Brig. Gen. DeAnna Burt, U.S. Air Force Space Command director of operations and communications, recently announced that the Undergraduate Space Training program is being expanded from 77 days to 111 days, Federal News Network reported.
Airmen undergoing UST will also be trained to visually identify threats in space, in the same way that F-16 fighter pilots are expected to be able to recognize airborne threats, Burt said during an Air Force Association event on Nov. 2.
Because of this new skill requirement, incoming trainees will have to be given top security clearance for certain parts of the program, Burt noted.
At present, airmen undergoing UST only need a secret-level clearance.
The changes to the UST will be implemented in October 2019.