Leaders push for Central Coast as US Space Command headquarters
–Earlier this month, Congressman Salud Carbajal (CA-24), U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), and U.S. Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) wrote a letter urging the Secretary of the Air Force, Heather Wilson, to designate Vandenberg Air Force Base as U.S. Space Command Headquarters.
“Vandenberg’s existing space-related missions and assets, as well as its proximity to the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) and numerous contractors who support the nation’s national security space enterprise, including space operations, offer Space Command unique and unparalleled advantages,” wrote Carbajal, Feinstein, and Harris. “California [also] hosts the nation’s premier workforce for aerospace engineering and innovation, which would offer Space Command an unparalleled talent pool for defending our national interests in space.”
On May 14, the Air Force released its six candidates for the newly-reconstituted U.S. Space Command as a functional Unified Combatant Command. The six official bases, selected through the Air Force strategic basing process, are: Vandenberg Air Force Base, Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, Peterson Air Force Base, Schriever Air Force Base, Buckley Air Force Base, and Redstone Arsenal.
Read the full text of the letter below:
Dear Secretary Wilson,
We write to express our strong support for locating US Space Command at Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB). Vandenberg’s existing space-related missions and assets, as well as its proximity to the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) and numerous contractors who support the nation’s national security space enterprise, including space operations, offer Space Command unique and unparalleled advantages.
Vandenberg Air Force Base currently supports West coast launch activities for the Department of Defense, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and various private partners. It also supports space situational awareness through the Combined Space Operations Center, contributes to homeland defense through its Missile Defense Agency capabilities and hosts classified work with the National Reconnaissance Office.
Vandenberg is also proximate to the SMC at Los Angeles Air Force Base. As you know, SMC is charged with developing and delivering the nation’s space assets, and it does so by working with numerous industry partners located nearby. Ultimately, California hosts the nation’s premier workforce for aerospace engineering and innovation, which would offer Space Command an unparalleled talent pool for defending our national interests in space.
We appreciate the Air Force considering Vandenberg Air Force Base as a potential home for Space Command and look forward to the conclusion of the selection process.
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