Army opens applications for enlisted space operations roles

The Army is now accepting applications for a new enlisted career track focused entirely on space operations, formalizing a role that has until now, relied on soldiers temporarily assigned from other branches.

The new military occupational specialty, MOS 40D Tactical Space Operations Specialist, will be officially established Oct. 1, according to an Army press release published Tuesday, and is open to soldiers in grades E-4 through E-9 across the active-duty Army, National Guard and Army Reserve.

“This is the first space-specific MOS for enlisted soldiers, and it couldn’t have come at a better time,” Lt. Gen. Sean Gainey, commanding general of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, said. The release cited his remarks from an August 2025 speech at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Alabama.

“This new space operations MOS is designed to build a robust and experienced noncommissioned officer corps in Army space and will ensure that Army space formations are equipped with soldiers who have experience in space operations,” he said.

Interested applicants should apply before April 30 and must be able to attain a top secret clearance. Initial applicants will be selected this summer and slotted for training in October at the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense School in Colorado.

The Army is planning to open 1,000 slots for the new specialty, which could swell to 1,500 by 2032.

Command Sgt. Maj. John Foley, the senior enlisted leader of U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, emphasized that unlike other space capabilities, Army space soldiers are expected to operate alongside ground forces.

“Army space soldiers must be on the ground to provide effects to the warfighter and operate in deep enemy and extended deep areas,” Foley said, according to the press release, adding, “That is the distinct difference that only soldiers can do for our Army.”

According to Army doctrine, space-based systems help soldiers communicate, navigate, forecast the weather, gather intelligence and receive missile warnings, among other things.