Army designates SMDC as component command to SPACECOM

Army Space and Missile Defense Command will serve as the component command to U.S. Space Command, the Army announced today.

SMDC will retain its responsibilities as the service component command to U.S. Strategic Command in this role, the service said in a press release.

"Naming USASMDC as the service component command to both USSPACECOM and USSTRATCOM will strengthen integration and synchronization of these vital operations and has been endorsed by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff," the release states.

"The Army is the largest user of space-enabled systems in the Department of Defense," Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy said. "Naming USASMDC as a component command to both combatant commands strengthens command and control, unity of effort, and synchronization of Army space and missile defense operations."

SMDC organizes, trains, equips and deploys Army space and global missile defense forces to conduct worldwide space and missile defense operations.

From its split headquarters at Redstone Arsenal, AL, and Colorado Springs, CO, SMDC oversees vital Army space and missile defense elements. The command has about 2,800 soldiers (active-duty, National Guard and Reserve) and Army civilian personnel working at 23 locations around the world.