Derek M. Tournear, director of the Space Development Agency, has been placed on administrative leave pending the results of an investigation, the Department of the Air Force announced late Jan. 16.
The department provided no other details on the nature of the investigation or a timeline for when it may be completed. Lt. Gen. Philip A. Garrant, head of Space Systems Command, will serve as SDA’s acting director in the interim.
Tournear became SDA’s first permanent director in 2019, shortly after the agency was established under the office of Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to accelerate the acquisition of commercial tech for space, particularly for low-Earth orbit.
Under Tournear, SDA developed plans for what is now called the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture: a massive constellation of hundreds of satellites in low-Earth orbit with new spacecraft going up in two-year cycles to keep refreshing the technology on orbit. The PWSA will consist of “layers”—one for missile warning and tracking, and one for transporting data—with each layer being updated by new “tranches.”
Already, SDA has awarded contracts for more than 450 satellites across three tranches—unheard-of speed in military space, where programs can take a decade or more to launch a few large, bespoke satellites.
Along the way, Tournear has become one of the more recognizable figures in the Pentagon’s space enterprise, providing frequent updates on the agency’s progress and even taking to social media to call out internal Pentagon criticism of his style. In October 2022, SDA officially transitioned into the Space Force, becoming one of three acquisition organizations in the service.
It is unclear if Tournear’s suspension threatens to derail or slow SDA’s ambitious plans. The agency is targeting March or April for its next launch of satellites.