back to article New USAF Cyber-war formation downgraded

The US Air Force will proceed with plans to create a large, dedicated cyber warfare force, it was confirmed yesterday. However, rather than being an independent "Command" in its own right, the net battle formation has been downgraded in status and will now be subordinate to USAF Space Command. The original plans to form a full …

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  1. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
    Alert

    Space Command cyber force

    ...now with purty japanese schoolgirls in sailor uniforms wielding oversized weaponry.

    Raaah!!

  2. George
    Paris Hilton

    A strange combo...too many computer games!

    Its a bit scary too that more than one agency was reporting on nuclear capability...surely thats asking for trouble, not big trouble but the kind that they have had recently.

    As for space and cyber space...well its all just political manourvering but they are right they do not need a seperate command for it because how can an agency in charge of people's lives also be equal to one who do some hacking (ok not doing the job down but its unlikely they will lose men on the "battlefield".

    Paris...because she is already all over the cyberspace theatre!

  3. Paul Murphy

    So that would be Missile Command then?

    'Cos I remember playing that when I was younger (much younger :-( ) and I always felt a little sorry when a city got wiped, definitely an 'oopsy' moment.

    I hope the Merkins didn't play the same game.

    ttfn

  4. Graham Marsden

    @Destroy All Monsters

    > purty japanese schoolgirls in sailor uniforms wielding oversized weaponry.

    They'd better hurry, the Chinese are already way ahead of them...

    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/09/18/china_space_station/

  5. Zmodem

    space command

    they have nothing that goes into space, except that 4foot man drop off pod. and for that youd just need a CB with a bigger arial

  6. Secretgeek
    Coat

    So this new Nuke Command...

    ..is this really going to work out well seeing as it will cover all 3 Services (I don't think the USMC have any nukes)?

    Then again seeing as it's pretty bloody unlikely that they'll ever get used in anger again I suppose it's kind of like just sticking them all in a room to gather dust so that no-one else has to bother with the whole tedious business.

    Lead lined one please.

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Unhappy

    several embarrassing mishaps involving nuclear weaponry.

    Uh oh,

    That doesnt sound good at all!

  8. Joe Cooper

    @Zmodem

    Wrong!

    No, they have satellites and launch vehicles like the Delta IV and Atlas V. AF bases are routinely used to launch and operate satellites.

    Satellites are used extensively for satellite aided navigation, meteorological observation, visual & radar observation of enemy assets and communication.

    Meanwhile, the nuclear ballistic missiles travel through space. All ballistic missiles starting with the Nazi V-2 do this; they launch into space then fall onto the target! This makes a ballistic missile a type of primitive spacecraft.

    The Space Shuttle was also originally designed to USAF specifications, but it was ultimately used only by NASA. It turns out the USAF prefers big dumb boosters. This is why the shuttle cannot go to the Moon; the USAF has no business on the Moon, so it's design sacrifices long duration flight & high speed re-entry in favor of cross range maneuverability post-reentry that the AF desired.

    Back in the 80s the USAF also came up with an F-15 launched anti-satellite missile. They even popped one satellite in testing in the early 80s. It is called the ASM-135.

    They did not maintain this capability however, and some ASM-135s now reside in museums.

  9. David Stever
    Black Helicopters

    ...isn't this a Saturday morning cartoon show?!?

    Good god, they couldn't come up with a better name this this?

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