The DownLink Podcast The Defense & Aerospace Report

Space Power: What’s the Story With The Space Force?

While SpaceX’s latest test launch is a clear message to the world about U.S. space power and where the nation is aiming to go, the role and even the very existence of the U.S. Space Force remains opaque to most Americans. This week’s guest argues that this must be addressed and that there are solutions. Laura Winter speaks with Hannah Dennis, a research associate for the Defense Program at the Center for a New American Security.

Space Money: The Long-Term Strategy Inside The Space Force Budget Numbers

While the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee has sent its draft of the FY 2025 defense spending bill to the full Appropriations Committee without drama, a Trump campaign representative is reportedly urging Republican senators to block any spending package from passing until after the presidential inauguration in January. Despite the budgetary fog, the Space Force’s strategy, outlined in the Biden Administration’s 2025 budget proposal, is becoming clear. Laura Winter speaks with Sam Wilson, a senior policy analyst for the Center for Space Policy and Strategy at The Aerospace Corporation, about his latest report: “Fy 2025 Defense Space Budget: Continued Emphasis On Proliferation Under A More Constrained Top-Line”.

Space Money: Risk of Second Boots vs First Base

China’s Communist Party has notched another victory in its campaign to build by 2035 a manned International Lunar Research Station near the moon’s south pole with this Saturday’s successful landing of the Chang’e 6 spacecraft. This episode is about what is at risk if the United States fails to be first in establishing its manned moon base. This episode is coming from Albuquerque, New Mexico, from the stage of the State of the Space Industrial Base Conference and Workshop, organized and hosted by NewSpace Nexus, a non-profit that supports the launch of new technologies for the space economy and for national defense. Laura Winter speaks with Namrata Goswami, an independent scholar on space policy and great power politics and co-author of the book “Scramble for the Skies: The Great Power Competition to Control the Resources of Outer Space”; Lee Steinke, Chief Operating Officer, CisLunar Industries; George Pullen, Chief Economist at MilkyWay Economy; and Chris Quilty, founder of Quilty Space.

Space Competition: The PLA May Not Be Ready To Fight In Space

China President Xi Jinping has instituted a major military reorganization to support joint warfighting, with space operations under the newly constituted Aerospace Forces. Laura Winter speaks with Namrata Goswami, an independent scholar on space policy and great power politics and co-author of the book “Scramble for the Skies: The Great Power Competition to Control the Resources of Outer Space”; and Lin Ying-Yu, an Assistant Professor at the Graduate Institute of International Affairs and Strategic Studies, Tamkang University.

Space Power: What The U.S. Needs To Build “An Enduring Advantage In The Third Space Age”

While Congress is holding hearings and pouring over federal budget minutiae, this episode is about how the United States could go about “Building an Enduring Advantage In The Third Space Age” - the title of a report authored by this week’s guest. Laura Winter speaks with Todd Harrison, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, who is a longtime defense budget and space security expert.

Space Power: Why States, National Guard Association Say “No!” To Defense Department Space Units Plan

There’s a Department of Defense legislative proposal to move Air National Guard space units into the U.S. Space Force that has unified all 55 state and territorial governors with the National Guard Association in opposition. This week’s episode is about this extraordinary dispute. The parties cannot even agree on the number of space units or Guardsmen and Guardswomen that would be affected if the proposal is passed and then signed into law. Laura Winter speaks with National Guard Association President Maj. Gen. (ret.) Frank M. McGinn; and Director of Joint Staff, Joint Force Headquarters, Colorado, Brig. Gen. Michael Bruno, who was the Executive Officer for 137th Space Warning Squadron at Greeley Air National Guard Station.