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- Hi, I'm Colonel Rich Bourquin, I go by 'Bear'.
I'm the Commander of Space Delta 4,
here at Buckley Air Force Base.
Space Delta 4 was founded on 24th July of this year,
and the mission of our Delta is to provide strategic
and theater missile warning, to the United States
and our international partners.
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So establishment of Space Delta 4 is important
because, as part of the overall establishment
of mission deltas and garrisons within US Base Force,
it allows commanders to focus on a singular mission.
For Space Delta 4, that mission is Missile Warning.
So now we can be lean and agile,
and really forward-thinking just within that one mission,
specifically, you know, looking not just to current threats,
but to future threats, that might threaten the nation,
moving forward.
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So the benefit that Delta 4 gives
to both the military and our country
is getting really in that missile warning capability.
So we operate at an array of different space,
and ground based sensors, which provide advanced warning
of potential attack to the United States and our allies.
But it's really a lot more than just that,
you know, those sensors were designed
to provide missile warning,
but they proven to be very capable,
and they meet a multitude of other mission sets,
to include battlespace characterization, missile defense,
space domain awareness, and technical intelligence.
So these sensors provide data really across
the many different enterprises,
of not just US Base Force,
but really across the Department of Defense.
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So personally, I'm very excited
about taking command of Space Delta 4.
I've been in the Missile Warning Community
for most of my career.
I've been in for 24 years,
as a Second Lieutenant.
I started out as an Operator
of the Defense Support Program,
which is one of our Space-Based Missile Warning Assets.
I've been here at Buckley as a Director of Operations,
and then came back last year, as the Vice Wing Commander.
And even beyond those actual operational assignments,
I've done many assignments,
using the data that our Missile Warning Assets provide.
In theater, in career, in The Pacific,
in South West Asia,
in infraSTRACOM, you know, I've seen the data
that's produced by this Delta,
and this mission has always meant a lot to me.
So on top of that,
I'm excited that I get to spend so much time,
with the people of Space Delta 4,
the people that support and operate these sensors,
the people that are doing amazing things,
with, you know...
finding the best ways to utilize these capabilities,
and provide those capabilities
to our national senior leaders,
to make really key strategic decisions,
you know, just as an example, we've heard from...
you know, just this past year,
the President, and certainly the Chief of Space Operations
have mentioned, in Guinea, we had attacks
that came from Iran, missile attacks
towards some of the bases that had US Forces in Iraq.
And again, some of the capabilities
that are in Space Delta 4, were that,
right at the edge of that attack, they saw it via warning,
which prevented any US casualties in that attack.
So, you know, I see day-to-day, what the people are doing,
how they're making the most of these systems,
and it's amazing to me, and so I'm looking to do anything
I can, to help those folks get the mission done,
make sure their lives are better,
and at the end of my command tour,
to make sure that we have, you know,
really moved the bar forward
on how we present those capabilities,
how we use those capabilities best,
for the American people,
and for the International Community.
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