08/26/2025

Unlock the depth, relevance, and authority the industry trusts to stay ahead of what's next. Subscribe to SpaceNews.

By Sandra Erwin

Welcome to this week's edition of SpaceNews' Military Space, your source for the latest developments at the intersection of space and national security. In this week's edition: DOD kills JCIDS requirements process, SDA's first operational satellites ready for launch and U.S. allies in South America step up space cooperation

If someone forwarded you this edition, sign up to receive it directly in your inbox every Tuesday. And we're eager to hear your feedback and suggestions. You can hit reply to let me know directly.

Steve Feinberg, the deputy secretary of defense, has announced the termination of the Joint Capabilites Integration and Development System used for acquisition. He is pictured above listening to the opening remarks of a Senate Armed Services Committee in February. Credit: U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Madelyn Keech

Pentagon scraps 'joint requirements' process in major acquisition reform

The Pentagon is ditching a cornerstone process that has governed military acquisitions for over two decades, according to an Aug. 20 memo from the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Deputy Secretary Steve Feinberg announced the termination of the Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (JCIDS), the process established in 2003 to ensure military services coordinate their equipment needs rather than pursuing duplicative programs.

The Defense Department will change how it validates and prioritizes technology requirements, replacing what critics have long derided as a slow, paper-heavy system with what officials promise will be a more agile, industry-friendly approach.

JCIDS under siege

JCIDS emerged in the early 2000s as part of broader Pentagon reforms following the Goldwater-Nichols Act, designed to break down service stovepipes and ensure the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines collaborated on equipment purchases. The system required extensive documentation and multi-layered reviews before any major program could move forward.

The process became notorious for its glacial pace. Government Accountability Office audits repeatedly found that JCIDS validation could take multiple years, generating "hundreds of pages of requirements documents" while doing little to speed critical capabilities to warfighters.
Industry executives routinely complained about the system's bureaucratic maze that added years to already lengthy acquisition timelines.
The criticism intensified as the Pentagon faced pressure to compete with rapidly advancing Chinese military capabilities, particularly in emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, hypersonic vehicles and space systems where speed-to-market is crucial.

New acronyms

The new system introduces a alphabet soup of entities that defense contractors and Pentagon officials will need to master:

Requirements and Resourcing Alignment Board (RRAB): The new central body co-chaired by the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and the Deputy Secretary of Defense. The RRAB will integrate requirements and prioritize resources and will be run by the director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation and other senior officials.
Key Operational Problems (KOP): The problem-focused framework that will drive requirements, replacing JCIDS' capability-based approach.
Joint Acceleration Reserve (JAR): A dedicated funding mechanism maintained by the Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation office to rapidly resource priority problems identified by the RRAB.
Mission Engineering and Integration Activity (MEIA): A new technical body under the undersecretary of defense for research and engineering designed to provide expertise and facilitate industry engagement.

Targeting the 'Valley of Death'

The reforms aim to address what Pentagon officials call the "valley of death" — the gap between promising research and actual fielded capabilities. The JAR funding mechanism is designed to bridge this gap by "allowing for the alignment of JAR funding to military services' annual budget requests," according to the memo.

This approach could prove beneficial for space and defense tech companies that have struggled with the Pentagon's traditional requirement to fully define capabilities before funding development. The new system promises to "provide a demand signal that supports industry innovation."

The memo directs military departments to provide "approved requirements and program data to support this transition" as JCIDS is disestablished and RRAB takes its place.

Broader reform agenda

JCIDS' elimination represents one element of what Hegseth and Feinberg describe as a "broader acquisition reform agenda" focused on reducing bureaucratic bottlenecks and accelerating technology fielding. The memo emphasizes removing "low-value-add review, approval, staffing, documentation or certification processes" that have characterized Pentagon acquisitions.

The reform also strengthens the role of individual military services in identifying their specific needs and requirements, potentially giving service acquisition executives more autonomy in shaping their technology portfolios.

Space Development Agency prepares to deploy first 'Transport Layer' operational satellites

The Pentagon is about to find out whether its bet on a large network of small satellites in low Earth orbit can work in the real world.

After a year's delay, the U.S. Space Force's Space Development Agency is preparing to launch its first operational set of 21 satellites no earlier than Sept. 10 — a deployment that one top official called a "make or break" moment for the program.

