The Pentagon’s space leadership vacuum shrank in a single vote. The Senate on Aug. 6 confirmed Erich Hernandez-Baquero as Air Force assistant secretary for space acquisition and integration, the permanent boss of Space Force procurement, along with Roger Mason to lead the National Reconnaissance Office.
Hernandez-Baquero, a defense industry executive known as “HB,” takes a post that has been empty since Frank Calvelli’s tenure. He will manage a Space Force investment budget that jumps to roughly $59B in fiscal 2027 from $18.9B, and he must implement the nine-portfolio acquisition structure ordered by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, including new portfolios for electromagnetic warfare, cyber and space combat power.
Mason, currently a V2X executive with an intelligence background, replaces long-serving NRO director Chris Scolese at the spy satellite agency. He previously served as the first assistant director of national intelligence for systems and resource analyses.
The same bloc ended an 18-month gap at the Pentagon comptroller’s office, confirming Jules Hurst to oversee defense budgets and spending, including Iran-related supplemental funding and the push to get $152B in reconciliation money under contract.
The confirmations give the Space Force its first fully seated acquisition leadership in years, and give the NRO a director as commercial remote sensing firms push for larger government roles.
