Hearing of the Strategic Forces Subcommittee of the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee - Testimony on Assured Access to Space

Hearing

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Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

I would like to begin by thanking the members of this panel for your service to this country and your efforts to ensure that the United States maintains a strong and capable space presence. The breadth of experience represented by this panel is impressive, and I appreciate your individual contributions towards America's national security.

I also want to thank members of the Armed Services Committee and the Commerce Committee for recognizing the need to hold a hearing on this issue and its impact on our country's access to space. It remains a simple reality that we need to work closely with the international community to guarantee that the International
Space Station, its mission, and its crew are positively impacted by the decisions made here in Congress. Our astronauts and their peers are relying on a stable partnership to ensure their success.

The block purchase of 36 evolved expendable launch vehicle cores last year may have made economic sense during the global environment at that time and resulted in a meaningful savings, $4.4 billion, to the American taxpayer.

Although well intentioned, the unintended consequences of relying on a foreign supplier for critical national security equipment is now strikingly apparent. The United States is scrambling to maintain access to space and has no immediate options if the current supplier in Russia decides to cease export or if geopolitical circumstances dictate that the U.S. is no longer able to engage in a partnership with its supplier.

When the United States decided to utilize a foreign engine, RD--180, to boost our rockets into space, it was also agreed that production of that engine would ultimately occur in the United States. For whatever reason, whether it was for economic reasons or inattention, this never occurred. We find ourselves in this position as a result of our own inaction.

The United States must now respond decisively and provide the domestic capacity to launch both crew and cargo into space. The cost estimates for the design, construction, and testing and certification of a new multi-core engine are staggering in today's climate of limited financial resources. But we simply cannot rely on the vicissitudes of a foreign supplier in a foreign nation for our National security, and therefore we must do what it will take to reduce our reliance on foreign engines.

I look forward to hearing your suggestions, hearing your expertise as we work together on how best to alleviate this issue and defend the interest of the United States.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman

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