We had a tremendous turnout and engagement for our Missile Defense at Vandenberg Space Force Base panel discussion, marking a pivotal moment in the evolution of missile defense. This significant event brought forward by MDAA featured LTG Sean Gainey, Commander of Army Space and Missile Defense Command; Col Mark Shoemaker, Commander of Vandenberg Space Force Base; John Rood, former Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, and Riki Ellison Chairman & Founder of MDAA.
Together, we explored the rich history of missile defense at Vandenberg — a site that has launched and tested the first Ground-based ICBM Missile Defense interceptor and served as the foundation of our homeland missile defense capabilities for decades. The discussion emphasized a historic shift and new momentum: the integration of the Joint Force in support of Golden Dome Operations here in Vandenberg Space Base — the future of layered homeland defense and new innovative and disruptive technologies to enable Golden Dome. Vandenberg’s role is central in this transformation, bridging past legacy systems with the innovation and unity required to meet tomorrow’s threats.
More importantly and focused, we looked forward to the future of Missile Defense for the United States. USSF, USAF and US Army Officers and Enlisted personnel participated along with government and commercial Space industry leaders in the significant discussion of the future to protect the entire United States homeland against ICBM, Cruise Missile, Fractional Orbital Bombardment System (FOBS), and Hypersonic Glide vehicle threats to the United States that are deployed by our near peers and adversaries in the world today. USSF and Army leadership discussed the requirement for Space Industry innovation, including disruptive technologies from large and small businesses, to be included in the nation’s future missile defense architecture to stay ahead of our adversaries.
For over 60 years, Vandenberg Space Force Base has stood at the forefront of America’s Space greatest system engineering in offensive, defensive and commercial missile testing and space launch capabilities, including SpaceX, ULA Vulcan, Firefly, and others. It was from Vandenberg that General Schriever developed and tested the ICBM in failing fast, which they did 13 times in a row before having a success. This “think big, go fast” culture laid the foundation for one of the legs of strategic deterrence. In the 1990s and 2000s, the base became a centerpiece of homeland missile defense, hosting silos of Ground-based Interceptors (GBIs) and serving as the test launch site for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) system — the first operational non nuclear missile defense system deployed and designed to defend the entire United States Alaska to Hawaii from intercontinental ballistic missiles coming from North Korea.
Vandenberg’s role continued to expand as technology and threats evolved, shifting from an Air Base to a Space Base in 2021. It became the testbed for multiple missile defense architectures, from exo-atmospheric kill vehicles to future sensors and command-and-control systems. As a site that uniquely blends operational capability with technological development, Vandenberg has ensured that missile defense remains reactive and also anticipatory — able to adapt to emerging threats with speed and precision.
Missile Defense has a legacy, history, and will now have an iconic future at Vandenberg SFB. As our Nation makes a revolutionary movement to build the Golden Dome to protect the nation against all air and missile threats, Vandenberg SFB stands ready as a pillar of operational excellence, joint integration, innovation, and strategic vision.
