David

The sixth military service, the US Space Force (USSF) was established in December 2019.   Satellite communications, the ability to transmit information to, from and within space was one of several factors that contributed to the USSF establishment decision.  This presentation will review all of these factors and the history of how they influenced the USSF decision process with an emphasis on satellite communications.  It will be shown how the technological and functional heritage of communication from the early stages of the US Army, and Air Force, contributed to the formation of the US Space Command and eventually the US Space Force.  Real world examples will be used to illustrate past and present engineering challenges that were solved by satellite communications, and the implications for future space activities, both civil and military. 

Biography:

David Fitzgerald spent 29 years in the Air Force, from enlisted to Colonel, followed by 11 years as a contractor supporting the Air Force.  His professional story spans 49 years, living in 4 countries, performing 20 different jobs within the Air Force, joint service commands and NATO.   In the process, he received an Electrical Engineering degree and Masters in Engineering Management.  His career spanned wartime operations processing Igloo White sensor data from Viet Nam, to R&D testing of tactical troposcatter radios, to managing technical command and control system development, to his final military position as deputy CIO of Air Force Space Command.  He has supported DoD space launch operations and, as a contractor, development of the first DoD space enterprise architecture.

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