Vice Chief of Space Operations
The Vice Chief of Space Operations (VCSO) is the second-highest-ranking military officer in the United States Space Force, a position occupied by a four-star general who serves as the principal deputy to the Chief of Space Operations (CSO).[1][2] As VCSO, the officer assists the CSO in organizing, training, and equipping space forces for operations in the United States and overseas, while exercising the full authority of the CSO during their absence.[1][2] The role also includes membership on the Joint Requirements Oversight Council to influence joint military capability development.[1] Established with the creation of the Space Force in December 2019, the position was first filled in October 2020 by General David D. Thompson, marking a key step in building the service's senior leadership structure to address space domain challenges.[3]Establishment and Legal Basis
Creation via National Defense Authorization Act
The position of Vice Chief of Space Operations was established by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 (Public Law 116-92), enacted on December 20, 2019, which created the United States Space Force as a distinct armed service within the Department of the Air Force to organize, train, and equip forces for space operations.[4][5] This legislative action separated space-specific functions from the U.S. Air Force, reflecting assessments that integrated air-space structures inadequately addressed the unique demands of space as a warfighting domain, including vulnerability to kinetic and non-kinetic threats. Codified at 10 U.S.C. § 9083, the Vice Chief serves as the second-ranking officer in the Space Force, appointed by the President with Senate confirmation as a general (four-star rank), functioning as the principal assistant to the Chief of Space Operations in executing statutory responsibilities.[6] The provision ensures continuity and support for the Chief amid operational demands, with the Vice Chief assuming duties as acting Chief in the event of absence or vacancy.[7] This creation responded to empirical evidence of adversarial advances in space denial capabilities, such as China's January 11, 2007, direct-ascent anti-satellite test that destroyed the FY-1C weather satellite at approximately 865 kilometers altitude, generating thousands of debris fragments and demonstrating scalable kinetic threats to U.S. space assets.[8][9] Similarly, Russia's November 15, 2021, test against its own Cosmos 1408 satellite at around 480 kilometers altitude produced over 1,500 trackable debris pieces, underscoring persistent risks from peer competitors' direct-ascent systems that necessitated a dedicated service for resilient space architectures.[10][11] These demonstrations highlighted causal vulnerabilities in shared air-space commands, prompting the NDAA's emphasis on specialized leadership to prioritize space domain awareness, protection, and superiority.[12]Statutory Duties and Authorities
The Vice Chief of Space Operations (VCSO) is established under 10 U.S.C. § 9083, which authorizes the President to appoint a general officer of the Space Force to the position by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, requiring prior recommendation from the Secretary of the Air Force and significant experience as a senior space operations officer.[6] The VCSO performs duties prescribed by the Chief of Space Operations (CSO) and those outlined in 10 U.S.C. § 9084 concerning the composition and functions of the Office of the Chief of Space Operations, under the overall authority, direction, and control of the Secretary of the Air Force.[6] These include serving as a member of the Space Staff, providing counsel on space operations, and executing delegated responsibilities related to the supervision and administration of Space Force activities. The VCSO's authorities parallel those of the CSO, as delegated with the Secretary of the Air Force's approval, encompassing policy formulation for the organization, training, and equipping of space forces to ensure readiness against domain-specific challenges.[7] This delegation mechanism allows the VCSO to contribute to strategic planning and resource allocation, such as developing countermeasures to electronic warfare threats, while maintaining chain-of-command oversight to prevent fragmented decision-making.[13] Such powers support empirical responses to operational realities, including the need for resilient satellite navigation systems amid adversarial disruptions. Notably, these duties facilitate adaptation to verifiable space threats, exemplified by Russian forces' GPS jamming operations in Ukraine commencing with the February 2022 invasion, which intermittently disrupted U.S. and allied military precision-guided munitions, commercial aviation, and ground navigation over thousands of square kilometers in eastern Ukraine and the Black Sea region.