in Colorado),” said Palermo.

But as he starts his tenure with the new 

detachment, he knows what he has to do to 

keep the standard up there.

“I want to develop a loyal team that is 

focused on accomplishing our mission, which is 

greater than any one person. If we embrace the 

true meaning of teamwork we will accomplish 

great things,” said Palermo. “I am very thankful that I was entrusted with the responsibility to 

lead Detachment One. CPT Cobos has accomplished great things over the past couple of 

years especially in standing up the detachment 

and I will have big shoes to fill, but I’m looking 

forward to the challenges that lie ahead.”

Cobos plans to leave the 100th to join the 

79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team located in 

San Diego. He will be the battalion’s training 

and operations officer.

“The guys have always been dedicated 

to the mission. All of them are good people. 

Soldier-wise, they execute the mission and they 

are great Soldiers so I have been very fortunate. 

CPT Palermo has a great group of guys that 

know the mission here and they will take care of 

him,” said Cobos.

COL Gregory S. 

Bowen speaks to 

the crowd in front 

of the Ronald 

Reagan Missile 

Defense site at 

Vandenberg Air 

Force Base.

Special guest, 

Pastor Rob Litzinger 

takes a picture with 

his cell phone of 

the activation and 

change of command 

ceremony for 

Detachment One.

Outgoing commander, CPT Orlando Cobos, hands flowers to his 

daughters, America and Reagan, at the Ronald Reagan Missile 

Defense site at Vandenberg Air Force Base.

Outgoing commander, CPT 

Orlando Cobos, speaks to 

the crowd at the Ronald 

Reagan Missile Defense 

site at Vandenberg Air Force 

Base during the 100th Missile 

Defense Brigade (Ground-based 

Midcourse Defense) activation 

and change of command 

ceremony for Detachment One, 

100th MDB May 13, 2011 at 

Vandenberg AFB, Calif.
2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

4F

Delegates Choose Six Issues for Army Leadership

Fami ly 

Matters

By KC Bertling, USASMDC/ARSTRAT G1 Photos By SGT Benjamin 

Crane, 100th Missile Defense Brigade Public Affairs

1

3

4

5

6

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — To 

improve the Army family’s quality of life, 

Soldiers, Department of the Army Civilians, 

retirees, and family members from across 

the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense 

Command/Army Forces Strategic Command 

gathered for the annual mid-level Army 

Family Action Plan (AFAP) conference in 

Colorado Springs, Colo., in April.

A total of 33 delegates representing 

the command’s many demographics were 

divided into three workgroups. Each group 

reviewed previously submitted issues, concerns, and ideas, and prioritized the group’s 

top two issues. Everyone worked tirelessly 

with subject-matter experts, and each workgroup spokesperson briefed the top two 

issues to LTG Richard P. Formica and other 

senior leaders in the command April 22.

The following subjects were briefed to 

the commanding general and will be forwarded to the Department of the Army 

for further consideration during the 2012 

worldwide AFAP conference.

Delegates get to 

know each other 

during the 2011 

USASMDC/ 

ARSTRAT 

Army Family 

Action Plan 

Conference.

One of the conference leaders, Walsh Althouse, welcomes delegates 

to the 2011 USASMDC/ARSTRAT Army Family Action Program 

conference that was held in Colorado Springs, CO.

Orthodontic coverage options for family members.

Recommendation: Provide optional plans for family 

members at sponsors’ expense to purchase expanded 

orthodontic coverage under the TRICARE Dental Plan.

2 Environmentally hazardous Army family housing. 

Recommendation: Provide environmentally safe 

housing for family members.

TRICARE Prime Specialty Care referrals 

between regional contractors. 

Recommendation: Change current policy to allow 

TRICARE regions to accept referrals from the losing 

region to accommodate TRICARE Prime patients requiring 

specialty medical care upon arrival at the new duty station.

Support programs for Soldiers, Civilians, 

and families at remote locations.

Recommendation: Provide means to access relevant Army 

support programs, dependent on unique site needs, at all 

remote locations, regardless of total Soldier population.

Internal Department of the Army Civilian 

career advancement opportunities

Recommendation: Require increased career advancement 

opportunities for Department of the Army employees, 

GS-5 through GS-12, by making use of existing 

developmental options as opposed to hiring externally.

Voluntary leave donation program for Soldiers.

