USSF looking to private sector

WASHINGTON — When the Defense Department ordered the evacuation of troops and civilians from Afghanistan in 2021, the transportation command called on the nation’s commercial airlines to help with it. It was a rarity that DoD activated the Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF), a program set up by the government, with commercial airlines, to augment airlift capacity during emergencies. Now, the U.S. Space Force (USSF) is looking at how to establish similar arrangements with commercial space companies that manufacture satellites, operate launch vehicles and provide services like satellite-based communications and Earth imagery. The thinking is that if a conflict with a rival power breaks out, the U.S. military would need help from the private sector to protect American space assets and augment DoD’s existing satellite-based services. Space Systems Command's Col. Rich Kniseley said there was a need to expand commercial partnerships to ensure access to commercial capabilities during conflict. He was among presenters at a Feb.9-10 form in Virginia. Eighty-four companies participated in the forum.  SSC is the procurement agency of USSF and calls the initiative Commercial Augmentation Space Reserves (CASR). “There are still a lot of things we need to figure out,” Kniseley told SpaceNews. SSC is looking at costs to the government and private sector to implement CASR. Kniseley said a funding proposal is in the works for FY 2025. Details still need to be fleshed out, he said, including policies, statutes, contracting methods and technical issues. (Space News 02/20/23) Space Force considers public-private partnerships to respond to crises - SpaceNews