Overview
- The White House submitted Schiess’s nomination to the Senate on Thursday, sending it to the Armed Services Committee for review.
- Schiess serves as deputy chief for operations and since November 2025 has overseen global operations, sustainment, training and readiness.
- If confirmed, he would succeed Gen. Chance Saltzman, who has led the service since 2022 during a period of rapid growth in funding and personnel.
- Schiess said he will sharpen lethality and speed delivery of space capabilities to troops, reflecting Pentagon focus on readiness for contested space with rising Chinese and Russian threats.
- The chief of space operations is the Space Force’s top uniformed officer and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, giving the service a direct voice in national defense planning.