The U.S. Air Force (USAF) plays a significant role in the space industry, historically serving as the Department of Defense's executive agent for space, and developing early military space programs and launch vehicles. Although the U.S. Space Force was established as an independent branch in 2019, the Air Force continues to contribute to space operations, including training personnel, research and development, and maintaining partnerships. The USAF's space-related activities encompass satellite operations, missile warning, communication support, and collaboration with allies to ensure regional stability. Key partners include the U.S. Space Force, other branches of the military, and international allies.
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DEWA Sat-2 will be launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, USA.
The U.S. Air Force allowed the HoPS contract vehicle for flying hosted payloads to expire in 2019 because of a lack of military payloads seeking rides.
The Department of the Air Force had received no official communication from the White House regarding the relocation of U.S. Space Command’s headquarters as of 2023-03-28.
The IDIQ contract supports the Space C2 program that the U.S. Air Force started in 2018 to integrate and analyze space domain awareness data from multiple sources.
The U.S. Air Force contract directs CMPS to expand the High-Capacity Backbone (HCB) communication system’s technical capabilities, including developing the hardware used for the solution.
On 2023-03-24, ABL Space Systems secured a $60,000,000 strategic funding increase (STRATFI) contract involving the U.S. Space Force and the U.S. Air Force that includes matching funds from private investors.
The $60,000,000 STRATFI agreement includes $15,000,000 from Air Force and NASA customers, $15,000,000 from the AFWERX organization, and $30,000,000 in private funding from Varda’s venture investors.
The U.S. Air Force awarded Varda a $443,000 Small Business Innovation Research contract in 2021 to study Varda’s reentry capsule as a more economical alternative to traditional flight testing.
Varda Space Industries will provide reentry capsules to the U.S. Air Force for use as hypersonic flight test platforms.
By the time TSAT was canceled, the Air Force had launched three WGS satellites and Boeing was under contract to produce three more, including one funded by the Australian government under a 2007 agreement.
The 'G' in WGS originally stood for gapfiller and the Air Force awarded Boeing a contract to develop WGS in 2001 as an interim solution until TSAT.
The Space Force budget increased to $26,300,000,000 in fiscal year 2023 due to internal funds transfers from the Space Development Agency and the Air Force plus a congressional add-on.
The United States Air Force Research Laboratory contracted ThinKom Solutions, Inc. to deliver a modular and scalable phased-array antenna solution to support ground segment operations.
A U.S. Air Force C-17 cargo plane carried the NISAR payload to Bengaluru.
The Launch Pad Allocation Strategy was developed to maximize the number of commercial launch service providers that can be hosted at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
David Goldfein was chief of staff of the U.S. Air Force from 2016 to 2020.
Boeing developed PTES under a $383,000,000 U.S. Air Force contract awarded in 2018.
The Department of Defense and the Department of the Air Force have created Defense Innovation Unit, AFWERX, and SpaceWERX to work with startups.
Edward A. Rice, Jr. is a retired Air Force General who served a 35-year career in the U.S. Air Force.
The U.S. Space Force and the Department of the Air Force manage over 100 satellites that perform strategic missions.