Anti-Satellite Capabilities

Your editorial on efforts to develop a United States anti-satellite capability (“Nothing to Gain,” Dec. 7) seems to reflect erroneous or incomplete perceptions of the circumstances facing the United States in space.

I certainly agree with your position of space systems being important to peace. This importance underscores the inherent danger in a situation where the Soviet Union maintains the world’s only demonstrated operational anti-satellite system. If the Soviets chose to employ their system today, there is nothing we could do to stop them or to deter them in any way. The President’s response options would be limited to escalation of the situation closer to the Earth’s surface.

While the United States’ dependence on space systems for national security has been growing for several years, it is also apparent the Soviets are equally dependent upon space systems for their own military objectives. In recent years, they have also demonstrated increasing technological sophistication until today they maintain more than 150 spacecraft on orbit; of those, about 90% are totally or partially devoted to military missions. In a crisis or conflict, we would have no way of negating that capability, especially those systems which pose direct threats to our own soldiers, sailors, and airmen.

It is a disservice to the American public to continue to refer to the Soviet co-orbital anti-satellite system as primitive or untested in recent years. In fact, it is operational and has been demonstrated effective. The component parts--tracking radars, launchers and launch systems, and on-orbit intercept techniques--are routinely practiced or employed in the Soviet’s substantial space program. Their anti-satellite system is ready and available for use today against our satellites. The United States’ lack of an anti-satellite counterpart severely restricts my ability to fulfill my assigned mission of space control. In effect, we have yielded control of space to the Soviets. I do not believe that serves our national defense interests.

Congress wisely abandoned the effort to restrain development and testing in space of anti-satellite capabilities for the United States. I support that decision and hopeto see progress in developing a United States counter to the Soviet monopoly in anti-satellite capabilities.

JOHN L. PIOTROWSKI

General, USAF

Commander in Chief

U.S. Space Command

Peterson Air Force Base, Colo.