[14] The VCSO's role in delegated policy execution aids in prioritizing investments in anti-jam technologies and alternative positioning systems, grounded in causal assessments of threat vectors rather than speculative scenarios.[15] Limitations on VCSO authority emphasize subordination to the CSO, precluding independent command over Space Force units or direct transmission of operational orders without CSO endorsement, and excluding statutory membership in the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which is reserved for the CSO under 10 U.S.C. § 9082.[16] All major actions, including congressional communications or force structure changes, require CSO and Secretary of the Air Force approval, ensuring coordinated alignment with Department of Defense priorities while avoiding unilateral initiatives.[7] This structure prioritizes efficiency in addressing kinetic and non-kinetic space risks without diluting executive oversight.Role and Responsibilities
Assistance to the Chief of Space Operations
The Vice Chief of Space Operations (VCSO) serves as the principal deputy to the Chief of Space Operations (CSO), executing delegated authorities and duties critical to the United States Space Force's leadership structure. Pursuant to 10 U.S.C. § 9081(c), the VCSO performs responsibilities prescribed by the CSO, subject to approval by the Secretary of the Air Force, which includes stepping into the CSO's role during absences to maintain operational continuity.[17] This statutory framework mirrors vice chief positions in other services, emphasizing the VCSO's role in supporting the CSO's statutory obligations under 10 U.S.C. § 9082 without supplanting them.[18] In this capacity, the VCSO handles day-to-day execution of directives, enabling the CSO to concentrate on strategic advisory functions to the Secretary of the Air Force and membership on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Official biographies of VCSOs, such as that of General Shawn N. Bratton, describe the position as directly assisting the CSO in core service functions, ensuring responsive decision-making amid persistent space threats like orbital congestion and adversary counterspace capabilities.[2] This division of labor promotes efficiency by leveraging the VCSO's expertise for tactical oversight, as evidenced in the rapid organizational buildup post-2020 establishment, where the first VCSO, General David D. Thompson, assumed duties on October 2, 2020, to align early Space Force initiatives with national security priorities.[3] Collaborative efforts between the VCSO and CSO extend to budgeting and requirements processes, where the VCSO contributes to formulating annual fiscal requests. For instance, during General Michael A. Guetlein's tenure as VCSO from December 2023 to July 2025, he supported CSO-led budget justifications that advanced programs addressing missile defense in space, aligning with fiscal year 2026 requests nearing $40 billion to counter evolving threats.[19] Such involvement underscores the VCSO's role in translating strategic imperatives into executable plans, fostering resilience in space operations without introducing redundant hierarchies.[20]Organizational, Training, and Equipping Functions
The Vice Chief of Space Operations directs the implementation of organizational structures within the U.S. Space Force to ensure force presentation for combatant commanders, including the alignment of delta and squadron units under field commands like Space Operations Command for operational efficiency in contested environments.[3] This involves refining organizational constructs to support space domain awareness and satellite protection, prioritizing architectures that enable rapid deployment against adversarial threats such as kinetic anti-satellite weapons and non-kinetic electronic warfare, as evidenced by Department of Defense assessments of peer competitors' capabilities.[21] In training functions, the Vice Chief oversees the development and execution of programs for space professionals, emphasizing readiness for domains including orbital warfare and electromagnetic spectrum operations through multi-service exercises.[2] Key initiatives include the Schriever Wargame series, which simulates future conflicts to evaluate tactics, test interoperability with allies, and generate metrics on decision timelines and capability gaps, such as identifying needs for proliferated satellite constellations to maintain superiority.[22] [23] These efforts counter claims of over-militarization by grounding preparations in empirical evidence of space as a warfighting domain, where adversaries like China integrate counterspace systems for regional deterrence denial. [21] Equipping responsibilities focus on acquisition strategies that deliver resilient systems, such as protected tactical satellite communications to mitigate vulnerabilities exposed by the 2022 cyber disruption of Viasat networks during the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which severed Ukrainian ground links and underscored single-point failure risks in geostationary orbits.[24] The Vice Chief drives implementation of proliferated low-Earth orbit architectures and anti-jam technologies, as in the Protected Tactical SATCOM-Global program, to enhance causal deterrence by ensuring persistent capabilities amid jamming and spoofing threats documented in DoD intelligence.[25] [26] This approach prioritizes empirical resilience over legacy systems, aligning with warfighting doctrine that views space contestation as inevitable rather than optional.Position in the Military Hierarchy
