By Marina Malenic
The United States should put more of its military space budget toward creating greater redundancy in its proven space systems, rather than counting on next-generation capabilities that are still a long way from maturity, Air Force Gen. Kevin Chilton, head of U.S. Strategic command, said yesterday.
“We have fallen into a mindset of gap management,” Chilton said during a conference in Omaha, Nebraska, home of STRATCOM. An audio file of his remarks was posted on the command’s web site later in the day.
Instead, the Defense Department should make certain there are enough extra satellites “in the barn,” ready to be put on orbit in case of a failure. Communications and missile early warning satellites, as well as systems like GPS, are lacking in back-up infrastructure, he said.
In a teleconference with reporters following the speech, Chilton added that he did support development of cutting-edge programs like the Transformational Satellite System (TSAT), recently terminated due to budget overruns. However, maintaining proven capabilities should take precedence, he said.
“TSAT should happen at some point,” he said. “I don’t mean to suggest that we give up on new technology. But we need to fully fund today’s capabilities before placing so much of our budget on systems that are many years away from maturity.”
The general also said he would like to see more sensors placed on orbit to improve U.S. space situational awareness. He said monitoring other countries’ space activities, as well as the space junk threatening everyone’s hardware, is critical. Chilton said he expects more money in the fiscal year 2011 budget for such programs.
“We should write requirements to support space situational awareness,” he added.
Air Force Lt. Gen. Larry James, commander of the Joint Functional Component Command for Space, told reporters that the United States specifically needs more systems focused on the Southern Hemisphere.
“We have shortfalls in the Southern Hemisphere,” James said. “As you look at launches that would potentially come out of Asia and head south, you don’t get a look at those for some period of time due to the lack of coverage there.”
Meanwhile, Chilton acknowledged during the teleconference the Air Force’s Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) program is likely to be delayed for another year to 18 months.
The Lockheed Martin [LMT]-led effort has suffered from cost overruns and schedule delays for several years. The first satellite in the constellation is now expected to be delivered in September of next year or later, according to Chilton, who cited software development problems as the reason for the delay.