Spaceflight Now Home



Spaceflight Now +



Premium video content for our Spaceflight Now Plus subscribers.

Atlantis on the move
Space shuttle Atlantis is transported to the cavernous Vehicle Assembly Building where the ship will be mated to the external fuel tank and twin solid rocket boosters for a late-August liftoff.

 PLAY | TIME-LAPSE

Discovery ride along!
A camera was mounted in the front of space shuttle Discovery's flight deck looking back at the astronauts during launch. This video shows the final minutes of the countdown and the ride to space with the live launch audio included. The movie shows what it would be like to launch on the shuttle with the STS-121 crew.

 PLAY

Shuttle from the air
A high-altitude WB-57 aircraft flying north of Discovery's launch trajectory captures this incredible aerial footage of the space shuttle's ascent from liftoff through solid rocket booster separation.

 PLAY

Launch experience
This is the full launch experience! The movie begins with the final readiness polls of the launch team. Countdown clocks then resume ticking from the T-minus 9 minute mark, smoothly proceeding to ignition at 2:38 p.m. Discovery rockets into orbit, as seen by ground tracker and a video camera mounted on the external tank. About 9 minutes after liftoff, the engines shut down and the tank is jettisoned as the shuttle arrives in space.

 PLAY

Delta 2 launches MiTEx
MiTEx -- an experimental U.S. military project to test whether the advanced technologies embedded in two miniature satellites and a new upper stage kick motor can operate through the rigors of spaceflight -- is launched from Cape Canaveral aboard a Boeing Delta 2 rocket.

 Full coverage

Become a subscriber
More video



SMC designates new organizations
LOS ANGELES AIR FORCE BASE NEWS RELEASE
Posted: July 31, 2006

The Air Force's Space and Missile Systems Center here has reorganized and renamed its organizations to mirror a more traditional Air Force structure following a ceremony held here, July 31st.

The Center activated or "stood up" six subordinate Wings, 21 Groups, 12 Squadrons, 20 Divisions, two System Offices and the 61st Air Base Wing, providing an increased effectiveness and clearer command authority to better develop, acquire and sustain military space power capabilities for the nation and improve base operating support functions here.

Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel, SMC commander, presided over the event. He reminded the estimated 400+ audience members that SMC and its former organizations at the base here are credited as the birthplace of military space and that 2006 is the year of 'rebirth' with the move into its new Schriever Space Complex facilities earlier this year and this reorganization. "The activation of these wings helps in building better teamwork, respect and organizational dependence," he said. "We are truly marking a new era for the Center."

The new (and their former) organizations include:

  • Military Satellite Communications Systems Wing (formerly the MILSATCOM System Program Office or SPO), commanded by Brig. Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski;

  • Launch and Range Systems Wing (formerly the Launch and Ranges SPO), commanded by Brig. Gen. (select) Edward Bolton;

  • Global Positioning Systems Wing (formerly the GPS SPO), commanded by Col. Allan Ballenger;

  • Space Based Infrared Systems Wing (formerly the SBIRS SPO), commanded by Col. Randall Weidenheimer;

  • Space Superiority Systems Wing (formerly the Space Superiority Systems Wing directed by Col. Michael Taylor), commanded by Col. Michael Taylor;

  • Space Development and Test Wing (includes the former SMC-Detachment 12) located at Kirtland AFB, N.M., commanded by Col Rich White;

  • 61st Air Base Wing, commanded by Col. Joseph Schwarz;

  • Satellite Control and Network Systems Group (formerly the AFSCN SPO), commanded by Col. Michael Coolidge;

  • Space Logistics Group (formerly SMC-Detachment 11, then the SMC Logistics Support Squadron) located at Peterson AFB, Colo., led by Mr. Lou Johnson, the first Air Force Space Command unit headed by a Department of the Air Force Civil Servant; and

  • Defense Meteorological Satellite Program Systems Group (formerly the DMSP SPO), commanded by Col. John Wagner

The number of people assigned to the new organizations and their unique missions and support does not change under the new Wing designations. The wing structure will provide respective commanders with strengthened authority, accountability and responsibility. "This fosters better communication with our customers, makes us more familiar across the Air Force and Joint community, enhances horizontal integration across our weapon systems, and creates an environment for increased capability planning opportunities," General Hamel said.

"The new wing structure transforms SMC's SPOs by assigning authority, workload and resources and will posture us for much greater success in meeting the war fighters' needs," General Hamel said. "You have truly become another page in the history of this outstanding organization."

The Space and Missile Systems Center is the U.S. Air Force's center of acquisition excellence for acquiring and developing military space systems. Its portfolio includes the Global Positioning System, Military Satellite Communications, Defense Meteorological Satellites, space launch and range systems, the Air Force Satellite Control Network, Space-based Infrared Systems, Intercontinental Ballistic Missile systems and Space Situational Awareness capabilities. SMC manages more than $60 Billion in contracts, has an annual operating budget of $7.8 billion (FY06) and employs more than 6,800 people worldwide.