The Intelligence Community, including the National Reconnaissance
Office, was a key participant in the Hermann Panel on small satellites at the
request of Director of Central Intelligence John Deutch. The report was
delivered to the DCI and the Senate and House intelligence committees in June.
The DCI and Acting NRO Director Keith Hall have responded to the report in
classified testimony.
The DCI and the NRO fully support the concept that "smaller is better,"
and the NRO is moving toward a smaller class of satellites. We realize the
advantages offered by these systems: increased flexibility, potential lower
overall costs, improved technology and insertion, and potential for launch
on-demand. The question facing the Intelligence Community and the NRO is not
whether to move toward smaller satellites but, rather, how small our satellites
should be. Of equal concern is how to transition from current systems to
smaller ones without effecting our ability to provide uninterrupted, superior
support to national policymakers and operational customers.
The Acting DNRO has initiated a study to provide the DCI and SecDef with
options for the follow-on architecture. The study team includes representatives
from Central Intelligence Agency, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Central Imagery Office,
and Defense Airborne Reconnaissance Office who will compare cost, schedule, and
performance parameters for varying system configurations against a common set of
requirements. The report is due in August of this year. With this report and
the Hermann small satellite report, the DCI and SecDef will be equipped to make
the necessary recommendations to the President and Congress as to what the
nation's satellite-reconnaissance architecture should be in the next century.
