II. (CUI) Background
(U) This section of the report provides detailed background on the facts and circumstances that led to the SECAF’s decision to select Huntsville, Alabama, as the preferred permanent location for the USSPACECOM HQ. It discusses the basing action process followed by the Air Force, including the requirements and criteria used in making the determination. It also discusses the involvement of DoD senior officials, Congress, and the President of the United States.
A. (U) United States Space Command
(U) As stated above, USSPACECOM is a unified combatant command of the DoD. As a unified combatant command, the mission of the USSPACECOM is to:
- (U) conduct operations in, from, and through space to deter conflict;
- (U) deliver space combat power for the joint and combined force; and
- (U) defeat aggression;
- (U) defend U.S. vital interests with allies and partners.
(U) USSPACECOM operated from Peterson Air Force Base (AFB) in Colorado Springs, Colorado, from 1985 to 2002. On October 1, 2002, USSPACECOM merged with the United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) near Omaha, Nebraska. On December 18, 2018, the President directed the SECDEF to reestablish USSPACECOM as a unified combatant command. As a result, on August 29, 2019, the SECDEF reestablished USSPACECOM as a unified combatant command. On January 15, 2020, the SECAF signed a memorandum approving Peterson AFB in Colorado Springs, Colorado, as the provisional HQ for USSPACECOM pending the selection of a preferred permanent location.
B. (U) 2019 Basing Action
(U) On December 19, 2018, the day after the President directed the reestablishment of USSPACECOM as a unified combatant command, the Basing Office initiated a basing action for the preferred permanent location of the USSPACECOM HQ (hereafter referred to as the 2019 Basing Action). According to Basing Office personnel, the 2019 Basing Action followed the Air Force Strategic Basing Process outlined in Air Force Instruction (AFI) 10‑503.[1] To initiate the 2019 Basing Action,
- ↑ (U) Air Force Instruction 10‑503, “Strategic Basing,” October 14, 2020. The SAF/IE, the SAF/IEIB, and the Basing Office Operations Branch Chief told us that the 2019 Basing Action followed the process outlined in AFI 10‑503.
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