RIVERSIDE — A southwest Ohio man is part of military history in the making.
Trevor Bingle-DeWitt, 23, is the first local recruit from the 338th Recruiting Squadron to join the Space Force, and one of about 550 Guardians projected to join this fiscal year. He is also the third person from the state of Ohio to join the smallest branch of the military.
Enlisted members of the Space Force, termed guardians, have the opportunity to join different career fields that include space systems operations, intel, and cyber specialties, according to an Air Force spokesperson.
The Space Force is currently about 10,000 strong, with 4,300 military members and about 6,000 civilian members. The Department of Defense projects that the number of enlisted and officer servicemen and women will increase to 6,000 by the end of the fiscal year.
DeWitt plans to enter the space force working in cable and antenna systems, something the civilian world might “equate to a Verizon tech,” he said. A native of Arcanum, he plans to pursue a degree in computer programming over the course of his service, using military tuition assistance through the GI bill. After serving in the Space Force, he plans to use his technical experience in the civilian sphere to pursue a passion in game design.
Tech Sgt. Anthony Addison, an accessions recruiter for the Air Force and Space Force, said that guardians undergo basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. DeWitt’s ship-out date is April 20.
“The Air Force and Space Force have big missions in cyberspace,” Addison said. “This includes protecting the United States from cyber attacks from foreign entities.”
Most Space Force operations are currently located on Air Force bases across the country, including in Colorado and Florida, Addison said. As the Space Force is currently intertwined with Air Force operations, they will continue to support the newest branch of the US military for the foreseeable future.
The United States Space Force (USSF) was formed in 2019 within the Department of the Air Force, under the direction of the Secretary of Defense.
