The Spacepower Podcast EP28: Interview with Maj Gen James E. Smith, Commander, Space Training and Readiness Command (STARCOM)
Space Training and Readiness Command (STARCOM) exists to prepare combat-ready USSF forces to fight and win in a contested, degraded, and operationally-limited environment through the deliberate development, education and training of space professionals; development of space warfighting doctrine, tactics, techniques, and procedures; and the test and evaluation of USSF capabilities.
The USSF has three intermediate-level Field Commands (FIELDCOMs) within its four-tiered organizational structure: Space Operations Command (SpOC), Space Systems Command (SSC), and STARCOM. In order to create a leaner, more agile force, the USSF eliminated two levels of command that exist within the Air Force and now consists of: USSF Headquarters (at the Pentagon with the other services), FIELDCOMs, Space Deltas (DELs), and Squadrons.
Upon approval by the Secretary of the Air Force, the locations for STARCOM headquarters and each of the deltas, except for Delta 1, will be determined following the Department of the Air Force’s Strategic Basing Process. Delta 1 will be located at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California. The STARCOM HQ staff will be a combination of existing manpower transferred from SpOC and new authorizations to be added over the next several years, which requires Congressional approval.
HISTORY
STARCOM was activated as the Space Force's third field command on 23 August 2021. Comprised of five subordinate DELs, STARCOM carries the organizational lineage and heritage of the Space Innovation and Development Center which was inactivated in 2013. The SIDC was initially constituted as the USAF Space Warfare Center Oct. 13 1993 and activated Nov. 1, 1993. It was re-designated the Space Warfare Center July 1, 1994 and then the Space Innovation and Development Center Mar 1, 2006.