The Air Force deputy undersecretary for space spoke on the importance of safeguarding the space enterprise during an Air Force Association breakfast on March 17 at the Sheraton Hotel in Arlington, Virginia.

According to Winston Beauchamp, who also serves as the principal Defense Department space advisor staff director, the world relies on the technology and information provided through space every day - from financial transactions to the GPS signals transmitted to planes, boats, motor vehicles, and cell phones.

"There's resurgence in interest in space in this country I have not seen since the days of the moon landing," Beauchamp said. "As a population, as a whole, not everyone realizes the degree to which modern life in first and second world societies depend on the capabilities delivered by space. It's a global utility we all depend on and if it went away, for any reason, main parts of the global community would come to a halt."

In his roles, Beauchamp works closely with the intelligence community and is responsible for overseeing all DOD space capabilities and activities and supporting the defense secretary on space portfolio decisions, and for providing principal support to the Air Force undersecretary's role as the Air Force's focal point for space matters. According to Beauchamp, to remain dominant in the space enterprise, it must be protected.

"In the same way we would take action to defend a commercial ship or airline threatened by adversaries, we must do the same in space," Beauchamp said. "There's so much innovation and investment going on in space today it needs that level of protection in terms of policy, global norms and behavior."

Air Force space leaders are working to leverage the investments made toward space protection over the past two years, focusing on the most effective ways to perform space missions and modernizing space mission capabilities, with emphasis on resiliency.