Guardian Officers Graduate, Prepare to Support Joint Force

PETERSON SPACE FORCE BASE, Colo. (AFNS) -- Fifty-four Guardian officers graduated from the U.S. Space Force's Officer Training Course during a ceremony June 26 at Peterson Space Force Base.

The graduates will report to assignments around the globe, including the United Kingdom, Greenland and Florida, among other operational locations.

More than 350 Guardians have graduated from the course since its inception in August 2025.

Maj. Gen. James E. Smith, Space Training and Readiness Command commander, served as the ceremony's guest speaker and encouraged graduates to embrace the responsibilities required of Guardian officers.

"Today is a milestone, the beginning of your service to the operational force as Guardian officers," Smith said. "The Space Force needs you to be committed - committed to learning, committed to leading and committed to the standard. Commit to becoming the kind of officer others can trust when the mission gets hard."

The Officer Training Course is the Space Force's initial skills training program for newly commissioned officers. Regardless of whether they commission through a service academy, Reserve Officer Training Corps or Officer Training School, all Guardian officers attend OTC during their first year of service.

Throughout the course, students receive instruction in space operations, cyberspace warfare, intelligence and acquisitions before applying those disciplines during a capstone graduation exercise. Since the inaugural graduation last year, STARCOM has refined the curriculum by adding mentorship and advisor roles while enhancing academics, operational scenarios, exercises and site visits, according to Lt. Col. Liam Conley, 537th Training Squadron commander.

The course brings together officers from a variety of backgrounds and experiences. Among this cohort was Capt. Jason Tyx, who brought more than 22 years of service in the Marine Corps as an enlisted Marine and warrant officer before transferring to the Space Force. The graduating class also included 17 prior enlisted service members and graduates from the U.S. Air Force Academy, U.S. Military Academy and U.S. Naval Academy.

The ceremony marked the completion of Cohort 25-005 and the latest group of Guardian officers prepared to continue follow-on training and operational assignments across the Space Force.

"These Guardians are entering the force with a complete picture of how space operations, intelligence, cyber and acquisitions work together to secure U.S. spacepower," Conley said. "Armed with this well-rounded foundation, they will accelerate much faster than previous generations of single-skillset officers."