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129474 1 (1986-01-01)

handle is hein.gao/gaobadukz0001 and id is 1 raw text is: From Satellites to Space Shuttle and Beyond: GAO Evaluates the Military's Role in Space Richard G. Herrera Mr. Herrera, who joined GAO in 1966, is the manager of the Los Angeles Regional Office au- dit site at the Air Force Space Division of Air Force Systems Command, El Segundo, Califor- nia. In that role he plans and directs work in the Air Force and procurement issue areas. Mr. Herrera also serves as the region's Hispanic Employment Program manager and is a mem- ber of GAO's Hispanic liaison group to the As- sistant Comptroller General for Human Re- sources. He received a B.S. degree in accounting from California State University, Los Angeles. Ed. note: During the last 3 years GAO has devoted an increasing amount of re- sources to evaluating Department of De- fense (DOD) space-related activities and programs. In 1984 staff from the Na- tional Security and International Affairs Division (NSIAD), Information Manage- ment and Technology Division (IMTEC), and several regional offices engaged in an agency-wide planning assignment that resulted in a 5-year plan showing how GAO should address the rapidly emerging issue of the military's use of space. The Los Angeles Regional Office has participated in the planning efforts and assignments in this area, capitaliz- ing upon its proximity to the Air Force Space Division of the Air Force Systems Command, which oversees U.S. space technology efforts and develops, buys, and operates all DOD satellite systems. Mr. Herrera expresses his appreciation to the site staff-particularly Dan Bullock, Robert Mikami, Theophilus Yu, and Winston Weiser-for their contribu- tions. Communication satellites, killer satellites, space lasers, and space stations-once the props of science fiction movies-are now a reality. So are the implications of the military's role in space, a subject that has fueled major concern in the American pub- lic, the Congress, and the administration. Over time, U.S. military forces have be- come increasingly dependent on passive command, control, communications, and intelligence (also known as C3I) space systems to accomplish their missions. Al- though the cost of these systems has al- ready grown rapidly, past investments may be insignificant compared with potential expenditures for developing future space systems, including space weapons. GAO, as always, will play a major role in helping the Congress carry out its oversight re- sponsibilities concerning the effectiveness and efficiency with which these expendi- tures are made. DOD's presence in space has created im- portant, controversial issues that have re- ceived much congressional attention and an increasing amount of GAO's resources. As DOD's role in space expands and its space-related budget grows, we can expect GAO's involvement in evaluating military space programs and activities to increase further. Already, a 5-year issue-area plan has been prepared to direct GAO's work. DOD's Emerging Presence in Space Military strategists throughout history have known the importance of taking and hold- ing the high ground. Space, termed the ulti- mate high ground, offers an immensely strategic vantage point from which the U.S. political and military leadership can com- mand, control, and communicate with the military forces that will deter or wage war in the future. Parallels are being drawn be- tween the development of combat mis- sions for the aircraft of the past and the spacecraft of today. In World War I, for ex- ample, aircraft were used first to reconnoi- ter, then to prevent reconaissance (by shooting aircraft down), then to protect re- conaissance aircraft, and, finally, to deliver bombs. The development and use of space systems seem headed down the same path. The nation's increasing dependence on space systems and their attendant ground support systems has led DOD to steadily increase its investment in them. From fis- cal year 1980 through 1986, for example, DOD's space-related budget grew from $5.0 billion to $12.0 billion. The fiscal year 1986 The GAO Review/Winter 1986 Page 32

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