Bradley Chance Saltzman (born June 30, 1969) is a United States Space Force general who is the second and current chief of space operations. He served as the deputy chief of space operations for operations, cyber, and nuclear from 2020 to 2022. He is the first lieutenant general and the first general officer promoted into the Space Force. Saltzman was born and raised in Kentucky. In 1991, he graduated from Boston University and was commissioned into the United States Air Force. He is a career missile and space operations officer with operational experience as a Minuteman III launch officer and as a satellite operator for the National Reconnaissance Office. He served as the last commander for both the 614th Space Operations Squadron and 1st Space Control Squadron, during which time he led the operations during the 2007 Chinese ASAT test. He also commanded the 460th Operations Group and Aerospace Data Facility-Colorado. As a general officer, Saltzman has been called the "father of multi-domain operations" for his work in leading the Air Force multi-domain command and control effort. He was also the first non-flying officer to serve as deputy commander of the United States Air Forces Central Command. He transferred to the Space Force in 2020 where he served as its first chief operations officer. Early life and education Saltzman was born to Belinda C. Troutman in Daviess County, Kentucky on June 30, 1969. His father and grandfather were in the United States Army. He grew up in Bowling Green, Kentucky, attending Bowling Green High School where he played tennis. Saltzman studied at Boston University on an Air Force scholarship, graduating in 1991 with a B.A. degree in history. He later completed a Master of Public Administration degree at the University of Montana in 1994 and a Master of Strategic Management degree from the George Washington University School of Business in 1998. He also attended the University of North Carolina and Harvard Kennedy School. Saltzman underwent undergraduate missile training at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, in 1992, less than a year after commissioning into the Air Force. In 1997, he earned the Air Assault Badge from attending the United States Army Air Assault School. He is also a space weapons officer, graduating from the USAF Weapons School in 2001, where they are taught how to be weapons instructors in their units. During his promotion to lieutenant general in 2020, General John