A Separate Space Force

A Separate Space Force
Author: Michael C. Whittington
Publisher:
Total Pages: 19
Release: 2000
Genre: Aeronautics, Military
ISBN:

The end of the Gulf War, the debate over whether there should be a separate space service, equal with the Air Force, Army, and Navy, has grown in proportion to the indispensable value of space operations to our nation2s defense. Increasing dependency on space-systems is a fact of military life. In this well-documented essay, Col Michael C. Whittington compares the leading arguments for a separate space force to the cogent arguments for an independent air force made by airpower advocates during the interwar years of 192061940. The airpower issues in 1920 and the space power issues of today are strikingly similar, revolving around four key issues: leadership, doc-trine, technology, and funding. The irony, of course, is that these arguments, which helped create an independent air force in 1947, are challenged by many within today2s Air Force leadership, which leads Colonel Whittington to ask, 3If they were cogent in 1920, would they not be relevant today?4.

A Separate Space Force: an 80-Year-Old Argument

A Separate Space Force: an 80-Year-Old Argument
Author: Chaplain Colonel Usaf Mi Whittington
Publisher: CreateSpace
Total Pages: 26
Release: 2012-09-24
Genre:
ISBN: 9781479381821

Since the end of the Gulf War, the debate over whether there should be a separate space service, equal with the Air Force, Army, and Navy, has grown in proportion to the indispensable value of space operations to our nation's defense. Increasing dependency on space-systems is a fact of military life. In this we-documented essay, Col. Michael C. Whittington compares the leading arguments for a separate space force to the cogent arguments for an independent air force made by airpower advocates during the interwar years of 1920-1940. The airpower issues in 1920 and the space power issues of today are strikingly similar, revolving around four key issues: leadership, doctrine, technology, and funding. The irony, or course, it that these arguments, which helped created an independent air force in 1947, are challenged by many within today's Air Force leadership, which leads Colonel Whittington to ask, "if there were cogent in 1920, would they not be relevant today?" Interestingly, the author, though a professional Air Force officer, is neither a space operators nor a pilot. Colonel Whittington's purpose is not to propose a separate space force but rather to provide the reader with an unbiased perspective of the arguments for and against. Though all agree that aerospace power is at a critical juncture, senior leaders are divided as to which direction the Air Force should pursue regarding space. Space separatists want space warfare freed from control of "air" commanders, argue that space power doctrine cannot be built upon airpower doctrine, contend that space is a wholly different technological medium, and want to free space funding from competition with Air Force fighter and bomber programs. Whichever road is taken - whether a separate space force or an Air Force with a greater emphasis in space - the shift from an airpower to a space power culture is inevitable. And, when this shift occurs, the author argues, the Air Force "would do well to remember its own history."

A Separate Space

A Separate Space
Author: Michael Spirtas
Publisher: RAND Corporation
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2020-06-18
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1977404669

As the United States creates the Space Force as a service within the Department of the Air Force, RAND assessed which units to bring into the Space Force, analyzed career field sustainability, and drew lessons from other defense organizations. The report focuses on implications for effectiveness, efficiency, independence, and sense of identity for the new service.

The United States Space Force and the Future of American Space Policy

The United States Space Force and the Future of American Space Policy
Author: Jeremy Grunert
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 310
Release: 2022-10-17
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9004524061

Since 1957, U.S. space policy has grappled with the question: should the space domain be governed by developing international law, or openly weaponized for national security? Has the creation of the Space Force settled this tension once and for all?

Fighting from Above

Fighting from Above
Author: Brian D. Laslie
Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press
Total Pages: 271
Release: 2024-03-19
Genre: History
ISBN: 0806194391

The story of the United States Air Force (USAF) stretches back to aerial operations prior to the First World War—well before the USAF became a separate service—and looks forward to a new era of airpower in space. Fighting from Above presents a concise account of this expansive history, offering a new perspective on how the air forces of the United States created an independent way of warfare over time. From the earliest battles of the USAF’s predecessor organizations to its modern incarnation, Brian D. Laslie identifies four distinct and observable ways of war that developed over four distinct epochs. Beginning with the development of early air power (1906–1941), he highlights the creation of roles and missions, with bombardment theory and practice ascendant. An era of strategic dominance (1942–1975) followed in which the ideas of strategic bombardment ruled the air force; when such notions were unceremoniously proven false during the Vietnam-era conflicts, a period of tactical ascendancy (1975–2019) began. Finally, Laslie considers the current environment, where much of the story of the USAF remains unwritten as it grapples with the prospects and challenges posed by drones and the U.S. Space Force. While detailing combat operations, Fighting from Above also pays close attention to technology, politics, rivalries, logistics, policy, organization, equipping, and training. Thorough, concise, and innovative in its approach, it is an authoritative, exceptionally readable history of the development of American airpower.

A Separate Space Force

A Separate Space Force
Author: Kurt S. Story
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2002
Genre: Astronautics, Military
ISBN:

Space systems are fundamental to modern military operations and national security. They play a central role in the ongoing revol.

Space Warfare and Defense

Space Warfare and Defense
Author: Bert Chapman
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 436
Release: 2008-03-19
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 159884007X

This timely resource provides a history of the development of space weapons and warfare strategies and a comprehensive reference guide to the growing literature on the subject. Space Warfare and Defense: A Historical Encyclopedia and Research Guide provides comprehensive coverage of the development of space as a possible arena for warfare, exploring the military uses of space—past, present, and future—and specific details of actual space weapons systems. The encyclopedia spans the breadth of U.S. military space policy; comparable programs in the Soviet Union, China, and the European Union; and the full array of international agreements designed to regulate the military uses of space. In addition, the encyclopedia includes an extensive reference guide (nearly 40 percent of the book) directing readers to the essential literature on space weapons and defense systems produced by the United States, other governments, research institutions, and additional sources. At a time when space is becoming an increasingly important place of military competition and potential conflict, Space Warfare and Defense dispels the myths and examines the realities of what may become humanity's ultimate battlefield.

Redefining the Modern Military

Redefining the Modern Military
Author: Nathan Finney
Publisher: Naval Institute Press
Total Pages: 234
Release: 2018-10-15
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1682473643

This edited collection will expand upon and refine the ideas on the role of ethics and the profession in the 21st century. The authors delve into whether Samuel Huntington and Morris Janowitz still ring true in the 21st century; whether training and continuing education play a role in defining a profession; and if there is a universal code of ethics required for the military as a profession. Redefining the Modern Military is unique in how it treats the subject of ethics and the military profession, as well as the types of writers it brings on board to address this topic. The book puts a significant emphasis on individual agency for military professionalism as opposed to broad organizational or cultural change. Such a review of these topics is necessary because the process of serious, intellectual self-reflection is a requirement--especially in a profession that involves life and death of people and nations.