Recommendation: Implement a voluntary 

leave donation program for Soldiers.
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

5F

A Day in the Lif e

I was one of the Soldiers selected to represent the Army 

National Guard and the 100th Missile Defense Brigade at 

the 2011 U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/

Army Forces Strategic Command’s Army Family Action Plan 

conference. I had never been to one of these conferences 

before and wasn’t sure what to expect. 

But it didn’t take me long to realize that this wasn’t 

just going to be time off of work. I was assigned to the 

employment group think tank. It consisted of ten or so 

other Soldiers and Civilians from around the world. None 

had the same job or assignment. I was amazed at the diversity of the group.

Tuesday we started getting into the real meat of the 

issues. The list had 15 issues submitted to USASMDC/

ARSTRAT leadership. Some were local issues that were 

too broad, and others were too specific and didn’t help the 

entire Army. Facilitators controlled the flow of discussion 

and kept us focused on what issues were something that 

could be fixed and help the greatest number of people.

The facilitators were very energetic and kept the discussion environment upbeat. Other groups didn’t look like 

they were enjoying themselves; our group couldn’t wait 

to get together. Instead of arguing and fighting through 

issues, we used laughter to keep focused and engaged. We 

also kept busy with the colored pipe cleaners that were 

put on our table each morning. Cars, animals, and mostly 

candy canes started to fill the room as the week progressed. 

There was even a four-foot pyramid that developed by the 

last day in one of the other group’s room.

Slowly the issues dwindled from 15 to five to eventually two. Our group decided to take three similar issues and 

make them into one solid issue. Despite a little push back 

from the AFAP leaders, the issues were finally refined to be 

presented on Friday.

Friday was the last day of the conference and the day 

the three groups would present their ideas to LTG Richard 

P. Formica, commander of USASMDC/ARSTRAT. Our 

group picked a spokesperson and prepared a cheer which 

we were supposed to perform. I guess it was tradition 

despite sounding silly. But I think our group did the best 

it could, and we even made the general laugh a little. After 

the cheering and presenting of issues were complete, we 

were thanked for our participation and released.

I walked out of the hotel that afternoon with a sense 

of accomplishment because I knew that we had done well 

and the changes made through all this will make many people happier and improve military quality of life. And that 

made my week off of work worth the time.

AFAP A Soldier’s Perspective

By SGT Benjamin Crane, 100th Missile 

Defense Brigade Public Affairs

AFAP provides members of the Army community a “voice” in shaping their standards of 

living and identifying issues related to the current environment. Army leaders trust and support AFAP, and it provides real-time information 

that enables commanders to respond more rapidly to resolve problems, implement good ideas and 

guide policy information.

“I had no idea about the AFAP until I 

attended the conference this week,” said Melva 

Tillar, a conference delegate. “This is an awesome 

program for the Army leaders to demonstrate 

that they do care about us.”

Installations and local levels hold annual 

AFAP conferences where representatives of all 

Army elements meet to identify, develop and prioritize issues they believe are important to maintain quality of life for Army families.

Issues that are applicable beyond the local 

and mid-level conferences will be forwarded to 

the worldwide AFAP conference. The goals of 

that conference are to provide information on 

the implementation of AFAP issues and identify 

and prioritize issues for Army leadership for further actions to achieve the Army’s overall goal of 

improving the quality of life for Army families.

Conference coordinator, KC Bertling speaks to the delegates on 

Monday of the 2011 Space and Missile Defense Command/Army 

Forces Strategic Command’s Army Family Action Plan conference that 

was held in Colorado Springs, CO.
2011 Fall Edition Army Space Journal

CPT Erol Munir, D Detachment, 1st Space Company commander, and 

SSG James R. Harris pause while helping clean up after an earthquake 

and tsunami devastated Japan in March. Photo Courtesy 1st Space Company

DISASTER TOUCHES

SPACE WARRIORS
Army Space Journal 2011 Fall Edition

3F

MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan – On March 11, a 9.0 earthquake struck off the coast of 

northeastern Japan and shook Misawa Air Base for several minutes. Almost immediately 

afterwards, the “giant voice” on base began to warn of an impending tsunami. Picture 

frames fell off the walls of homes, personal belongings fell off shelves, and the power 

went out. Luckily, no one was injured or hurt.

At the time the earthquake and tsunami struck, the base was in the middle of 

conducting a readiness exercise and was therefore already postured to respond. The 

first priority was to conduct a damage assessment and full accountability of personnel. Soldiers, airmen, and sailors from the base responded quickly and professionally to meet the task at hand. Announcements continued to be broadcast over the 

giant voice, and an Emergency Family Assistance Control Center was established at 

the community center. Generators were used to power key agencies on the base, and 

everywhere else, people huddled together by candlelight.

