Posted on 02/05/2010 1:59:04 PM PST by ErnstStavroBlofeld
The trend over the last several years of annual funding increases for U.S. Air Force space activity appears to be at an end, and that, coupled with the ongoing recapitalization of the services operational satellite fleets, means there is little money left for new development initiatives.
The services 2011 budget request, submitted to Congress Feb. 1, scales back the Third Generation Infrared Surveillance (TGIRS) program and curbs funding for the Operationally Responsive Space Office. This follows U.S. President Barack Obamas decision early last year to cancel the $26 billion Transformational Satellite communications system.
Overall, the request includes $8 billion for procurement and research and development for space programs, an 8 percent decrease from 2010, budget documents show. The total Air Force budget request for 2011 is $170.8 billion, up 3 percent from this years budget.
The space budget is dominated by [research and development] and procurement, Gary Payton, deputy undersecretary of the Air Force for space, said during a Feb. 4 media event here. Everybodys budget for procurement and [research and development] is going down a little bit, especially compared to 2008, 2009 and 2010, and space is part of that. It shows up more in the space budget because we have such a small part that is [operations and maintenance].
TGIRS, originally called the Alternative Infrared Satellite System, was conceived as a potential alternative to the long-troubled Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) and featured sensor development efforts by Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems of El Segundo, Calif., and SAIC of McLean, Va. SBIRS is nearly a decade behind schedule, but the first dedicated satellite recently completed thermal vacuum testing and is on track for an early 2011 launch.
(Excerpt) Read more at spacenews.com ...
China is going to beat the US like we beat the USSR when our credit defaults and we run out of money.
Well, in a way I can see the liberals point. If you defund all the weapons systems and turn away from our space efforts, why fund a warning system to tell us how screwed we are in the first place?
I hate progressives.
I agree with you there.
Answer: Absolutely nothing, including hiding his true identity and history.
that fits perfectly = for a TIC (T=traitor)
There is nothing but waste and gross incompetence within that entire space program. It is full of corporate welfare with one consulting company after another taking in millions upon millions for nothing. The DSP program has been going on for 30+ years and did well with small staff and small operation facilities. To operate SBIRS, they built massive facilities and hired thousands of programmers/engineers. It is stunning the waste going on. That isn’t to mention that the primary mission security classification went from SECRET to TOP SECRET/SAP for no reason whatsoever other than to increase, maintain, and secure those ridiculous budgets. The entire program should be declassified. Everyone knows the sensors going into it and there is no reason to waste hundreds of millions of dollars trying to maintain that level of security. Space operations is no longer the secret it was in the 1950s and 1960s. We all know what is in space. They use security as a means to power, control, and budgeting.
Excellent.
U.S. Air Force space activity appears to be at an endThanks sonofstrangelove.
Nice one!
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