Aligning air, space power: Operational perspectives at the AFA Warfare Symposium

Published Feb. 24, 2026
By Master Sgt. Carlin Leslie
Buckley Space Force Base Public Affairs

AURORA, Colo. (AFNS) -- As the character of warfare continues to evolve, leaders from Buckley Space Force Base underscored the operational importance of integrating air and spacepower during a panel discussion at the 2026 Air and Space Forces Association Warfare Symposium in Aurora, Feb. 23.

The symposium convenes air and space leaders from across the joint force to discuss the future of combat operations.

Panel Photo — Col. Eamon Murray, Space Base Delta 2 commander, addresses attendees at the Air and Space Forces Association Warfare Symposium in Aurora, Colo., Feb. 23, 2026. Murray highlighted Buckley Space Force Base’s role as a power projection platform supporting global air and space operations. (U.S. Space Force photo by Master Sgt. Carlin Leslie)

During the panel, titled “Aligning Air & Space Power: Operational Perspectives,” Col. Eamon Murray, Space Base Delta 2 commander, emphasized that installation readiness is inseparable from combat effectiveness in the space domain. Murray’s emphasis on installation readiness reflects U.S. Space Force, Combat Forces Command’s focus on ensuring space power projection platforms can deliver combat capability when called upon.

“People, infrastructure and culture; we need our people to be ready, we need infrastructure to operate in current, crisis, and contested operations, and we need a culture of proactive response to potential adversary action rather than one that passively waits to be told “fight’s on,” Murray said. “Again, it’s the fight that we think is coming, not the fight we have been thinking about for the last 25 years.”

Murray stressed that Buckley SFB is not merely supporting space operations, it is central to them.

“Functionally, we are the power projection platform for all the missions that fall under our Big 6 tenant partners, two of whom are the Aerospace Data Facility Colorado and the 140th Wing here today,” he said. “Understanding how we are organized and equipped is critical to ensuring those functions work seamlessly to accomplish the mission.”

Col. David Gallagher, Aerospace Data Facility Colorado commander, emphasized the significance of space as a warfighting domain and the integral role ADF-C plays in supporting the Joint Force.

He also discussed how the space domain has never been more contested in our nation’s history, emphasizing readiness as a top priority to ensure we keep pace with the accelerating threat environment.

“A vital part of the fight is coming from Buckley,” Murray added. “So, to be that power projection platform, we need to make sure it has all the things that you would expect to be ready and resilient.”

He emphasized that modernization remains essential to sustaining that advantage.

“It’s imperative that we are modernizing and enhancing our space weapons system infrastructure so that we can be ready to be in the current and future fight,” Murray said. “Make no mistake, space is integrated with air and with everything we do in all domains.”

Deliberate Integration Across the Total Force

The discussion also highlighted the importance of intentional collaboration among Buckley SFB’s mission partners.

Col. Jamie Pieper, Colorado Air National Guard director of staff, stressed that integration requires deliberate effort across the installation.

“We as an installation have to be incredibly deliberate about what our intersection points are going forward,” Pieper said. “Making sure that we’re not so focused on continuing our mission, which is very important, that we forget to think more broadly and ensure the partners we need are part of that work as well.”

Her remarks reinforced the importance of aligning Air National Guard capabilities with active-duty and space components to strengthen collective readiness.

Gallagher also emphasized the strategic value of bringing operational partners into installation-level exercises to sharpen shared understanding of mission sets.

“Integrating the Aerospace Data Facility Colorado and the 140th Wing into SBD 2 Panther View exercises–beyond participation–aligns our mission and learning objectives and helps the base understand the capabilities needed to defend the installation,” Gallagher said.

By integrating mission partners into installation defense planning, Buckley SFB strengthens its ability to anticipate operational requirements and defend critical capabilities in a contested environment.

Installation Readiness as Combat Power

A consistent theme throughout the panel was that alignment is more than organizational, it is operational, cultural and strategic. For Space Base Delta 2, that alignment means ensuring the installation remains secure, resilient and postured to support missions that underpin national defense.

From infrastructure and force protection to space-enabled intelligence and data capabilities, installation support functions directly enable combat power. As threats evolve, so must the systems, partnerships and people that sustain the mission.

As the symposium continues, discussions like this one reinforce that the future fight will require seamless integration between air and space forces, built on shared understanding, synchronized operations and continued investment in readiness.

For Buckley SFB’s leaders, alignment is not an abstract concept — it is a daily commitment to ensuring the nation’s spacepower projection platform remains ready, resilient and prepared for whatever fight emerges next.