Space Force training, readiness field command activated in Colorado

Aug. 24 (UPI) -- The U.S. Space Force has activated its Space Training and Readiness Command, the third and final field command the branch plans to stand up.

The Space Force, which is part of the Department of Air Force, activated Space Training and Readiness Command, or STARCOM, during a a ceremony Monday at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colo.

STARCOM's mission is to prepare personnel, which it calls "Guardians," for success through education, training, doctrine and tactics, and testing environments "to support the warfighter," according to a Space Force statement.

Brig. Gen. Shawn Bratton, Air National Guard, assumed command of STARCOM during the ceremony Monday after serving on the command's planning team since February.

"As space capabilities have evolved over the decades from novelty to nicety to necessity, so has the need to have a military service focused on the space domain that is supported by a command dedicated to developing space professionals," Bratton said.

"The bottom line is that STARCOM will prepare every Guardian to prevail in conflict through innovative warfighting capabilities and tactics that keep USSF ahead of any emerging threat," Bratton said.

The team also includes Col. Todd Moore, who will serve as deputy commander and will be promoted to brigadier general in September, and Chief Master Sgt. James Seballes, who will be the senior enlisted leader of the new field command.

Before the ceremony, U.S. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall approved STARCOM's final organizational structure and the chief of the first field command, Space Operations Command, or SpOC, Gen. Jay Raymond, put together the new command's leadership team.

The SpOC, was activated October, and the second command, Space Systems Command, was activated last week.

"Today marks a significant milestone for the U.S. Space Force," Raymond said in a statement Monday.

"The stand-up of STARCOM is a critical step in aligning education, training and test and evaluation units under one command, in support of the nation's newest military service. With our three field commands and commanders now in place, we continue to transition from inventing the force to integrating it, with a targeted focus on developing combat-ready space forces and delivering critical space warfighting capabilities to joint and coalition forces," Raymond said.

The establishment of STARCOM has prompted a stronger focus on establishing the Space Test Enterprise necessary to prepare Guardians for future threats, according to the statement.

During the STARCOM establishment ceremony, the Space Force also activated STARCOM deltas, the five subordinate commands comprised of squadrons focused on specific tactics.

The five deltas are Space Delta 1, which provides training; Space Delta 10, which provides doctrine and wargaming; Space Delta 11, which provides range and aggressor test and training environments; Space Delta 12, for test and evaluation; and Space Delta 13, which is responsible for education programs.

Delta 1 will be at Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., and locations of other deltas will be decided after the Department of the Air Force's Strategic Basing Process and Kendall's approval.