The first few weeks after the earthquake and tsunami were chaotic. Power was 

restored to the majority of the base within a week, and slowly things started getting 

back to normal. However, there was still the stress of continued aftershocks and the 

developing situation at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant which resulted in uneasiness, amongst the base population. The Department of State announced a voluntary 

departure of family members to safe havens in the United States, and a large percentage of spouses and children boarded planes to go home.

Throughout this stressful time, the Soldiers of Delta Detachment continued to 

flawlessly perform their vital strategic missile warning mission. Despite their already 

rigorous schedule, they continuously sought opportunities to help the local community and make a difference. On March 15 and 18, Joint Tactical Ground Station 

(JTAGS) Soldiers volunteered to conduct a tactical vehicle convoy to the Japanese 

town of Ofunato (150 miles south of Misawa) to deliver vital supplies to U.S. Agency 

for International Development search and rescue teams.

Since then, Soldiers from JTAGS Japan have continuously supported “clean up” 

missions in Operation Tomodachi. Tomodachi means friendship in Japanese. They 

have gone to numerous local areas along the coast where there has been unprecedented devastation and donated more than 400 hours cleaning debris from where the tsunami wave made contact with land.

JTAGS Soldiers continue to volunteer their time and help as much as they can, 

including an overnight trip to the village of Tanohata to help clear debris from damaged homes and buildings.

Editor’s note 

CPT Erol Munir is the 

former commander of D 

Detachment, 1st Space 

Company, 1st Space Brigade, 

U.S. Army Space and Missile 

Defense Command/Army 

Forces Strategic Command.

SSG Christopher Douglas, PVT 

Jonathan Segarra and SGT 

Vyncent Beasley help clear 

debris after an earthquake and 

tsunami devastated Japan in 

March. All three Soldiers are 

with the Joint Tactical Ground 

Station at Misawa Air Base, D 

Detachment. Photo Courtesy 

1st Space Company

By CPT Erol Munir, 

1st Space Company
Two Brigades

COL Eric P. Henderson 

Commander, 

1st Space Brigade 

Recently, I had the opportunity to march with my 

unit, as we participated in the Colorado Springs 

Veteran’s Day Parade. The Brigade was joined by 

service members from FT Carson, Schreiver and 

Peterson Air Force Base. As we marched along 

Tejon Street, the applause and cheering filled my 

ears, as well as my heart with joy. Everywhere I 

looked, I saw small children, and old veterans, 

house wives, and Harley riders. All of those present stood and clapped in appreciation, as we 

marched by.

I took a few moments, as we marched, to 

think about the mission the 1st Space Brigade performs, and the trust that is placed upon us by the 

people of America. Our Commanding General’s 

vision addresses the responsibility of “Providing 

Trained and Ready Space and Missile Defense 

Forces to the COCOMS and to the Warfighters”. 

What struck me was that every person we passed, 

places a much greater trust upon us, and that is 

the care and welfare of their sons and daughters. 

Small children along the parade route had parents not in the parade, because they are serving 

our Nation abroad. Old (and some “not so old” 

veterans rose to their feet, as our formation of flags passed. The colors seemed to 

make every heart swell, and every backbone 

stiffen with pride.

There is an old Army saying that “every 

meal is a feast, every day is a Holiday, and 

every formation is a parade”. As I write 

this short column, I think about those from 

our ranks who serve our country. I think 

about the sacrifices families make. I consider whether they know how much they are 

appreciated, as they dutifully go about their 

jobs. Recently, the Brigade had to extend six 

members of our command for an additional 

period of time in Afghanistan. While I know 

that this was not an ideal situation, I know it 

was the right decision. I want to thank those 

professional Space Soldiers, and their families who continue to serve. Every day over 

eight hundred Space enablers are spread 

globally, so that our Army, our sister services, and our Nation’s allies have the best possible support. Even though our deploying 

units are small in personnel numbers, they 

Continuing Pride

Continues

Page 18F >>

C1

Back to the Basics

Thomas L. Eagan 

Command Sergeant Major

1st Space Brigade

Continues

Page 18F >>

Let me start by saying Maria and I are 

truly honored to be a part of the 1st Space 

Brigade and U.S. Army Space and Missile 

Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic 

Command team. We look forward to working with the Officers, Non-Commissioned 

Officers, Soldiers, and Families of the 

Command. Maria and I would also like to 

Congratulate CSM Ross and his wife Ashley 

on their selection to lead the Soldiers of the 

32nd AAMDC and offer our thanks for their 

continued support of our transition into 

the Brigade.

