Image: AFCENT
While a sunset would usually have signaled the end of just another day at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, for 20 military members the golden hour glow seemed to symbolize the promise of a new beginning. Enlisted and commissioned Airmen assigned to the 16th Expeditionary Space Control Flight and the 609th Air Operations Center joined the U.S. Space Force during enlistment and oath of office ceremonies at the Silent Sentry compound Sept. 1, 2020.
Al Udeid Air Base, established back in '96, is the base of operations for Central Command (CENTCOM) in the Persian Gulf. During operation Desert Storm, Qatar and the U.S. negotiated a ONE-BILLION-DOLLAR deal to have a permanent outpost in the region. The base, said to possess the best and the latest in electronic warfare technology, is the logical choice to station the newly-minted 'space cadets'.
While their specific activities are for the most part classified, we've learned that there is an active program to analyze and neutralize active threats to U.S. space-based assets such as satellites and other unspecified vehicles. Most of the new recruits, were former space systems operations specialists assigned to the 16th Expeditionary Space Control Flight and the 609th Air Operations Center before joining the Space Force. With any luck, they will soon test their mettle against all those belligerent alien species intruding in our planet.