KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. -- Junior officers across the country joined together for an in-person and virtual All-Call broadcast with Space Systems Command senior leaders last month. The discussion detailed massive service expansion plans, sweeping acquisition reforms, and elevated expectations for company grade officers (CGOs). Lt. Gen. Philip Garrant, commander of SSC, spoke from Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, Col. Andrew Menschner, deputy commander of SSC, joined out of Schriever Space Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Brig. Gen. Michelle Idle, mobilization assistant to the commander of SSC, fielded questions from Los Angeles Air Force Base in California.
The session included candid question-and-answer session provided company grade officers a direct line to senior leadership regarding the future of the U.S. Space Force and their critical role in its evolution.
Massive service expansion on the horizon
The primary focus of the discussion centered on the anticipated growth of the Space Force to meet escalating mission demands. Garrant emphasized that workforce and resourcing remain his top priorities as the service prepares for a potential surge in funding.
"The President is pushing for a pretty high top line, and the department has been working a significant increase in FY27," Garrant told the audience. "The FY27 appropriation is going to double the Space Force TOA [Total Obligation Authority]."
This funding would drive a proportional expansion of the service's physical footprint and personnel.
"If this money comes, it's not just for programs. They're planning how we would double the size of the Space Force," Garrant explained. "How will we have enough BMT (basic military training)? How will we have enough career field training for the enlisted folks, and advanced training that our officers require? They’re also looking at more operating locations."
Acquisition Reform and the Future of System Deltas
To match this growth, SSC continues to aggressively pursue acquisition reform to deliver capabilities to the warfighter faster. A key element of this strategy involves shifting authorities directly to Program Executive Officers (PEOs) and restructuring program offices.
"Secretary Hegseth said we're going to take acquisition risk to decrease operational risk," Garrant noted. "We're going to change what program offices look like, change how you execute to get after that capability, especially if that money comes."
Despite these organizational shifts, Col. Menschner firmly reassured the workforce that the System Delta construct will remain a foundational element of SSC.
"System Deltas are part of how we organize our forces," Menschner said. "We've seen tremendous benefits from having the System Deltas in place, both from a morale and culture point of view, but also a focus on the mission area in partnership with our operational teammates. System Deltas are here to stay, and if I were to bet, I would say we’ll see more of them in the future."
CGO Empowerment and Elevated Expectations
With smaller, more agile program offices, junior officers will be expected to shoulder unprecedented levels of responsibility early in their careers. Lt. Gen. Garrant painted a picture of a future where program managers oversee multiple efforts simultaneously, rather than serving as cogs in massive, single-program structures.
"We’ve moved far away from legacy monolithic program offices where there's hundreds of people executing a single program. You're going to have dozens of people executing multiple programs," Garrant said. "It's going to be challenging, but there's going to be really exciting work to do, and everyone is going to get really good at what they do."
Brig. Gen. Idle echoed this sentiment, urging junior officers to embrace the challenge and master both the acquisition and operational sides of the house.
"The good news is that we are going to put a ton of responsibility in your hands. You're going to have the opportunity to shape the future of the service and the capability that we provide," Idle said. "The slight downside to that is that we're going to ask a whole lot more of you. We need you to be absolutely fluent in acquisitions, and we also need you to be conversant in operations. And we’ll have the resources in place to get you there."
Streamlined Training Pipelines
To equip Guardians for these demanding roles, SSC is overhauling its training pipelines. Garrant highlighted the newly-established Acquisition Instructor Qualification Course (AIQT), a dedicated 10-and-a-half-week temporary duty assignment in Los Angeles designed to forge advanced practitioners.
"We're trying to create these opportunities where it's your job to go to school so that you're not trying to do it on your own time and still work your full-time job," Lt. Gen. Garrant explained.
Additionally, the command is actively working to place officers with advanced academic degrees into critical engineering roles immediately. We’re also routing brand-new Officer Training Course (OTC) graduates directly to SSC organizations, specifically in launch engineering.
Before signing off, Lt. Gen. Garrant reminded the force of the critical importance of foundational military standards, noting the return of biannual fitness testing and body composition assessments. Ultimately, the tone of the all-call was one of profound opportunity, urging the Space Force's junior leaders to prepare for a rapidly accelerating future.