Tension may feed space power decline

US agencies have different needs, House report says

WASHINGTON - Differences between the Pentagon and intelligence agencies over capabilities to be built into future US satellites have led to delayed starts in new programs and may result in a decline in US space dominance, according to a new report by the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.

The underlying issue, according to two members of the committee, is the traditional tension that exists between the needs of two customers: intelligence agencies, which want to gather strategic information for policy makers, and the Defense Department, which requires tactical information for war fighters.

"Recent organizational changes and interdepartmental agreements involving the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Department of Defense, and the National Reconnaissance Office have highlighted the question of leadership of space acquisition programs," the committee report says.

The National Reconnaissance Office is the once-secret agency that designs, builds and operates intelligence satellites. It is part of the Defense Department and is staffed by Pentagon and CIA personnel but is funded primarily by the national intelligence budget.

Space intelligence programs mostly have been kept secret to protect their capabilities to see, hear, and gather data crucial to the nation's security. But the recent cancellation of a multibillion-dollar intelligence satellite project has led members of both House and Senate intelligence panels to voice concerns over the future of US intelligence-gathering from space.

Though it lacks the highly classified details that would make it more clear, the published House report does suggest some of the underlying issues.

"There is no comprehensive space architecture or strategic plan that accommodates current and future national security priorities, Defense Department and Intelligence community capability requirements and budget restraints," the report says, adding that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the defense secretary "need to develop this plan."

The report points out that satellite programs are jointly funded out of budgets separately controlled by each of those officials, requiring them to make joint decisions, a process that has resulted "in delayed program starts."

The switch of some space programs from the national intelligence budget, controlled by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, to the military intelligence budget, controlled by the defense secretary, has exacerbated the issue.

"Some [Defense Department] personnel believe DOD needs its own space architecture," the report says, while others said that aircraft and unmanned airborne vehicles "best address the war fighters' needs." The high-resolution capabilities of space satellites "best address strategic intelligence needs," a view not accepted by DOD decision makers, according to the report.

"Without adequately defining the requirements of the combatant, the Air Force and Intelligence Community are forced to hit an ever-moving or invisible target in managing overhead program requirements," the report says.