Relationship to the Department of the Air Force
The Vice Chief of Space Operations serves as the principal deputy to the Chief of Space Operations (CSO) and operates within the Department of the Air Force, which provides executive oversight for both the United States Air Force and the United States Space Force as distinct military services.[27] This placement establishes a direct reporting chain from the Vice Chief through the CSO to the Secretary of the Air Force, ensuring alignment with departmental policies on personnel, logistics, and administration while preserving the Space Force's operational focus on space domain missions. The structure inherits foundational elements from the former Air Force Space Command, transferred during the Space Force's activation in December 2019, but introduces dedicated space autonomy to prioritize domain-specific equities over broader Air Force aviation-centric demands. Resource allocation reflects this integrated yet differentiated model, with the Space Force sharing initial budgeting mechanisms through the Department of the Air Force but securing separate appropriations to fund space-unique capabilities, such as satellite systems and orbital warfare tools, starting with a proposed $15.4 billion for fiscal year 2021.[28] This arrangement facilitates specialized resource prioritization—evident in distinct procurement lines for space resilience initiatives—without the administrative overhead of full departmental independence, thereby correcting prior inefficiencies where Air Force subsumption of space functions diluted responses to peer competitor advancements in areas like anti-satellite capabilities.Integration with Joint Chiefs of Staff
The Vice Chief of Space Operations assists the Chief of Space Operations in executing the U.S. Space Force's statutory obligations under the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) structure, as extended by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, which incorporated the Chief as the eighth JCS member while requiring vice chiefs across services to ensure integrated requirements and advocacy in joint warfighting.[29] In this capacity, the Vice Chief provides space domain input to JCS deliberations on multi-domain operations, emphasizing space enablers such as positioning, navigation, timing, and satellite communications that underpin air, land, sea, and cyber efforts, in alignment with Goldwater-Nichols Act principles of unified command and service integration.[30] This role facilitates the Vice Chief's participation in forums like vice chiefs' panels, where joint operational advantages—such as synchronized space support for kinetic fires—are prioritized to counter peer competitors.[31] In practice, the Vice Chief contributes to U.S. Space Command (USSPACECOM) by advocating for space force integration into joint exercises, enabling the delivery of effects like space-based targeting and denial in contested scenarios. For instance, during Space Flag 25-1 in early 2025—the largest U.S. Space Force exercise to date—the Vice Chief's oversight supported training for Guardians to execute space superiority missions, including simulated integration of space fires with joint forces across unified commands.[32] These efforts have empirically enhanced USSPACECOM's posture, as evidenced by the command's five-year milestone in 2024, where space forces provided persistent domain awareness and combat support to over 11 global missions.[33] Such integration counters tendencies in some institutional analyses to undervalue space's warfighting role, despite verifiable adversary advancements; China, for example, expanded its orbital satellite constellation to over 1,100 assets by July 2025—a nearly tenfold increase since 2015—prioritizing military reconnaissance, navigation, and anti-satellite capabilities that demand proactive U.S. joint countermeasures.[34] This data-driven emphasis on space as a decisive enabler aligns with causal necessities for deterrence, where joint JCS input from the Vice Chief ensures resource allocation reflects empirical threats rather than optimistic assessments.[35]Historical Development
Inception in 2020
