The US Air Force X-37B sub-orbit reusable reconnaissance aircraft set a new record after spending 719 days in orbit, Space.com reported.

The unmanned vehicle was developed and constructed by Boeing Corporation. The length of the X-37B is 8.8 m with a wingspan of 4.6 m and a weight of about 5 tons.

This is the fifth test of a space drone as part of the OTV (Orbital Test Vehicle) mission, the next stage was launched on September 7, 2017. X-37B into orbit launched the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket company Ilona Mask.

Tests as part of the OTV mission have been conducted by the U.S. Air Force since 2010. The first mission lasted 224 days, the last flight lasted 717 days. However, the purpose and purpose of the tests and the X-37B itself are kept secret. The US Air Force makes only general statements.

“The X-37B program has two main tasks: the creation of reusable space technologies to provide America with a future in space and the conduct of space experiments, the results of which can be returned and investigated on Earth,” the official website of the US Air Force says.

The technologies tested under this program include “advanced guidance, navigation and control systems, thermal protection systems, avionics, high-temperature structures and seals, conformal reusable insulation, lightweight electromechanical control systems for aircraft, advanced propulsion systems, advanced materials, and autonomous orbital flight, entry into the atmosphere and landing. ”

Experts believe that the X-37B spacecraft is part of a long-developed US program for the militarization of space.

Military historian Yuri Knutov in an interview with RT suggested that the goal of OTV programs is to launch nuclear weapons into space.

“The X-37B spacecraft was created based on the technologies that were used to create the shuttles, but it has a new thermal protection created from scratch. This ship can maneuver at heights within 200 km, make atmospheric dives, ”Knutov said.

This ship demonstrates that the Americans began the deployment of a new generation of space weapons, the expert stressed.

  • Orbital aircraft X-37B
  • Reuters
  • © US Air Force / Handout

The Pentagon wants to explore peaceful outer space for military purposes and is eager to occupy it more quickly in order to dictate its conditions to other countries, said in an interview with RT academician of the Academy of Political Sciences of the Russian Federation, head of the department of REU named after G.V. Plekhanova Andrey Koshkin.

“Therefore, they keep suborbital planes there, create reconnaissance groups of satellites. The Reagan Star Wars project that was once laughed at has become relevant again. The Americans do not discount it, and at every turn of improving technological capabilities, they are moving into outer space, ”said Koshkin.

The creation of cosmic forces

Recall that in February 2019, Donald Trump signed a decree on the creation of a new, sixth type of US Armed Forces - the Space Forces.

  • Donald Trump signs decree on the creation of the National Space Council
  • Reuters
  • © Carlos Barria

“Our opponents are preparing troops and developing new technologies in order to undermine our security in outer space, and are making great efforts to achieve this goal. In this regard, my administration considers space as a theater of operations and has made the creation of the Space Forces one of the priorities of national security, ”Trump said then.

The president planned to create new troops as early as 2017, and make them completely independent, however, in this form, he failed to put this idea into practice.

U.S. space forces are under the jurisdiction of the civilian minister of the Air Force and will have a status similar to that of the U.S. Marine Corps, which is also a separate type of armed forces and has its own commander in the status of chief of staff, while reporting to the Department of the Navy.

American military leaders and experts have repeatedly expressed doubts about the need for such a step, indicating that the new structure will duplicate the existing space command as part of the air force.

In May this year, due to disagreement with Trump, Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson resigned. Criticized the decision of the president and chief of staff of the Air Force, David Goldfin. In June, Fred Kennedy, head of the Pentagon's Space Development Agency, resigned due to disagreements with the Air Force. Soon, the acting director left his post. Pentagon Patrick Shanahan, who actively contributed to the creation of a new type of troops.

Andrei Koshkin believes that the process has already gone too far, and internal bureaucratic contradictions will not stop the creation of Cosmic forces.

“The creation of Trump's Cosmic Forces is progressing well. Now the president has entered an interim election campaign and is likely to win it. During the second presidential term, he will manage to implement many projects, including this one, ”the expert said.

SPACECOM launch

The Trump administration and the Pentagon continue to take steps to create Space Forces. General Joseph Dunford, head of the U.S. Chief of Staff Committee, said the SPACECOM Space Command, the first combat command formed since 2009, will begin operations on August 29.

Prior to this, the US Department of Defense had 10 commands: African, Central, Cyber ​​Operations, European, Indo-Pacific, Northern, Southern, Special Operations Command, Strategic, and Transport Command.

  • National Space Council Meeting
  • NASA
  • © Aubrey Gemignani

Dunford announced the launch of SPACECOM at a meeting of the National Space Council, which was held August 21 in Virginia, chaired by US Vice President Mike Pence.

“This initiative will strengthen our ability to build the human resources and capacities we will need in the future. I am convinced that the creation of a unified service will significantly contribute to the achievement of this goal, ”Fox News quoted Dunford as saying.

Air Force General John Raymond will head SPACECOM, the new command will include 87 units that will be engaged in "missile warning, satellite operations, as well as space monitoring and support," Dunford said.

There have already been several Space Command in US history - the first was created in 1985 as part of the Reagan Star Wars administration program. It was connected to the US Strategic Command after the September 11, 2001 attacks. Also, the US Air Force already has its Space Command, it is located at the Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs.

The new command, created as part of the Trump Space Forces organization, will engage in an arms race in outer space, Yuri Knutov noted in an interview with RT.

“All units that existed as departments of other structures were united in one headquarters. Now, in the US Congress, much more funding can be pushed out under space programs than before, respectively, so the arms race can be accelerated, ”the expert concluded.