United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command

Space and Missile Defense Command
Shoulder Sleeve Insignia
Active	1 October 1997 – present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Army
Part of	United States Strategic Command
Headquarteres	Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, U.S.
Website	www.army.mil/info/organization/unitsandcommands/commandstructure/smdc/
Commanders
Current commander	Lieutenant General James H. Dickinson
Insignia
Distinctive Unit Insignia

The United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC) is a specialized major command within the United States Army. The command was established in 1997.

Structure

The SMDC is an organization composed of several components:

• SMDC Headquarters and the Force Development Integration Center in Redstone Arsenal, Alabama
• 1st Space Brigade, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado – consists of 1st Space Battalion,^[1] and 53rd Signal Battalion (SATCON). 117th Space Battalion (Colorado Army National Guard) is not part of 1st Space BDE and is controlled by the Nat. Guard. However, it has a Training, Readiness, Oversight (TRO) relationship with 1st Space BDE.
• 100th Missile Defense Brigade (GMD), Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado
  • 49th Missile Defense Battalion, Alaska Army National Guard, Fort Greely, Alaska
• U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command / U.S. Army Forces Strategic Command (USASMDC/ARSTRAT) located in Peterson AFB, Colorado Springs, Colorado
• Space and Missile Defense Technical Center (SMDTC)
• Space and Missile Defense Battle Lab (SMDBL)
• Space and Missile Defense Acquisition Center (SMDAC) based in Huntsville, Alabama; the SMDAC comprises:
  • High Energy Laser Systems Test Facility (HELSTF), at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.
  • U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll/Reagan Test Site (USAKA/RTS), in the Republic of the Marshall Islands and at Wake Island
  • Army Space Program Office (ASPO) in Alexandria, Virginia
  • Joint Land Attack Cruise Missile Defense Elevated Netted Sensors Project Office (JLENS) based in Huntsville, Alabama^[2]
  • Ballistic Missile Targets Joint Project Office (BMTJPO) based in Huntsville, Alabama

The current commander is Lieutenant General James H. Dickinson with Senior Enlisted Advisor Command Sergeant Major Jerome Wiggins.

The Space and Missile Defense program at West Point

After the 2001 Space Commission identified the need for Space cadre in the DoD, the United States Military Academy (USMA) initiated an SMD program. By 2020, cadets who have majored in Space Science will have graduated from the USMA.^[3]

See also

Joint Functional Component Command for Integrated Missile Defense

References

1. ↑ Meet your Army: Chief trains Soldiers to detect missiles Accessed on 2016-09-06
2. ↑ Associated Press, "U.S. Army tests new dirigible craft to detect cruise missiles", 20 April 2010.
3. ↑ Jason B. Cutshaw, SMDC/ARSTRAT (March 23, 2017). "SMDC partners with military academy to develop future space officers". 

External links

• Official website
• "Army Space & Missile Defense Command". GlobalSecurity.org. 
• Future Warfare Preparation: US Army Space & Missile Defense Command – animated dramatization of various missile defense scenarios (YouTube video made by Delta Research Inc for SMDC)