Space Force recruits come to San Antonio for basic training

SAN ANTONIO (KTSA News) – The first Space Force recruits will be at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland  for 7-and-a-half weeks of Basic Military Training.

Three were sworn in this week at MEPS-Denver Colorado, and Vice Chief of Space Operations Gen. David Thompson administered the oath of enlistment to four others at Fort Meade, Md.

As they waited for the ceremony to begin, Gen. Thompson chatted with the group and talked to them about their possible missions in the nation’s newest military branch.

“We’ve got a global constellation of warning satellites that detect missiles anywhere in the globe.  You might be flying  that,” said Thompson. “We’ve got communications satellites to keep the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines connected.  You might be flying that.”

He also mentioned the importance of protecting our satellites from the anti-satellite weapons of Russia and China.

“The Russians and the Chinese are trying to take all that away from us, so we’re also building stuff to make sure that we can protect all of those satellites from them,” said Thompson.

The Space Force was created in December of 2019, but until now, they’ve been building their initial ranks with transfers from the Air Force.

“Thanks for volunteering to defend our nation, and congratulations on being the first Americans to enlist directly into the United States Space Force,” said Thompson.