Hawaii Air National Guard to Create Space Force Squadron
Article from The Associated Press January 12, 2020 (airforcetimes.com)
• In December, President Trump signed the $738 billion National Defense Authorization Act creating the Space Force, the first new armed service since 1947, alongside the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard.
• The Space Force already has offensive and defensive space control squadrons. But America’s Air National Guard was asked to create four more offensive units. The four new offensive space control squadrons will come from the Air National Guards of Hawaii, Florida, Colorado and California.
• Hawaii Air Guard commander Brig. Gen. Ryan Okahara told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser that the state Air Guard will select 88 military members for the 293rd Space Control Squad based at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai. Okahara said that in April, he’ll likely begin to hire existing trained officers and enlisted personnel from other locations for the highly technical positions.
• Operations by the new squadron are classified, but their main objective is to protect and defend our satellite communication systems. Said Okahara, “[A] Space National Guard …(is) probably in the works. But right now, Hawaii Air National Guard will care for and feed the space squadron.”
HONOLULU — The Hawaii Air National Guard will start selecting candidates in April for one of four space control squadrons in the country in the Air National Guard, military officials said.
The state Air Guard would select 88 military members for the 293rd Space Control Squad based at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai, Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports.
“We’re not going to be able to hire 88 on day one, because it’s highly technical positions,” Hawaii Air Guard commander Brig. Gen. Ryan Okahara said.
“So it’s going to take us a while. But because of that a third of the people that we start the unit with will be likely trained, experienced space officers and space enlisted that are in other locations.”
Operations by the new squadron are classified, but their main objective is to protect and defend our satellite communication systems, he said.
The announcement comes after President Donald Trump signed the $738 billion National Defense Authorization Act in December funding the military and creating the Space Force, the first new armed service since 1947.
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