The Air Force can’t really give up any of its core missions, Air Force Secretary Michael Donley told reporters Monday. Although it is definitely looking to make some vertical budget cuts, “we need to be prepared to do all” the kinds of missions the service has been asked to do and, based on experience, it “will be” asked to do in the future, Donley said. Given that, what can the Air Force do to get its costs down? The choices to be made, Donley said, are “how fast you can respond” to certain kinds of contingencies, “how many” of certain kinds of operations can be carried out simultaneously, and “the time between one” type of campaign and another, he said. Another area of attention is force structure posture “in various parts of the world.” The current review is very much like previous budget drills, he said, but this time, “the stakes are higher.”
SDA’s Next Phase of Data Transport Satellites on Hold
June 30, 2025
The long-term future of one of the Space Development Agency’s two satellite constellations is on hold as officials study the options for replacing a planned “data transport layer” with one or more commercial solutions. President Trump’s proposed 2026 defense budget...