The launch will mark the beginning of the buildout of the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, or PWSA, projected to have hundreds of interconnected satellites that can track missiles, relay secure communications and coordinate military operations.

The stakes are high: The Space Force's top procurement official Maj. Gen. Stephen Purdy last month characterized the upcoming deployment as a "make or break" moment for the PWSA program. Translation: If this doesn't work, Congress and Pentagon leadership will start asking hard questions about the PWSA strategy.

What's launching: Denver-based York Space Systems announced Monday it has delivered 21 Transport Layer satellites to Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, where they'll ride a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket into orbit. These satellites are equipped with optical terminals to transmit data in space. The idea is to create a data highway in space that can relay information from future missile-tracking satellites back to commanders on the ground.

The satellites also carry Ka-band radio payloads and Link 16 tactical data links to communicate with fighter jets, ships and ground forces.

The bigger picture: This launch is the first of six planned missions to build out Tranche 1 of the Transport Layer, which will eventually include 126 satellites split between York Space, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.

The Space Force has already launched some demonstration satellites under "Tranche 0," but those were only prototypes. Tranche 1 satellites are expected to provide actual services that military users can rely on.

What this means: The PWSA represents a shift in how the U.S. military thinks about space, betting on resilience through numbers. But the program still needs to be proven out. The first Tranche 1 launch was originally scheduled for September 2024 but got pushed back due to supply chain problems and early growing pains.

What's next: Future tranches will add more transport satellites and dedicated missile-tracking satellites and battle management platforms, eventually creating what SDA says will be a comprehensive space-based architecture for national security missions.

U.S. Space Command chief rallies Latin American allies against 'irresponsible' Chinese and Russian moves

U.S. Space Command chief Gen. Stephen Whiting at a recent conference pressed for tighter space cooperation with South American allies, warning that China and Russia are expanding their footprint in the domain and putting global security at risk.

Speaking at the South American Defense Conference in Buenos Aires Aug. 20, Whiting said U.S. partnerships must deepen to counter Beijing and Moscow's "irresponsible" actions — from satellite jamming and cyberattacks to anti-satellite weapons. He also blasted Russia's reported plans for a nuclear-capable satellite, calling it "unjustifiable irresponsibility."

"U.S. Space Command and U.S. Southern Command have become excellent partners in space — working together for security cooperation and domain awareness," Whiting told regional military leaders, according to a news release. "We need capable partners who are willing to increase their capacity to effectively contribute to the team."

Whiting highlighted investments in infrastructure by various nations in the region and the placement of 11 space-domain awareness telescopes across South America. The effort ties into Southern Command's Enhanced Domain Awareness program, which integrates satellite data for missions from tracking drug trafficking to responding to natural disasters.
Space Command is also widening its network of exercises. Argentina recently joined as an observer in Nimble Titan, a missile-defense wargame with 25 nations. Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Peru take part in Global Sentinel, an annual space exercise. And Brazil has stationed a liaison officer at Space Command headquarters, joining 11 other partner nations.

Whiting warned that China and Russia are seeking to set up space facilities in the Americas — likely including counterspace operations.

That's why, he said, alliances will remain central to U.S. strategy: "Partnerships and alliances are essential for enhancing space security and responding to emerging threats."

FROM SPACENEWS

Shop the SpaceNews Outpost to check out all our gear

SpaceNews' latest national security coverage

Sign up for our other newsletters

First Up: The latest civil, commercial and military space news, curated by veteran journalist Jeff Foust. Delivered Monday to Friday mornings.
China Report: Analysis of China's space activities and what it means as one of the United States' top competitors from correspondent Andrew Jones. Delivered every other Wednesday.
SpaceNext AI: Exploring the intersection of space and artificial intelligence. Delivered Thursday.
SpaceNews This Week: A round-up of the week's top stories, including our conference coverage. Delivered Friday.
Video & Audio: Upcoming live programs, scheduled guests, and recent Space Minds podcast episodes, webinars and other events. Delivered Friday.
Marketing Minute: Covering PR, marketing, and advertising trends, upcoming SpaceNews opportunities, and editorial insights for communications and marketing leaders. Delivered monthly.

Subscribe to SpaceNews

This email has been sent to generalastronomy110.stnirp@blogger.com because you previously opted in to receive Military Space from SpaceNews. Unsubscribe here. Sign up for other SpaceNews newsletters.