"[T]his capability is so important to where we're headed in the next couple of years, with having the capacity to make the SCN [Satellite Control Network] stand up to all the new systems that are coming and all the new mission requirements that they're going to have," Hammett told Breaking Defense.
'I think there [are] things that we will need to be able to, I guess I'll say, 'dogfight' in space," Lt. Gen. Doug Schiess, commander of Space Forces - Space, the Space Force unit that undertakes operations for US Space Command, told reporters on Wednesday.
The MQ-9B and Gambit Series represent parallel capabilities that address global challenges for security head-on.
"I'm not criticizing ATLAS, but on the record, if it doesn't get there on time, I'm gonna find an alternative, because that's why I exist," Space RCO Director Kelly Hammett told Breaking Defense.
Space Rapid Capabilities Office Director Kelly Hammett declined to share much about the new "threat warning" sensors, but gave updates on other closely held programs.
A future challenge for the R2C2 program will be figuring out how it fits under the Pentagon's overarching Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) efforts, Kelly Hammett, director of the Space Rapid Capabilities Office, told Breaking Defense.