U.S. Space Command is fully operational more than four years after being reinstated. It is the nation’s 11th and newest combatant command.
U.S. Space Command (USSPACECOM) head Gen. Jim Dickinson announced full operational capability (FOC) for the command on December 15, 2023.
“Since its establishment in 2019, USSPACECOM has been singularly focused on delivering exquisite capability to the joint force to deter conflict, defend our vital interests, and, if necessary, defeat aggression,” Commander Gen. James Dickinson said in a statement. “Thanks to the disciplined initiative of our people and the support of our joint, combined and partnered team, I can confidently say we have reached full operational capability.”
The milestone is a recognition that SPACECOM meets the criteria to execute the full range of its mission to deliver a range of space capabilities to military users and combatant commanders. This included the ability to execute its mission on “our worst day, when we are needed the most,” he said.
That criteria included:
- Accomplishing the Unified Command Plan mission alongside global campaigning, exercising, and responding to crises.
- Having the right numbers of skills across the human capital.
- Having the infrastructure needed to support command and control across mission and business functions.
- Having the necessary command processes and functions in place.
- Being able to set the conditions and requirements for the future fight.
This announcement follows the preliminary declaration of Initial Operational Capability on August 24, 2021.
“As the command has matured, challenges to a safe, secure, stable, and sustainable space domain have significantly increased,” Dickinson said in a statement. “Both the People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation are fielding counter space capabilities designed to hold U.S., Allied and partner space assets at risk. And North Korea and Iran are in the early stages of developing their space enterprise.”
Additionally, the command completed the very first Secretary of Defense-approved operational plan for space and conducted its first 24/7 joint tier-1 exercise, in partnership with U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, which served as a major step in validating the headquarters staff as a ready, joint force.
“Our work continues. As the complexity of the domain grows, so must our capability to deliver operational and strategic effects to our nation and preserve the safety and stability of the domain,” Dickinson said.
The declaration comes on the heels of a move by Congress, in the recent National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which put a hold on any spending in fiscal year 2024 to expand U.S. Space Command (SPACECOM) headquarters in Colorado Springs, CO. NDAA will stop the combatant command from renting, planning, designing, or constructing new facilities.
