SSC establishes new System Delta for operational test and training infrastructure

Space Systems Command has established its newest System Delta in Colorado Springs, standing up System Delta 81 during a ceremony Sept. 9 at Peterson Space Force Base. U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Michelle Idle, SSC’s mobilization assistant to the commander, presided as Col. Corey Klopstein assumed command of the unit, which will support Space Training and Readiness Command’s mission to prepare Guardians and validate operational concepts.

“The Space Force’s System Delta framework aligns our acquisition programs within mission areas, allowing us to synchronize efforts and streamline the work between acquisitions and operations with our Mission and Space Delta counterparts,” Idle said. “The framework consolidates and unifies command authorities and activities to foster unit cohesion, align command priorities and optimize the force.”

SYD 81 is charged with advancing high-end test, training and tactics development, building distributed training capabilities and managing live test and training ranges. The unit will also develop the infrastructure to connect and integrate test and training events, and accelerate delivery of products and services that underpin wargames and exercises.

“Our mission in SYD 81 is to build and field capabilities so Space Training and Readiness Command and Space Operations Command can successfully meet their readiness needs,” Klopstein said. “We leverage partnerships across field commands, the intelligence community, laboratories, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers and University Affiliated Research Centers, to rapidly deliver capabilities needed to support operational testing, combat training and tactics validation. SYD 81 members come to work every day with a laser focus — every system tested, every tactic proven and every Guardian ready!”

The organization is built around one system program director—formerly known as a senior materiel leader—and five system program managers, previously called materiel leaders. Together, they will oversee cross-mission tactics development, ensure Guardians can counter adaptive adversaries, and validate weapon system performance while training forces for combat.

System Deltas consolidate the design, development and delivery of systems within mission-focused acquisition commands, complementing the Space Delta constructs across field commands. Under the new alignment, SSC acquisition organizations are being reorganized into SYDs whose portfolios mirror operational mission sets across Space Operations Command’s Mission Deltas—responsible for mission generation, intelligence support and cyber defense—and STARCOM’s Space Deltas for Training (Delta 1), Doctrine and Wargaming (Delta 10), Range and Aggressors (Delta 11), Test and Evaluation (Delta 12) and Education (Delta 13).

The restructuring is intended to tighten integration between acquisitions and operations, improve mission readiness and reinforce unity of command and effort across the Space Force. Additional SYDs are slated to stand up in the coming weeks to complete synchronization of acquisition efforts for new capabilities.

Officials anticipate minimal physical relocation of personnel during the transition, and the stand-ups do not alter the core missions of Space Systems Command or other field commands. The Space Force’s field command structure—Space Operations Command, Space Systems Command and Space Training and Readiness Command—remains unchanged.