ARLINGTON, Va. — A senior official said on May 2 that the U.S. Space Force, despite being the newest and smallest military branch, is becoming crucial for the Pentagon’s ability to wage war.
Brig. Gen. Robert Hutt, director of plans and programs for the U.S. Space Force, said that what used to be a supporting space system is now the central nervous system for joint operations.
Hutt explained at a Space Force Association event that space capabilities used to be more important for commercial and warfighting purposes, but now the Space Force plays a critical role in the process of targeting and eliminating enemy threats for the Department of Defense.
The term “kill chain” refers to the sequential steps involved in successfully targeting and eliminating an enemy threat.
Hutt, who has been overseeing the Space Force budget for the past three years, noted that the service's budget has nearly doubled since its establishment in December 2019, reaching about $29 billion.
Some of the budget growth came from transfers within the military as the Air Force gave up space-related activities and personnel, but additional funds were also requested by the Biden administration and congressional add-ons. The Space Force is about one-tenth the size of the Marine Corps, but Hutt noted that there has been a significant shift in recent years with the Space Force now being a major focus, reflected in the budget increase. Satellites and other systems operated by the Space Force play a huge role in the joint force, with a lot of demand signals. and The future budget outlook for the next five years is expected to remain the same due to overall spending constraints, according to Hutt. Of the $29.4 billion requested for the Space Force for fiscal year 2025, the majority of the funding, or about $23 billion, goes towards research, development, and procurement of new technologies.
The Pentagon's national defense strategy emphasizes space systems as the backbone of modern military operations, including the Global Positioning System (GPS), satellites for communications and surveillance, early warning satellites that detect ballistic missile launches, and weather satellites that provide data for operational planning.
A large portion of the Space Force’s budget – around $5 billion in the fiscal year 2025 proposal – is assigned to satellite communications. Hutt noted that the future budget for the Space Force is expected to remain the same due to overall spending constraints, meaning the Space Force will have to make tough choices as mission requirements continue to increase.
