Vandenberg all call addresses future of space

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Aubree Milks
  • 30th Space Wing Public Affairs

Col. Anthony Mastalir, 30th Space Wing commander, and Chief Master Sgt. Daryl Hogan, 30th SW command chief, hosted an all call to address the future of space and local priorities Feb. 27, 2020, at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

Members from the 30th SW gathered to listen as Mastalir and Hogan discussed information about the United States Space Force and what that means for the installation and members assigned. They also addressed upcoming improvements and upgrades across the base to include facilities, equipment and quality of life.

“On December 20, 2019, the President of the United States signed the National Defense Authorization Act and stood up the United States Space Force,” said Mastalir. “At that moment, Air Force Space Command, the major command under which we were once aligned, ceased to exist. Air Force Space Command was renamed U.S. Space Force provisional, and became the temporary headquarters for the new service.”

The objective of the U.S. Space Force is to organize, train and equip the forces necessary to enhance space warfighting readiness and lethality. To meet the needs of the new branch, members serving at previously designated Air Force Space Command installations, are now supporting the U.S. Space Force.

“When we talk about the new Space Force, the objective is to be light, lean and lethal,” said Hogan.

Mastalir and Hogan stressed the importance of keeping base members and the local community informed and reiterated that they want to be as transparent as possible during these transitions.

“Everyone at Vandenberg – our Airmen, civilians, contractors and mission partners – are vital to our mission,” said Hogan. “We’re the 30th Space Wing, we launch and test above the rest.”

With the addition of the sixth branch, there will be subsequent changes at Vandenberg AFB. However, the 30th SW’s mission to assure access to space will not change.

“One of the reasons the U.S. Space Force is so important to this country is that our adversaries are already building and have already fielded weapons that are designed to attack spacecraft in the space domain,” said Mastalir. “So whether we like it or not, space is now a warfighting domain. The citizens of this country place their trust in us that we’re going to defend the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and that’s the oath that we take.”