Teamwork and cohesion are vital 

when it comes to achieving our mission. I 

like to use the acronym TEAM: Together, Each, 

Achieves, More. This starts with leadership. We 

as Leaders serve a unique mission in this organization, and as such, our leaders must be tactically and technically proficient while fulfilling 

the Total Soldier Concept. This means not only 

being an expert in your field, but observing the 

Army Values and living by the Soldier and NonCommissioned Officer creeds. I cite the line from 

the NCO creed: “No one is more professional than 

I.” As a Professional Space Soldier you cannot 

be complacent when it comes to the day to day 

business. We are Professional Soldiers first, then 

Professional Space Soldiers. From the Soldiers, 

I expect the Army Values to be your moral 
One SMDC/ARSTR AT

1F

CSM Russell A. Hamilton 

Command Sergeant Major

100th Missile Defense 

Brigade (GMD)

Sun Doesn’t Set on the 100th

An Insurance Policy for the Nation

Continues

Page 19F >>

Continues

Page 19F >>

COL Gregory S. Bowen 

Commander, 

100th Missile Defense 

Brigade (GMD)

U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense 

Command/Ar my Forces Strategic 

Command has a long history of contributing to our nation’s ability to defend itself 

from air and missile threats. From the early 

days of the Nike air defense system, to 

our nation’s first deployed ballistic Missile 

Defense system called Safeguard, the Army 

has developed cutting-edge technology and 

delivered capability to Warfighters and to 

the nation. USASMDC/ARSTRAT’s current work in developing and operating the 

Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD) 

system is just the most recent chapter in this 

prestigious history.

Like military Space, Missile Defense 

appears to be a growth industry; one in 

which USASMDC/ARSTRAT is uniquely positioned. A careful study of recent 

Missile Defense support to a combatant 

commander begins with providing trained, 

educated, and certified missile defense 

forces. If we are talking missile defense 

crews, it means going to the Ground-based 

Midcourse Defense Operator Course, and 

going through our rigorous certification 

program. For our Soldiers that are assigned 

to the radar detachments, it includes the 

Sensor Manager’s Course, and follow on 

certification on theater and strategic operator tasks. It’s the cornerstone for what we 

do. As we become proficient at those fundamental tasks, we can then go a step further to bridge over into some of the Space 

courses, such as the Introduction to Space, 

Space 200, Space 300 and FA40 as well. 

Adding these courses gives us the wellrounded Space and Missile Defense knowledge as we work as subject matter experts in 

those arenas to better support a geographic 

trends in ballistic missile proliferation paints a 

disturbing picture. Countries unfriendly to the 

United States are actively cooperating with one 

another in the development of lower-cost, higher-accuracy ballistic missile and Space launch systems. They are sharing the technology with one 

another, and with other state (and potentially 

non-state) actors. They have reached the conclusion that ballistic missiles provide them with 

a superb asymmetric threat against superior U.S. 

forces, and they realize how difficult and expensive the problem of ballistic Missile Defense is. 

Despite the cost and complexity of defensive 

systems, the ballistic missile threat is not one the 

United States can afford to ignore.

Ballistic Missile Defense is costly, and it 

is controversial. In the wake of the recent budget crisis and with significant budget cuts to the 

Department of Defense looming on the horizon, 

combatant commands mission set.

Since the brigade’s inception when we stood up 

for initial limited defense operations in 2004, our 

exclusive focus was providing defensive capabilities against intercontinental ballistic missiles for 

US Northern Command’s area of responsibility. Since then, the additions of the Army/Navy 

Transportable Radar (AN/TPY-2) surveillance 

detachments have helped the brigade spread our 

capability into multiple geographic combatant 

commands. Our primary focus is still obviously 

strategic missile defense for the USNOTRHCOM 

AOR, but if you take for example the AN/

TPY-2 Detachment (Det. 10), it also provides a 

theatre ballistic missile defense capability for US 

Pacific Command. Now as we add Det. 11 for US 

European Command, there is a theatre ballistic 

defense capability there, as well as, Det. 12 for US 

Central Command’s AOR. Providing that ballistic 

missile defense detection and tracking capabilities, 

and eventually a defensive engagement capability 
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