Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      Space Flag logo (Courtesy graphic)Space Flag logo
                        
                        
                        Space Flag logo (Courtesy graphic)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

CSAF pays visit to Space Flag: Participants increase warfighter capabilitiesPublished April 26, 2019
                    
                    By Capt. Lauren Hill
                    
                    
                    Air Force Space Command Public Affairs
            **WASHINGTON (AFNS) --**Air Force Space Command successfully completed its sixth Space Flag 19-2 exercise at the Boeing Virtual Warfare Center in Washington, D.C., April 19.
Space Flag is a mission planning exercise focused at the tactical level within the space domain on AFSPC’s “Fight Tonight” mission, allowing space operators to maneuver in a robust, physics-based modeling and simulation environment. Participants simulate operations in a contested, degraded and operationally-limited environment with current capabilities against a thinking and determined adversary.Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein met with Space Flag participants to gain their tactical-level perspective on space as a warfighting domain and their vision for maintaining a competitive advantage against adversaries in space.
“This is a great opportunity to get inside the minds of these Airmen, to see what they’re thinking about with regard to operating in today’s space domain,” Goldfein said. “We’re the best in the world at space and our adversaries know it – they know they’re up against these talented Airmen.”
Maj. Neil Fournie, Space Flag director, leads the Distributed Mission Operations Center-Space team, who developed, planned and executed Space Flag 19-2 on behalf of AFSPC. Assigned to the 705th Combat Training Squadron, Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado, Fournie expressed the direct impact Space Flag has on expanding the skills of today’s warfighters.
“Simply put, this exercise exists to make this generation better warfighters in the space domain,” Fournie said. “Some of these Airmen have operated their specific systems for two to three years. But here, they learn the bigger picture of how to operate in a domain that can one day be contested, degraded and operationally limited or placed in a conflict scenario.”
The participants are organized within teams, or Blue and Red Cells, in which Blue Cell players simulate warfighter maneuvers to gain and maintain space superiority against space threats, such as space object identification, direct-ascent anti-satellite weapons, orbital threats, terrestrial jamming threats, directed energy threats and directed energy weapons.
Capt. Lauren Oglesby, 3rd Space Experimentation Squadron Mycroft instructor, was selected as the package lead for the Space Defense Blue Cell. Her first time participating in Space Flag, Oglesby spoke on her experience integrating with other systems within the cell.
“Space Flag provides the ‘so what’ behind mission planning and develops the mission planning skill set in a way we don’t normally get to pursue,” Oglesby said. “It is incredibly helpful to have people from so many different systems in one place working together. I learned so much about what my counterparts do, even those who are at the same base as me, that I normally wouldn’t have the opportunity to interact with and learn from.”
In a separate room, Red Cell players simulated adversarial operations, who acted and reacted to Blue Cell movements to present realistic challenges within the space domain.
Capt. Danielle DePaolis, 527th Space Aggressor Squadron Weapons and Tactics chief, has participated in three Space Flags and performed as the Red Cell lead for 19-2.
“As the Red Cell, we simulate what the adversary might do and force the Blue Cell to think of innovative ways to maintain peace in space,” said DePaolis. “I always say there is no winner or loser at Space Flag. What’s important is that we learn how to recognize and react to adversarial threats in the real world and hone our warfighting skills.”
In addition to the group of space operators participating at Space Flag, intelligence analysts provided a perspective essential to mission planning within the exercise.
“Our intelligence analysts add an invaluable technical mindset with their ability to role-play the adversaries’ actions,” Goldfein said, highlighting their expanded integration within the space domain.
Senior Airman Sydney Glover, 50th Operations Support Squadron intelligence analyst, was responsible for analyzing data and informing the Blue Cell on potential adversarial actions within the exercise.
“It was an incredible experience to analyze a variety of actions in space and think through the second and third order of effects for each action,” Glover said. “It’s so important for the intelligence community to continue increasing our knowledge on space operations, especially in today’s contested environment.”
Space Flag, which began in 2017,modeled after the enduring success of Air Force Red Flag exercises, has experienced exponential growth as a total force exercise.
Space Flag 19-2 involved more participants than ever before – including active duty and Reserve Airmen from the 21st, 50th, 460th and 310th Space Wings, as well as the Colorado and Florida Air National Guard, Navy and Army personnel. Additional forces supporting the primary training audience include the National Reconnaissance Office, National Space Defense Center and the Combined Space Operations Center, who provide command and control functions as the White Cell.
The next Space Flag exercise, scheduled for August 2019, will include coalition partners for the first time, and exercise planners aim to continue expanding with joint and coalition partners to eventually make Space Flag a multi-domain, joint coalition exercise.
Goldfein concluded his visit by encouraging participants to continue building a warfighter mentality within the space community, while emphasizing strategic deterrence.
“We want to put enough doubt in the adversary’s mind that there is no way they can win or accomplish their objective because of who they’re up against ... these Airmen,” Goldfein said. “We don’t want a war to start or extend in space because if it ever does, everyone loses. This is about deterrence.”AFWN 



Space Flag Exercise 



Space Flag 19-2 



Boeing Virtual Warfare Center 



mission planning exercise 



CSAF 



Air Force Chief of Staff David L. Goldfein 



Air Force Chief of Staff 



Ge. David L. Goldfein 



traomomg 



warfighter mentality 



Fight Tonight 



space 



Air Force Space Command 



AFSPC 



AF 



Air Force Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                SecAF, CSAF, CMSAF begin Indo-Pacific trip focused on ACE
                    
                    DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fightInnovation
                F-16s arrive to be modified for autonomous testing
                    
                    AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalistsMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil