The 2026 Space and Missile Defense Symposium opened Tuesday with a message that carried from the first military briefing of the morning to one of the most anticipated updates of the afternoon: the threat is changing quickly, and the military and defense industry have to move with speed.
Lt. Gen. John Rafferty, commanding general of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, delivered the first major military update of SMD after Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle welcomed attendees to the Von Braun Center.
Rafferty was followed by U.S. Space Command and international space panels before Gen. Michael Guetlein, direct reporting program manager for Golden Dome for America, took the stage Tuesday afternoon.
Rafferty: Huntsville a ‘strategic advantage’
Rafferty began with Huntsville itself, pointing to the concentration of military, government and private industry surrounding Redstone Arsenal…