Ballistic missile spike ramps up threat facing UK troops deployed overseas, UK Space Chief warns
The UK's Space Chief says a changed global picture is having an impact on British troops overseas.
Air Commodore Darren Whiteley, Interim Commander of UK Space Command described an "exponential" increase in the number of ballistic missiles over the last 12 to 18 months: "that requires a warning system to put in place to support our deployed forces.
"And that warning system, which had been handling maybe one, two, three firings a month, is now dealing with up to volleys of 20, 30, 40 different ballistic missiles. It's a changed game, and we need to accept that as we go forward."
Air Cdre Whiteley was speaking at the inaugural UK Space Power Conference in London.
Delegates spoke openly about new threats in the space domain with the Chief of the Air Staff calling out hostile Russian activity.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Harv Smyth gave details of what he described as "unusual and significant manoeuvres by Russian satellites.. moving to within rapid reach of Finnish Commercial satellites" in May of this year.
This was one of two incidents he alerted the conference to: "These manoeuvres were uncommon and dangerous, raising serious questions about Russia's intent in space.
"And the next month in June it was confirmed that a Russian satellite constellation had caused disruptions to GPS signals across the breadth of Europe, Greenland and Canada over at least 75 days since 2019."
The Chief of the Air Staff explained it's these kind of hostile actions which prompted the creation of the new No. III Space Effects Squadron, also announced at the conference.
The decision to discuss space more openly was greeted with blunt enthusiasm by Nato's Deputy Supreme Allied Commander for Europe, Air Chief Marshal Sir Johnny Stringer: "If I can talk happily about the need to win access and denial fights in land, maritime, air and cyber – why are we so coy, stroke frankly constipated about talking about that in the space domain?
"So I very much welcome the announcement on the space effects squadron."
The National Armaments Director, Rupert Pierce also promised a changed attitude at the Ministry of Defence recalling when he had been on the other side of the table as CEO of the space company Inmarsat.
He claimed the Ministry of Defence was "the elephant not in the room" and described the struggle at the time to get the MOD to engage with Government industrial space strategy.
At this year's conference he delivered a call to arms to the space industry, urging them to: "..spend my money on your capability to make the UK a safer place, and make this world a better place!"
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