297 followers . Board members also include the Secretary of the Air Force, Air Force Chief of Staff, the Chief of Space Operations . The overall goal of the organization is to acquire and launch space systems more quickly. Mr. Keller graduated from East Carolina University in 1989 and was commissioned into the U.S. Air Force the same year. Hammett will lead the Space Force organization known as the Space RCO, located at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. During his tours as a flight test engineer, Mr. Walden participated in the development, ground and flight-testing of numerous aerospace weapon systems. 6. D. Edward Keller Jr., a member of the Senior Executive Service, is Director of Contracting for the Department of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia. Systems Planning, Research, Development, and Engineering, Level II, APDP 2013 Air War College Non-resident Program, Maxwell AFB, Ala. The Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO or DAF RCO) is an office in the United States Department of the Air Force tasked with expediting the development of select technological systems. 1st. One program that looks to augment existing spacecraft ground control systems isnt quite as under wraps. 15. 1999 - 2002, Chief, Special Studies Division, Air Force Red Team, Directorate of Special Programs, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Washington, D.C. She also served as the Program Executive Officer Chief Engineer at the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office where her responsibilities included technical . Ukraine, China, technology, and drug trafficking emerge as top issues in House Intelligence Committee hearing with think tank leaders. As with past renderings, this rendering is an artist's interpretation of the B-21 design. 1989 Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala. 9. MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS July 2009July 2010, Project Lead, Integrated Financial Operations, Joint Concept Development and Experimentation Directorate, U.S. Joint Forces Command, Suffolk Va. May 1989October 1990, Contract Negotiator, Operational Contracting Division, Robins Air Force Base, Ga. The U.S. Air Force's top secret spaceplane, the Boeing X-37B, landed in Florida early Sunday after 780 daysover 2 years and one monthin orbit around the . The secretive Space Rapid Capabilities Offices workload has taken shape two years after its inception, as the space research and development enterprise changes around it. 9. He served in a variety of roles, leading contracting operations in support of space and aircraft systems acquisition, installation and specialized support, and contingency operations in three different theaters. Key operating principles of the DAF RCO include a short and narrow chain of command, early and prominent war-fighter involvement, and funding stability. Ms. Johnson graduated from the University of Florida in 1995 and received her commission from the United States Air Force Officer Training School in March 1996. She is responsible for developing, producing, testing, modifying, fielding, and supporting Special Operations Forces (SOF)-unique fixed wing aircraft and sub-systems, equating to over 100 programs and projects worth $1.7 billion in 2017. Of them, 40 Airmen voluntarily left the service and 14 officers retired, according to Undersecretary of the Air Force Gina Ortiz Jones at a House Armed Services Committee hearing Feb. 28. Walden has reported that six B-21s are in construction at Northrop Grummans Palmdale, Calif., plant and that the first one will likely roll out in 2022. MICHAEL W. ROBERTS > Air Force > Biography Display - AF 1992 Master of Business Administration, Georgia College and State University, Milledgeville Walden, who is the director and program executive officer for the RCO, has been named senior executive advisor in the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, according to a July 11 announcement from the Air Force. 2013 DAWIA Program Management and System Planning, Research, Development and Engineering Level III Certifications The Board of Directors tasks the office directly to address immediate and near-term operational needs and delivers capabilities that require specialized expertise. Inherent in the DAF RCOs mission is intent to experiment, within the bounds of statute, to discover and recommend new methods, processes and techniques for the Air Force, the Space Force and the Department of Defense to acquire and field capabilities efficiently. August 1997March 1998, Special Projects Engineer, 28th Test Squadron, Eglin AFB, Fla. . Since neither Russia nor Ukraines air force has been able to achieve air superiority, both sides have turned to drones to augment their capabilities. Dr. Kelly Hammett, a member of the Senior Executive Service, is the Director and Program Executive Officer (PEO) for the Space Rapid Capabilities Office (Space RCO), Kirtland Air Force Base, New . This military aviation article is a stub. Theres a lot of different capabilities that were working right now, and in the future, I see that staying about the same number.. MICHAEL W. ROBERTS. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal Corps, the USAF was established as a separate branch of the United States Armed Forces in 1947 with the . 