A word on Sovereign Launch

The Toronto Star has a new article on Sovereign Launch, and I feel like saying a word.

I am happy to see mentalities on space and the need for a domestic space industry shifting. Canada has always punched above its weight here. It was Canada that put the first domestic communications satellite into space with Anik-1. In fact, the Anik series would accomplish many firsts, such as being the world's first dual-band communications satellite with Anik-B. Canada was the third country to send a domestic satellite into space with Alouette-I.

We have been a player in space from the start. We have been actively involved in many of humanity’s monumental moments among the stars. Yet we have allowed ourselves to slip at a time when space is becoming more contested, and space-based assets are becoming more valuable.

Our adversaries, such as Russia and China, now have their own ASAT capabilities—sophisticated systems able to target large portions of our and our allies’ constellations. These capabilities, from ground-based interceptors and laser systems to space-based offensive platforms, will only get better and increase in scale as the years go on.

That’s why having a domestic capability in space is so critical. We already see allies, such as the United States, struggling to keep up with demand for both government and commercial launches. Many others are in similar situations. We do not have the collective launch capability to support each other.

That means Canada—the one G7 country without a domestic launch capability—would be the first to be squeezed out. There wouldn’t be much choice, as allies will also need to deal with increasing demand for space-based assets combined with replacing inevitable losses.

Concepts like Golden Dome and space-based ISR to replace systems like AEW, while we can question their feasibility, show how much hope and demand is being placed on new, complex satellite constellations to take over tasks they traditionally haven’t done.

The role of space is growing, and new concepts are rapidly being thought up and developed at speeds we haven’t seen in decades. This is a trend that everyone is experiencing, and one we need to act fast to stay on top of.

From pen to orbit, Canada needs the ability to design, develop, build, and launch various classes of satellites into orbit across LEO, MEO, and GEO. There is no way around this. There is no debate in my eyes. You either have it, or you risk losing your space-based capabilities in conflict—capabilities vital for the modern battlespace.

It does require those extra supports. It requires setting the foundation for these kinds of extreme-risk industries to form. Our own risk-averse nature as Canadians comes up in a lot of things. It’s a generational issue that won’t easily be fixed by any one person or group, certainly not in a single generation.

That also means we need the proper plan in place to turn Canada into an international partner in the space-launch sector. You need the backing and regulations in place to foster launches from Canada. This industry can’t survive off government contracts alone, nor can it survive by losing small launches.

However, you do need to start somewhere, and this feels like one of those industries where you have to take that risk and struggle—where you have to take that leap simply because of how critically vital it is to our national security. You can’t afford not to have these things available, and no matter the urgency, they take a long time to develop.