Lt. Gen. Douglas A. Schiess has been nominated by the President to serve as the United States Space Force Chief of Space Operations, pending Senate confirmation, and would be the top Space Force officer if confirmed.

He currently serves as deputy Chief of Space Operations for operations (S3) and has been on the promotion shortlist for about a year, with Saltzman set to retire as the current CSO.

From 2023 to 2025, he commanded Space Forces-Space, the service’s primary operational component to U.S. Space Command, after previously leading Spacecom’s Combined Joint Force Space Component Command.

If confirmed, Schiess would oversee doubling the force and managing rising demand for on-orbit capabilities as the service expands.

His nomination frames the Space Force’s shift toward a more contested-domain posture, focusing on growing lethality and faster delivery of space capabilities for the Joint Force.

As CSO, Schiess would sharpen lethality and accelerate delivery of space capabilities to the warfighter, building on his extensive operational leadership within Space Forces-Space and Spacecom’s space component command.

His career began with the Air Force in 1992 through UCLA’s ROTC and he transferred to the Space Force in 2022, bringing decades of experience to the role.

Leadership figures, including Gen. Saltzman, have praised Schiess, noting he understands the mission and stakes and will push for capable, ready space forces.

Saltzman emphasized that Schiess is the right pick to lead as the Space Force grows, with a clear understanding of the mission's importance.

Meink also highlighted Schiess’s operational experience and strategic mindset as essential to maintaining space as a decisive national advantage.

The nomination comes amid ongoing Space Force growth and expanding missions, including involvement in the Golden Dome missile defense program and a record-high budget request for fiscal 2027.

Overall, the Space Force is pursuing near-term expansion and developing processes to articulate future needs and threats under its 2040 objective and future operating environment planning.