General Outlines Army's Space Plans

General Outlines Army's Space Plans
Army News Service | Gary Sheftick | November 09, 2007


WASHINGTON - New satellites, radar sites, laser technology and missile-defense locations overseas are among initiatives planned by the Army's Space and Missile Defense Command that will help warfighters in the next five years, according to Lt. Gen. Kevin T. Campbell.

The SMDC commander spoke at the Association of the U.S. Army's Land Warfare Forum Breakfast Thursday morning, providing an overview of his command's wide-ranging operations -- from Army astronaut Col. Doug Wheelock returning to earth Wednesday on the Space Shuttle Discovery to National Guard troops manning Ground-Based Missile Defense systems at Fort Greely, Alaska.

"Space is important for what the Army does," said Lt. Gen. Campbell, who also heads up the U.S. Army Forces Strategic Command "and it's going to be more important."

He explained that SMDC provides commanders in Iraq and Afghanistan satellite imagery, intelligence and reconnaissance, and communications capabilities.

Space-based communications were bolstered last month when the first Wideband Global SATCOM satellite was launched. Lt. Gen. Campbell said the new satellite has up to 10 times the capacity of older ones in the Defense Satellite Communications System. He said more of these new satellites will be launched in the next few years to replace the "legacy" system.

"We want to be responsive to (Joint Task Force) commanders - not commanders in Washington, but in the field - that's where we want to go with this," Lt. Gen. Campbell said of SMDC initiatives.



Rest of article at: http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,155895,00.html



uhc comment: The Space Command is a tad expensive, and somewhat problematic.

http://integrator.hanscom.af.mil/2005/July/07282005/07282005-06.htm
http://www.globalsecurity.org/space/library/congress/2005_h/050316-lord.pdf
http://cndyorks.gn.apc.org/yspace/articles/satelliteprotection.htm
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4191/is_20070402/ai_n18788879