The establishment of the U.S. Space Force will likely create opportunities for collaboration among local businesses, according to a top commander within the country's newest military branch.
Speaking at a recent roundtable discussion, Lt. Gen. John “JT” Thompson — commander of the Space and Missile Systems Center in Los Angeles — said the organization, which is now part of Space Force, will look to partner with the private sector.
"We want to increase our commercial sector collaboration for things the Department of Defense will need," Thompson said. "We're looking to bring in commercial capabilities into the DoD."
Thompson spoke at the 2021 Cultivating Innovation-Driven Defense event, a roundtable discussion held July 29 by the Dayton Development Coalition (DDC) and JobsOhio. The event featured a roundtable discussion with Air Force experts, including several retired generals and the commander of the Space and Missile Systems Center. The roundtable also featured local economic development leaders from Dayton and the state of Ohio.
Thompson noted the military's mantra of "accelerate change or lose" means bringing in modern capabilities "faster than we've ever done in the past." He added the old ways of performing acquisitions and contracting with businesses will no longer fly in a world where countries like China and Russia are catching up with the U.S. when it comes to innovation-driven capabilities in warfare.
"We've got to move things faster," he said. "The processes we have within the DoD were great for the Cold War, but now we need to get more modern and do it in a faster way in the face of these threats. If we can't get after that more at large, we're not going to create change and we're going to lose."
The emphasis on accelerating change is good news for the business community, which historically has operated at a faster rate than the government when it comes to commercializing products and technology. Thompson said they will continue to seek collaborations with the commercial sector in order to achieve their ultimate goal, which is national security.
"We're focusing heavily on building and sustaining partnerships, not just across government agencies and mission partners, but the industrial base in the U.S.," he said. "Partnering with the industrial base will help increase commercialization in the space domain."
