The Mitchell Institute – Schriever Spacepower Series: Lt Gen Philip Garrant
The Mitchell Institute hosted their Schriever Spacepower Series with Lt Gen Philip Garrant.
Key Takeaways:
- Infrastructure and Future Planning: Addressing increasing launch demands and infrastructural challenges at the Eastern Range to accommodate over 100 launches in 2024 & the establishment of a new Space Force futures command to strategize and develop capabilities for the next 20-30 years.
- Strategic and Organizational Enhancements: Emphasis on rapid capability development and proactive cultural changes within SSC to enhance operational readiness and integration of new technologies.
- Supply Chain Management and Dynamic Operations: Implementation of the Victus program for quick satellite deployment and operations, paired with ongoing advancements in missile warning and dynamic space operations.
- Partnerships and Technological Advancements: Strengthening international partnerships through strategic declassification, and leveraging AI and ML for superior space domain awareness.
The Mitchell Institute – Schriever Spacepower Series: Lt Gen Philip Garrant
21 May 2024
Quotes
On Organizational and Cultural Changes
“One of the things that I can influence as the commander with organized, trained and equipped responsibilities is where we put our resources about prioritizing programs, perhaps more importantly where we put our people.”
“The Space Force doubled its budget in three years. Most of that money is coming to the acquisition organizations that you mentioned. So we’ve got to be able to get after that and execute those funds effectively and deliver warfighting capability.”
“We’re focused on completing the work that’s on a good line started with the standup of SSC as a field command.”
“SSC serves as one of the Space Force’s three acquisition organizations and has a long history going back to General Schriever and the Western Development Division.”
“We are expanding the concept this summer we’re doing the mission analysis to expand on the missile warning mission area as well as the space domain awareness.”
On Talent Management
“We have a huge civilian workforce. We just have to put them on the right programs and then continue to advance their development.”
“You’re changing the way we deliver acquisition training making it space-focused giving experiential opportunities giving them a breadth of opportunities across a variety of programs.”
“Every Guardian will be an operator they’re going to learn their trick to your point about the optics they’re going to be better informed, better understand the mission and better understand the requirements.”
On Integrated Mission Deltas (IMDs)
“For the first time we have a single mission commander in charge of the four components: people, training, equipment, and sustainment.”
“We have tighter cohesion in weapons system sustainment and the ability to execute rapidly to field upgrades and address urgent discrepancies in those capabilities.”
“The IMDs have done really well. We’ve learned a lot of information, fundamentally IMDs are about readiness.”
On Rapid Capability Deployment
“Victus gives us an opportunity to have a rapid response and to show resolve and commitment to the world that we can address those types of threats.”
“It’s the mindset of rapidly delivering capability. Secretary Kendall is always asking how do you operationalize these things? And who’s always asking for tactically responsive space? How do you operationalize it?”
“So Victus is to your point. It is our series of continually demonstrating what is not just a capability but a culture this idea of going fast.”
On Partnerships and Collaboration
“We work so there’s lots of reasons to partner if you could have entanglement with a with a foreign or commercial capability. That complicates the calculus for the adversary.”
“JCO where companies can bring their capabilities and we present that data to allies not just the US warfare warfighters and then finally the new cause of cancer the commercial augmentation space reserved concept.”
On Modernizing Infrastructure
“We need to do both and we are doing both… fundamentally looking at how we can keep up in the future.”
“OMB gave us $1.3 billion in the recent budget to get after that infrastructure. It’s going to be over 130 projects managed this partnership with IMSC with the Civil Engineering Center and the Army Corps of Engineers.”
“Looking at digitizing the range so you could so that people on the East Coast could launch a rocket on the west coast from the east coast as an example.”
On Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
“How do we use AI and machine learning tools to learn patterns of behavior and norms of behavior to detect anomalous behavior understand intent?”
“The fight might become too complex for the human to operate. You could conceivably see the same situation in a fight and space where there’s so much happening that the human needs to be on the loop that just can’t be in the loop because of the timelines that we’re talking about.”
On Secrecy and Transparency
“So in some missionaries we have declassified some of those programs or at least made them available to our partners.”
“The advantage is the access there are parts of the world that we would like to be able to present capability to and they offer the opportunity to do that.”
“We’re going to cut down significantly on the numbers of SOPs and how they’re categorized that will make it easier to talk amongst ourselves even nevermind with partners and allies.”
[End]