The new boss at Air Force Space Command, Gen. Kevin Chilton, admits that the solution to creating greater “situational awareness” in space lies in two areas: advanced technology and improved intelligence. “There’s no single silver bullet to solve this issue,” he told reporters at Peterson AFB, Colo., recently. Right now the AFSPC can count and keep track of what’s in space, but Chilton says it’s time to go to the next level, identifying a spacecraft and understanding its mission and intent. To increase the intelligence focus, says Chilton, “you need the kind of folks with the skills to be able to take information in from the space environment, analyze it, and make an assessment.” He asserts that the “knowledge base” needed for space intelligence is different than that needed for air-breathing, land, or naval intelligence. Looking at the numbers who can do this job today, says Chilton, “it’s time to start building up that expertise.”
The Air Force Personnel Center announced that just 14.8 percent of eligible tech sergeants were selected for promotion to master sergeant in the 22E7 promotion cycle, marking the service’s lowest E-7 promotion rate since at least 2010. All told, 4,040 technical sergeants were selected to become master sergeants out of…