The position of Vice Chief of Space Operations was established under the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, signed into law on December 20, 2019, which authorized a four-star billet equivalent to those in other military services to ensure strategic parity.[5] This legislative mandate aimed to support the nascent United States Space Force in its organizational development by providing senior leadership to assist the Chief of Space Operations. The billet's four-star grade facilitated integration into the Joint Chiefs of Staff structure and emphasized the service's focus on space as a warfighting domain.[4] Lt. Gen. David D. Thompson was nominated for promotion to general and selected as the first Vice Chief, with his promotion effective October 1, 2020, followed by a swearing-in ceremony at the Pentagon on October 6, 2020.[36] Thompson's assumption of duties occurred amid the Space Force's early operational phase, just months after its formal activation on December 20, 2019, and as it transitioned personnel and assets from the former Air Force Space Command.[37] This timing underscored the urgency of establishing command leadership to address immediate priorities in space operations. Initial efforts under Thompson focused on constructing warfighting capabilities from legacy structures, including doctrine development responsive to adversarial activities such as Chinese satellite maneuvers demonstrating counterspace potential.[38] The 2020 Defense Space Strategy, released in June, highlighted the need to deter aggression and build resilient architectures amid observed threats from China and Russia, informing the Space Force's foundational priorities.[38] These challenges involved unifying fragmented space units into a cohesive service while prioritizing deterrence and operational readiness in an increasingly contested domain.[37]Evolution Amid Space Domain Challenges
Following the establishment of the United States Space Force in December 2019, the Vice Chief of Space Operations position adapted rapidly from foundational organizational tasks to addressing acute space domain threats that intensified from 2021 onward, including direct-ascent anti-satellite (ASAT) demonstrations and persistent cyber operations targeting satellite networks. Russia's November 15, 2021, ASAT test, which destroyed a defunct satellite and generated over 1,500 trackable debris pieces, exemplified the normalization of kinetic space aggression, compelling a doctrinal pivot toward architectures resilient to such disruptions rather than relying on diplomatic norms alone.[39][40] This event, coupled with empirical evidence of adversary counter-space capabilities like reversible jamming and electronic warfare, shifted the Vice Chief's oversight from internal structuring to operationalizing hybrid defense strategies that integrate offensive and defensive measures for deterrence.[41] By 2022, external pressures from peer competitors' hybrid threats—encompassing cyber intrusions into ground segments and on-orbit maneuvering to shadow U.S. assets—drove the position's emphasis on causal countermeasures, such as proliferated low-Earth orbit constellations to dilute single-point failures. The October 31, 2022, Space Acquisition Policy directive prioritized resilience as a core tenet, directing the Vice Chief's involvement in accelerating procurements that enable denial and disruption of adversary actions, informed by first-hand assessments of domain vulnerabilities rather than optimistic assumptions of peaceful use.[42] This evolution reflected a recognition that space aggression, once episodic, had become routine, necessitating capabilities to impose costs on aggressors through integrated joint operations, as outlined in subsequent force design updates. Post-2022 developments further entrenched commercial integration as a pragmatic response to empirical gaps in government-exclusive systems, with the Vice Chief facilitating the incorporation of proliferated commercial networks into hybrid architectures for enhanced redundancy against reversible and irreversible attacks. The U.S. Space Force's April 2024 Commercial Space Strategy formalized this approach, leveraging private-sector innovations to offset risks from concentrated legacy satellites, a shift validated by threat modeling showing adversaries' focus on high-value targets. Similarly, the U.S. Space Command's March 2025 Commercial Integration Strategy extended this to operational levels, emphasizing agile contracting for resilient capabilities amid ongoing intrusions, prioritizing verifiable performance over vendor assurances. These adaptations underscored a deterrence paradigm grounded in demonstrable warfighting readiness, countering the causal reality that unaddressed vulnerabilities invite escalation.[43]Officeholders
Chronological List
The Vice Chief of Space Operations is a four-star general position within the United States Space Force, with incumbents nominated by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.[44]- General David D. Thompson (October 2020 – circa 2024), the inaugural holder of the office.[1][45]
- General Michael A. Guetlein (circa 2024 – August 2025).[20][46]
- General Shawn N. Bratton (August 5, 2025 – present).[47][2]