The
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
's 148th Space Operations Squadron (148 SOPS) is a satellite control unit located at
Vandenberg AFB
Vandenberg Space Force Base , previously Vandenberg Air Force Base, is a United States Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Established in 1941, Vandenberg Space Force Base is a space launch base, launching spacecraft from the ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
. The 148th SOPS is tasked with back-up command and control of the
MILSTAR
Milstar (Military Strategic and Tactical Relay) is a constellation of military communications satellites in geosynchronous orbit, which are operated by the United States Space Force, and provide secure and jam-resistant worldwide communications ...
satellite constellation.
Mission
The 148 SOPS mans the Primary Satellite Operations Center-
Vandenberg (PSOC-V), one of two fixed
Milstar
Milstar (Military Strategic and Tactical Relay) is a constellation of military communications satellites in geosynchronous orbit, which are operated by the United States Space Force, and provide secure and jam-resistant worldwide communications ...
Ground Stations. Unique to Milstar is its
ground segment
A ground segment consists of all the ground-based elements of a spaceflight, space system used by operators and support personnel, as opposed to the Satellite space segment, space segment and user segment. The ground segment enables management of ...
for control of the constellation. Milstar has two fixed ground stations, Primary Satellite Operations Center (PSOC), at
4 SOPS and Primary Satellite Operations Center – Vandenberg or PSOC-V. Each site is fully capable of complete constellation control and operates 24/7. The Milstar Ops Center-Vandenberg is operated by the 148 SOPS, a California Air Guard Unit, and does control 2 Milstar satellites full-time.
History
The 148 SOPS was originally established as the 148th Combat Communications Squadron at Compton, California. The unit was redesignated the 148th Space Operations Squadron and relocated to Vandenberg AFB, California on 31 October 2000.
Previous designations
* 148th Space Operations Squadron (2000–present)
* 148th Combat Communications Squadron (1976–2000)
* 148th Mobil Communications Squadron (1960–1976)
* 148th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron (1948–1960)
Locations
*
Vandenberg SFB
Vandenberg Space Force Base , previously Vandenberg Air Force Base, is a United States Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California. Established in 1941, Vandenberg Space Force Base is a space launch base, launching spacecraft from the ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
(2000–present)
*
March ARB
March Air Reserve Base (March ARB), previously known as March Air Force Base (March AFB), is located in Riverside County, California, between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris. It is the home to the Air Force Reserve Comm ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
(1997–2000)
*
Ontario ANGS
Ontario is the southernmost province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it is home to 38.5% of the country's population, and is the second-largest province by ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
(1984–1997)
*
Compton, California
Compton is a city located in the Gateway Cities region of southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated south of downtown Los Angeles. Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county, and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth ci ...
(1948–1951) as the 148th Aircraft Control and Warming Squadron.
* Oklahoma Air Force Station, OK (1 May 1951 – 31 January 1953) Oklahoma Air Force Station, OK.
* Compton ANG Station, CA (1953–1960) as 148th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron.
* Compton ANGB, CA (1960–1976) as the 148th Mobil Communications Squadron.
* Compton ANGB, CA (1976–1984) as 148th Combat Communications Squadron.
* Ontario ANGB, CA ( 1984–1997) as 148th Combat Communications Squadron.
Title: 50th Anniversary-History of 148th Combat Comm Squadron.
Decorations
See also
*
4th Space Operations Squadron
The United States Space Force's 4th Space Operations Squadron (4 SOPS) is a satellite operations unit located at Schriever Space Force Base, Colorado. 4 SOPS is part of Space Delta 8 and responsible for command and control of the Milstar/Adv ...
– Active Duty Counterpart to 148 SOPS
*
MILSTAR
Milstar (Military Strategic and Tactical Relay) is a constellation of military communications satellites in geosynchronous orbit, which are operated by the United States Space Force, and provide secure and jam-resistant worldwide communications ...
– Military Strategic and Tactical Relay satellite
References
External links
{{US Air Force navbox
Squadrons of the United States Air National Guard
Space Operations 0148
Military units and formations in California