The Pentagon’s top acquisition official said establishing a Space Force would help the government organize space programs currently spread out across multiple military services and agencies, Space News reported Saturday.
Ellen Lord, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, said the Department of Defense has been facing challenges to develop a unified strategy for investments in space. The official suggested reorganizing the government’s “federated series of efforts†under the Space Force to “get focus and clarity.â€
“We’ve done a careful inventory of what all the different services are doing, because it has been rather distributed,†Lord said. “We want to make sure we’re effective in sharing all that.â€
She noted her office has been working closely with administration officials and Congress to develop the Space Force. Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson expects President Trump to submit a proposal to Congress in February 2019 to establish the new service branch.Â