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.
All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.
United Launch Alliance collaborated with the U.S. Space Force to form a human "75" next to the SBIRS GEO-6 launch vehicle in honor of the U.S. Air Force’s 75th anniversary.
The U.S. Air Force canceled procurement of the seventh and eighth SBIRS satellites in 2018 due to concerns that those systems were not resilient to possible attacks by adversaries.
Descartes Labs secured a $1,500,000 contract in 2020 to help the U.S. Air Force extract intelligence from imagery and other data collected by satellites and autonomous aerial vehicles.
The new Aerojet Rocketdyne board installed on 2022-07-06 includes Eileen Drake, retired Air Force Generals Kevin Chilton and Lance Lord, former NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, and former Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James.
Northrop Grumman and Boeing were competing for the Air Force Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent program to develop and build the next-generation ICBM during the time of the Orbital ATK acquisition.
B. Chance Saltzman served most of his military career in the U.S. Air Force and commanded coalition air forces in the Middle East before transferring to the U.S. Space Force in 2020.
The U.S. Air Force awarded Northrop Grumman a $13,300,000,000 contract for the Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent in September 2020.
The Skyborg Program team includes the U.S. Air Force Fighters and Advanced Aircraft Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory, USAF 40th Flight Test Squadron, USAF 46th Test Squadron, and Kratos.
Raytheon Missiles & Defense partnered with Northrop Grumman to complete a second flight test of the Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept (HAWC) for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the U.S. Air Force.
The Tranche 1 Tracking Layer satellites will be operated from SDA’s Operations and Integration Centers at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota and Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.
The U.S. Air Force has completed the ARRW booster test series and is ready to move forward to all-up-round testing later 2022.
The Air Force conducted environmental assessments of five other locations considered reasonable alternatives for U.S. Space Command: Peterson Space Force Base, Kirtland Air Force Base, Offutt Air Force Base, Port San Antonio, and Space Coast Spaceport.
The Air Force will consider concerns raised by the DoD IG and GAO regarding the time required for Space Command headquarters to reach full operational capability after relocation.
Senator Tommy Tuberville expressed support for the Air Force draft review of the relocation of U.S. Space Command.
The Department of the Air Force released a draft environmental assessment on July 13 stating that the proposed relocation of U.S. Space Command to Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, would have no significant impacts on the human or natural environment.
WFOV’s infrared sensor payload was developed by L3Harris Technologies under a 2016 contract from the U.S. Air Force.
Congress created the assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition and integration position in the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act.
The Smart Sensor test event was the first time the Smart Sensor system was integrated, flown, and independently tested on a government-owned aircraft operated by USAF test pilots.
Congress added $600,000,000 in 2018 for a Wideband Global Satcom (WGS) satellite that the Air Force did not originally request.
With the support of leading Air Navigation Service Providers, easyJet will evaluate Iris’ capabilities on up to 11 Airbus A320neo aircraft beginning in November 2022.