When the Space Force, a division of the U.S. Air Force, was formed, there were a few jokes. Then the naming of the protectors to be Guardians led to some Guardians of the Galaxy jokes, but let’s be honest, with how awesome those movies and stories are, would it be so bad to have some Guardians in space?
The U.S. Space Force was established on December 20, 2019 to include Space in the national security measures. While the discussion began under President Ronald Regan to create a military service specifically for space, it did not stand up in decades later.
The Space Force has announced the development of a new dress service uniform. The service dress uniform was first unveiled as a prototype in September of 2021, and it was then brought to focus groups and roadshows. One hundred Guardians were part of the fit test in the development stage. The organization completed its final service dress uniform fit after the initial fitting at Peterson Space Force Base.
Space Force spokesperson Col. Catie Hague said the uniform has meaning behind its design. “The deep blue color was chosen from the Space Force seal. The dark color represents the vastness of outer space,” she said. “The buttons have the globe, delta, orbit and stars that are part of both the U.S. Space Force flag and the seal.”
The next step for the uniforms is now the wear test. The wear test includes Guardians wearing the uniform three times a week to provide their feedback on the wearability, flexibility and comfort of the design and uniform. It is in the plans for the uniform to hit the force on late 2025.
“We are excited by Guardians’ input into their future uniform,” Catherine Lovelady, the head of the service’s Office of Change Management Team. “We are passionate about ensuring our members continue to have a voice in shaping a unique Space Force uniform.”
While some people have remarked that the uniform looks like it belongs on the set of Battlestar Galactica, others have remarked that it looks like something Captain Kirk work on Star Trek. What do you think? The dress uniforms can be viewed here on the Air Force Times article here. The dress uniform is unisex, meant to be worn by both males and females.
Semper Supra! (Always above, the US Space Force motto).
I am a retired US Air Force Chief Master Sergeant (E-9) with over 30-years on active duty. I have pretty much seen it all; not everything, but enough to offer some insight…
I see the Guardian’s new uniform and the first thoughts that come to mind are “midshipman” or “cadet…” Or maybe a ROTC member, possibly even a real estate agent from a big firm…
It is so far removed from the uniform of the other military branches that the public will have a difficult time distinguishing them from a “traveling salesman…”
Remember Admiral Zumwalt dark blue business suits for the navy in the 1970’s, how long did that last? He failed to heed the best advice of his best people and as soon as he was gone, so were the suits…
The new uniforms are stylish enough to “walk the Red Carpet” and were surely designed by a fashionista with a bad or weak right eye, otherwise they would have realized that the row of buttons should run straight up the breast or add a second row so it is balanced…
But I truly believe that none of those who help make the decision on that uniform ever read Hans Christian Andersen’s folktale “The Emperor’s New Clothes” where the subjects would not tell the Emperor he had no clothes on and the Guardian’s senior staff would tell the General Zients or General Klain about the “new clothes.”
And as for the name, Guardian, I snicker each time, because I think of the crew from the movie, “Guardians of the Universe…”
Oh, I absolutely believe that their mission should have been separated from that of the Air Force, just as the Air Force’s mission was removed from the Army Air Corps…
But not enough thought was put into “Heraldry” of what came before and where it will go… “Go Guardians…”
Just saying…