2009 - 2013, Director, Information Dominance Programs, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Washington, D.C. During her assignment at the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, she served as the Chief of the Offensive Capabilities Branch, where she was responsible for integrating acquisition efforts in support of multiple classified programs valued at over $600M. The deputy or technical director to a SCO may exercise any SCO authority unless restricted in the FAR, as supplemented (e.g., individual authorized to execute a specific authority must be of a certain minimum grade/rank), or as specifically limited by the SCO. Lt. Col. Joseph Fritschen, the X-37B Program Director at the Department of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, confirmed that "the addition of the service module on OTV-6 allowed us to host . "We have to go fast," Chief of Space Operations Gen. John W. "Jay" Raymond said during an April 8 press conference. The Space RCO, which speedily develops cutting-edge technologies at the request of Space Force Chief of Space Operations Gen. John W. Jay Raymond, handles capabilities that go in, from, and to space, with less bureaucracy and more flexibility than typical research programs, Space RCO Director Michael W. Roberts said during a virtual Aug. 13 Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies event. July 1996July 1997, Assistant Chief, Spacecraft Contracts Branch, Defense Meteorological Satellite Program, Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles, Calif. 1984 Bachelor of Science, Aerospace Engineering, Parks College of St. Louis University, Cahokia, Ill. Randall G. Walden, a member of the Senior Executive Service, is Director and Program Executive Officer for the Department of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, Washington, D.C. A space solar power program that fell under the former Operationally Responsive Space office is transitioning to the Air Force Research Laboratory instead. June 2005July 2007, Chief, Offensive Capabilities Branch, Rapid Capabilities Office, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, Headquarters of the Air Force, Arlington, Va. We were pleased to have U.S. Space Force Vice Chief of Space Operations Gen. David D. Thompson preside over the assumption of leadership . The Defense Acquisition Workforce is comprised of nearly 186,000 civilian and military professionals from the Departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, as well as defense agencies and field activities. 20. (Current as of June 2020), An official website of the United States government, Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil. Ive talked to Gen. Raymond about that multiple times, and the Secretary of the Air Force, Walden said. A U.S. Air Force X-37B space plane, encapsulated ahead of a planned May 16, 2020, launch, the sixth mission for the X-37B program. AFRLs directed energy division has 1,200 employees and an annual budget of $355 million. 1992 - 1997, Operations Officer and Flight Test Program Manager, Nellis AFB, Nev. During Waldens 20-year Air Force career as a flight test engineer, he worked at times on classified projects. Board members also include the Secretary of the Air Force, Air Force Chief of Staff, the Chief of Space Operations, the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Acquisition), and the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. June 2015 - June 2018, Senior Materiel Leader/System Program Director, B-21 Raider Program, Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. 16. MELBOURNE, Fla (AFNS) --. (U.S. Air Force graphic) 3. 2013 - 2014, Director, Air Force Test and Evaluation, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C. Jul 15 Jul 16, Blue Horizons Fellow, Air University, Maxwell AFB AL 13. . -- In January, the Department of the Air Force's Cyber Resiliency Office for Weapon Systems, or CROWS, worked to expand its existing use of Cyber Focus Teams. MakM@gao.gov (202) 512-4841. March 1996August 1997, Aerodynamic Propulsion Analyst, National Air Intelligence Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio The Air Force separated 610 Airmen for declining the once-mandated COVID-19 vaccination. Your browser is incompatible with this widget. There's no more reliable source for news about your Air Force. The office preserves the strength of U.S. ingenuity and innovation without the rigidity of traditional acquisition. For the first time the U.S. territory of Tinian, a small island around 100 miles north of the American military hub of Guam, hosted F-22 Raptors. D. Edward Ed Keller, Jr., a member of the Senior Executive Service, is Director of Contracting for the Department of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia. Air Force Achievement Medal Rapid Capabilities Office. EDUCATION The office responds to Combat Air and Space Forces and combatant command requirements. Rapid Capabilities Office > United States Space Force > Fact Sheets The Space RCO sees itself as a fast-moving counterpart to the SMC, which handles more traditional military satellites, radars, and other space-related equipment from design to retirement.