Lt. Gen. Stephen N. Whiting was named commander of the U.S. Space Command (SPACECOM) this week, taking over the top position from Gen. James Dickinson as he retires.
Whiting was sworn in on Jan. 10 during a change of command ceremony at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado, where Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said “he will keep the momentum going” at the agency.
“This isn’t Stephen’s first time at SPACECOM. He was at Peterson when the first U.S. Space Command was disestablished in 2002,” Hicks said during her remarks at the ceremony.
“But he was also present for this SPACECOM’s rebirth five years ago,” she added. “He was the first commander of one of its two functional components, and for the last three-plus years, he’s led Space Operations Command, which generates, presents, and sustains U.S. Space Forces for combatant commands.”
In addition to serving as a space operations officer, Whiting also served in the Pentagon as the senior military assistant to the deputy secretary of Defense.
“No matter what, the 18,000 professionals of SPACECOM will be ever-ready to defend American interests in space and uphold our norms as a responsible space-faring nation,” Hicks concluded. “They are better postured for success thanks to General Dickinson’s leadership, and they will continue to thrive under General Whiting’s command.”
