On April 10th, the U.S. Space Force released the Commercial Space Strategy which outlines how the U.S. Space Force is working to increase the nation’s competitive advantages in space. Recently, Satellite World sat down with Jeff Trauberman, VP of SAGE, Velos, a consulting and engineering firm specializing in defense, aerospace, and intelligence, to learn more. Jeff explores what the Commercial Space Strategy entails, what it means for commercial space organizations, and how the trajectory of government space involvement will shift in the future.
Satellite World: Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your role at Velos.
Jeff Trauberman: Velos is an experienced engineering services and consulting firm serving a diverse set of aerospace clients. I’m the Vice President of Strategy, Analysis and Government Engagement (SAGE) overseeing our consulting business with these clients. We support them with business strategy, new business capture, strategic planning and customer outreach. I’ve worked in the space and aerospace business for most of my career – at Boeing, Virgin Orbit and now at Velos. It’s been a very exciting, interesting and rewarding journey.
SW: Can you give us an overview of the recently released Commercial Space Strategy. Why was this strategy shared?
JT: The recently released Space Force Commercial Space Strategy was issued to hasten and improve the ability of the Space Force to capitalize on the rapidly expanding commercial space sector. Historically, most military space systems were developed, owned and operated by the government. With the accelerating growth in private space investments and capabilities, the Space Force is seeking to take fuller advantage of these capabilities to improve the resilience and effectiveness of its space combat power. The Commercial Space Strategy was widely shared to provide information and guidance to Space Force Guardians, industry and the broader space community concerning the rationale, opportunities, key mission areas and integration priorities relevant to the Space Force in its overarching endeavor.
SW: Are there any areas in the strategy that surprised you? Or that differ from how the Space Force has been pushing forward?
JT: It was a pleasant surprise to see how much detail, rationale and guidance the Space Force included in its Commercial Space Strategy. The strategy itself is not a very lengthy document, but it is dense with useful information. It notes the guiding principles the Defense Department provided in its 2024 Commercial Space Integration Strategy; it then goes on to explain four lines of effort directly affecting the Space Force’s decision-making in considering commercial space capabilities—Collaborative Transparency, Operational and Technical Integration, Risk Management and Securing the Future. It also identifies a number of key, specific Space Force mission areas that are priorities for commercial integration, which is especially useful guidance. These include satellite communications; space domain awareness; space access, mobility and logistics; and tactical surveillance, reconnaissance and tracking.
SW: Provide us with a background of how we got here today. Why is government and commercial collaboration now at the forefront? Are there limitations to this collaboration?
JT: Private sector space innovations, investments, and capabilities continue to grow more rapidly than those in the public sector. By leveraging and integrating these capabilities into the Space Force, the U.S. Government can accelerate its ability to field and project space power in support of military operations. Faced with increasing military competition from China, Russia and other hostile nations, the U.S. can capitalize on its private sector to provide a critical competitive advantage to its forces. The convergence of a dynamic commercial space market and the compelling need to stay ahead of rapidly advancing potential adversaries are both behind the timing of this Space Force Strategy.
There are a few limits to commercial-governmental space collaboration. Some Space Force functions are inherently governmental, while others do not have parallel commercial space markets. Examples of areas where the Space Force indicates it is not seeking commercial support include missile detection, electromagnetic warfare, combat power projection and nuclear detonation detection.
SW: How do you see this strategy playing out this year and beyond?
JT: As with any top-level strategy, the critical issue will be implementation. If the Space Force personnel, policies, programs and budgets embrace the Commercial Space Strategy and aggressively champion the ability of the commercial sector to meet military needs it will be transformative for the future of U.S. military space.
To gain more insight into the current state of space collaboration, click here.
