Two New Documents Outline Future Evolution of the U.S. Space Force

Gen. Chance Saltzman released two new documents today that outline what he sees as the evolution of the nation’s youngest military service over the next 15 years.

Speaking at the Space Foundation’s annual Space Symposium today, Saltzman, U.S. Space Force Chief of Space Operations, said this will be his final appearance at the conference. Confirmed by the Senate in November 2022, his four-year tour of duty will expire before next year’s meeting.

The USSF was established in December 2019 as the first new military service since the U.S. Air Force in 1947. The Space Force and the Air Force are part of the Department of the Air Force.

Saltzman is only the second CSO, succeeding Gen. Jay Raymond. He didn’t say exactly when he would leave his position (his successor must be nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate), but he has already made his mark issuing several foundational documents about USSF doctrine and objectives including Competitive Endurance: a Proposed Theory of Success for the U.S. Space Force (January 2024), Space Warfighting: A Framework for Planners (March 2025), and Space Force Doctrine Document 1 (April 2025).

Today he added two more: “Future Operating Environment 2040” and “The Objective Force 2040.”

The 68-page Future Operating Environment 2040 document is a “conceptual view of a future where our space superiority efforts must contend with new technologies, new threats, new missions and new ways of war” and intended to “spur complex thought, provoke debate and ultimately put us on a trajectory to secure our nation’s interests in space.” He wants it to “drive questions, not provide answers, because this approach is visionary and predicting the future is tough.”

What is clear is that “the Space Force we have today is not the Space Force we need to secure the future domain.”

Therefore the 104-page Objective Force report is intended to guide the evolution of the Space Force over the next 15 years, which will require “a generational shift in how we acquire and field new systems.” A significant expansion of the service overall both in infrastructure and manpower is also needed, he added.

“I want to acknowledge this is my final opportunity to speak on this stage as the Chief of Space Operations and you know, looking around at the crowd, I’m incredibly proud, so humbled, by how far we’ve come in such a short time. Just a few years ago, we were debating theories, thinking about our doctrine, designing uniforms. Today, we’re a combat credible force, allied by design, collaborating with industry, executing combat operations around the globe every day on the invisible front line. …

“As I prepare to hand over the watch, I’m not worried because I know the Guardians from the operations floors to the program offices have the skills, knowledge, and grit to fight and win in our domain every day.  I know that our partners in industry and our allies around the globe stand with us in securing the space domain that enables all of our ways of life, and I know our partnership, our resolve, and our enduring dedication to the space domain will deter anyone who would challenge us.”  — Gen. B. Chance Saltzman

The Trump Administration seems to agree on the need to expand the Space Force. The FY2027 budget request calls for a boost from $31.8 billion to $59.1 billion in the base request. That doesn’t include money the Space Force got in last year’s reconciliation bill, which pushes its FY2026 total to about $40 billion. The White House is planning another reconciliation bill for FY2027 with $12 billion for the Space Force, which would bring the FY2027 total to $71 billion.