BREVARD COUNTY, Fla — After losing the ability to have the U.S. Space Force call Florida "home" to Alabama, the state is motivated to land the newest military branches training site.
During a Florida Senate Military and Veteran Affairs, Space and Domestic Security meeting earlier this month, Space Florida shared while the loss was an "unpleasant experience," it learned a lot from the process.
"We look forward to, kind of, leading the effort to make Florida the home for that STAR command headquarters and some of its subordinated Deltas," Vice President, Spaceport Operations Mark Bontrager said.
According to Bontrager, Space Florida expects the Space Force's strategic basing initiative will formally kick off within the next 30 to 60. When the time comes "to develop its future culture and train its Guardians" — Florida will be ready.
"Our state has tremendous capabilities existent in it today. And we are in the process of finalizing a statewide statement of capability that we are going to be able to bring to help the Air Force and Space Force understand those assets and capabilities already exist in Florida and can be positioned in support of that Space Force mission," Bontrager said. "We look forward to leading that effort to secure that STAR command headquarters."
Space Florida President and CEO Frank DiBello added that the state has an overall strategy in place to show Florida as a front runner for the training site.
"Florida is well-positioned among the states because of the workforce that we have, because of the fact that we have such a locus of space activity here and therefore we have trained warfighters already," DiBello said.
Space Florida added that its team is also "busy" identifying other things that it can bring to the table for decision-makers when the time comes.
The exact parameters of the Space Force's search or when the process will be finalized is not yet known.
Brevard County is already home to NASA's Kennedy Space Center, historic Cape Canaveral Space Force Station launch complex and Patrick Space Force Base also holds the 45th Space Wing and Weather Squadron.
The Space Force was officially established in December 2019 as the first new military service since the U.S. Air Force was created in 1947. The 16,000 airmen and civilians who make up the Space Force technically remain part of the Air Force.
