Space Force to focus training on ‘orbital warfare,’ joint integration

U.S. Space Force Guardians conduct training and maintenance with the Counter Communications System (CCS) at Peterson Space Force Base, Colo., July 2, 2025. (U.S. Space Force photo by Amber Mullins).

By Theresa Hitchens • Dec 18, 2025

The Space Force is putting top priority on training Guardians for fighting and winning in space, using both virtual environments and, in the future, a dedicated fleet of live satellites.

“There are two things that I want to focus on in training in my two years that I will be in command. One is orbital warfare. The adversaries desire to attack us in space from space, and they’re already practicing,” Gen. Gregory Gagnon, new(ish) commander of Combat Forces Command, told reporters on Dec. 10 during the Space Force Association’s Spacpower 2025 conference.

“The second thing that I want to practice is … Space Force integration with the Navy, the Air Force and the Army, so that we can develop the ability to support them, but also think through that warfighting in space will be part of the fight, and we will have to coordinate resources and objectives cooperatively so that the joint force wins,” he said.