U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM) is streamlining its component structure by consolidating 18 component commands into four, the head of STRATCOM said July 26.
Under the reorganization, one component command will be responsible for all air and missile capabilities, while the others will oversee maritime forces, missile defense and space, said Air Force Gen. John Hyten, who spoke to reporters during his command’s deterrence symposium in Omaha, Neb.
The space component will be led by a four-star general, an elevation from its current three-star leadership and a reflection of space’s growing importance in military operations. Gen. John Raymond, the head of Air Force Space Command, will helm the space component.
Hyten said he approved the reorganization in mid-June and expects it to be completed by spring 2018.
“It will take a number of months to work out all the joint relationships, to work out the command-and-control means that Gen. Raymond has to have in order to execute his force,” he said. “We have to make sure that the joint functions are properly taken care of.”