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Hopes and dreams of an Australian space force in the immediate future have been dashed, according to information made available by the Australian government during the release of the Defence Strategic Review.
The Defence Strategic Review was unveiled by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Defence Minister Richard Marles, and Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy on Monday, 24 April.
The report recommends that space capability be optimised for capability assurance and communications provision, and that the nation develops its own capability needs, however, it says there is no need to generate a separate space force.
It also indicates that Space Command should be re-postured into Joint Capabilities Group from July this year. It’s recommended to receive a dedicated funding line, additional investment for smaller, rapid acquisition projects and a centralised space domain capability development and management function.
In addition, a defined career path for space professionals and building a trained Defence space workforce need addressing, while the current capability life-cycle process is considered too slow.
The United States founded its own US Space Force as a military service in 2019. The US Space Force aims to train and operate space forces to protect the US and allied interests in space and to provide space capabilities.
