General John Raymond, commander of the US Space Command and Air Force Space Command, speaking at the Air Force Association Air, Space and Cyber Conference at National Harbor, Md., Sept. 16, 2019.
Tech. Sgt. Armando Schwier-Morales | United States Air Force
WASHINGTON – The country’s top general leading the US military mission in space said on Wednesday that he is excited about Wall Street and billionaire investment in the space industry, which has sparked renewed interest in space among Americans and strong recruitment among Americans. the youngest branch of the Pentagon.
“America owns space in all sectors,” said General John Raymond, chief of operations for the US Space Force, when asked by CNBC about the progress made by private space companies like Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
“I’ve talked about people knocking on our door and wanting to join the Space Force in greater numbers than we need to fill. I’ve talked in the past about how universities see more students applying for STEM space studies, which I think it will be great for our country, ” added Raymond.
“I’m excited about everything, both what we’re doing here in terms of national security and what’s going on in the commercial sector, so we can take the advantage,” said the four-star general without specifically naming companies.
“The US has long understood that we are stronger with a secure and stable space domain and all those sectors play a part in it,” said Raymond.
The US Space Force, the Pentagon’s youngest arm, is increasingly seeking partnerships with the private sector as businesses and investors pour into the space industry. The Pentagon closely follows the progress of rocket builders such as Rocket Lab, Astra and Virgin Orbit in addition to SpaceX.
Raymond’s comments came on the heels of SpaceX who announced this week that it will fly its first fully civilian crew to orbit later this year, a mission known as Inspiration 4.
Led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, the landmark flight focuses on using high-profile space tourism to raise support for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Three yet to be announced passengers will join Isaacman on the multi-day trip around the Earth, with two of the seats being decided in public online competitions this month.
Raymond also proclaimed NASA’s Crew-1 mission, the first operational launch of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft.
“If you look at what’s going on in the civilian sector with the launch of US astronauts, and this latest launch of a Japanese astronaut from US soil on a commercial launch vehicle, there’s a lot of excitement,” Raymond said.
Raymond did not respond to SpaceX’s Starship missile test flight on Tuesday, which resulted in another explosive landing attempt.
The starship prototype SN9 was successfully launched to about 33,000 feet, but like the previous prototype flight in December, the missile hit the ground while attempting to land.
Private investment in space companies set a new annual record last year, according to a report by Space Capital last month, despite industry fears that the Covid-19 pandemic would end the momentum of the past decade. Rocket and satellite builders brought in $ 8.9 billion in 2020, while venture capital and angel investors continued to put money into space companies.