The U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command (SSC) has updated its command plan and outlined key commitments for 2026, aiming to accelerate the delivery of resilient and combat-ready space capabilities as threats in orbit continue to grow.
Lt. Gen. Philip Garrant, head of SSC, presented the revised plan during a keynote address at AFCEA’s Space Industry Days on Thursday. He said the updated document provides “a clearer path forward” compared with the initial version released in late 2024.
The revised plan consolidates SSC’s guiding tenets to place greater emphasis on what the command describes as its primary mission: delivering lethal, resilient space capabilities to U.S. warfighters. It also updates language around workforce development and lines of effort, including the implementation of a new SD structure within SSC’s modernized organization.
“Our Command will be challenged more than ever over the next two years, so we must train harder, deliver faster, operate with more tenacity, and field military space capability more effectively than ever before,” Garrant said.
SSC’s 2026 commitments include improving partnerships with industry and government stakeholders, increasing transparency, establishing a more deliberate planning process to ensure Guardian readiness, and reforming acquisition practices to better align with operational needs.
According to Garrant, the commitments were shaped by internal assessments that identified capability and process gaps, as well as by the Space Force’s responsibility to meet future requirements of the joint force, the United States and allied partners.
SSC is responsible for acquiring and fielding the Space Force’s major systems, including satellites, launch services and ground infrastructure, making its acquisition strategy central to Washington’s broader efforts to maintain space superiority.
