El Segundo, California — The history of Space Systems Command began in 1954, when the U.S. Air Force was looking for a location to develop its space capabilities. Command leadership determined that Los Angeles County had the right combination of technically skilled workforce and military presence for a rapid-fire program to develop missiles, launch vehicles, and satellites at the height of the Cold War.
Over the past seven decades, what was originally founded by Air Force Gen. Bernard Schriever as the Air Force’s Western Development Division and has been a Space Force field command since 2021 has evolved into the premier organization responsible for acquiring and delivering capabilities to protect the United States’ strategic interests in space, including managing a $15.6 billion space acquisition budget for the Department of Defense.
“The Cold War and the space race are very similar to what we are experiencing today with great power competition – we have to use innovation and breakthrough technologies to achieve this, and that is the heritage and legacy that SSC has and brings to the fight,” said Space Force Lt. Gen. Philip A. Garrant, commander of SSC, during a celebration of the command and Western Development Division’s 70th anniversary Aug. 13.th Anniversaries. The command’s success in an era of competition with other nations in space depends on its unique mix of active USSF Guardians, USAF Airmen and civilian personnel, he said.
“We know we need to keep pace with breakthrough technologies, and we know we need outstanding space force acquisition leaders like you to win this fight,” Garrant told an audience at Los Angeles Air Force Base (LAAFB) in El Segundo, California, where the SSC is headquartered, and virtually at SSC operating locations across the United States. “I look forward to being your commander and watching you grow and prepare you for our next anniversary and all that the SSC will offer the warfighter.” Semper Supra!”
With a workforce of more than 15,000 personnel at 29 locations, the SSC’s presence enhances deterrence. The command expects to support more than 150 launches in 2024 and up to 200 in 2025.
During the celebration, 15 SSC staff and teams from across the command received awards for their achievements in areas ranging from project management, innovation in space acquisition, time and budget savings on projects to developing new capabilities for the command. These accomplishments are examples of the skills the staff have demonstrated in the three years since the command was established in 2021, said Air Force Col. Michelle K. Idle, SSC vice commander.
“We’re three years into this adventure called Space Systems Command, and the environment is just as challenging as it was when we got up,” said Idle, who is responsible for leading research, design, development, acquisition and sustainment of space and missile systems. “The ‘front’ hasn’t let up – it’s evolved.”
Reflecting on today’s great power competition, Idle also discussed the growth of China and Russia’s space capabilities in recent years and the potential threats both could pose to U.S. military and civilian space operations. China’s space program is now second only to the U.S. and has eclipsed Russia in the number of satellites deployed in Earth orbit.
“They are also investing heavily in space defenses with the intent of posing a serious threat to our capabilities,” Idle told a packed audience at LAAFB. “Russia is hot on their heels… they are researching, developing, testing and developing space defenses; they are again trying to disrupt and destroy the systems we are building there to protect our way of life and our soldiers.”
Along with the third anniversary of the Space Systems Command and the 70thth The service also celebrates the anniversary of the Western Development Division:
- The fifth anniversary of the Space Force and
- The 10th (2024) Class of the Schriever Wall of Honor, a memorial at LAAFB named for General Schriever that honors American space pioneers. The induction ceremony for this event is scheduled for September 26 at SSC Headquarters.
