US Space Force Assumes Control of JTAGS From US Army

The U.S. Space Force has reached a milestone in consolidating space missions across the military services by assuming official control of the Joint Tactical Ground Station missile warning system from the U.S. Army.

JTAGS are ground-based systems located in Italy, Qatar, South Korea and Japan that warn soldiers about ballistic missile launches. The systems are now overseen by Space Delta 4, an organization responsible for operating and supporting radar and satellite systems that provide missile warning capabilities, help guide missile defense efforts and support technical intelligence analysis.

JTAGS was originally under the oversight of the Army’s 1st Space Brigade, the Air and Space Forces Magazine reported.

The transition was announced in January during the Buckley Space Force Base’s “State of the Base” event. According to the announcement, the transfer will be the first instance where all Department of Defense military satellite communication functions will be consolidated under one military branch.

It also adds to the Space Force’s efforts to enhance mission oversight through organizational overhauls. In September, Chief of Space Operations and 2023 Wash100 awardee Chance Saltzman announced a command structure experiment where two integrated mission deltas, one for space electronic warfare and another for positioning and navigation satellites will be solely responsible for all of their mission areas.