2026 Conference Agenda

In early 2024, the Department of the Air Force unveiled sweeping plans for reshaping, refocusing, and reoptimizing the Air Force and Space Force to ensure continued supremacy in their respective domains while better posturing the services to deter and, if necessary, prevail in an era of Near Peer Competition. This panel will bring Senior Leaders together to discuss M&S in four core areas: M&S, Analytics, Space, and Integration.

This panel convenes the Department of Defense's most senior analytical leaders who provide the data-driven insights that shape major budget, acquisition, and strategic decisions. For the Department of the Air Force, understanding this enterprise-level analytical framework is critical to successfully justifying and shaping its modernization priorities for air and space dominance. The discussion will provide direct insights into how the DAF can best align its programs and analyses with the methodologies valued by OSD, CAPE, and its sister services.

This panel convenes senior leaders from across the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Space Force, and the space industry to provide a comprehensive look at the pivotal role of Modeling and Simulation (M&S) in modernizing national defense. The discussion offers an opportunity to hear directly from the key decision-makers responsible for the entire capability lifecycle, from foundational research to operational command and control. Ultimately, this session is essential for anyone seeking to understand the digital transformation and strategic imperatives that are defining the future of multi-domain operations and M&S enabling capabilities.

Space Force has faced unique challenges in preparing Guardians to protect and defend U.S. and allied interests in space. The space domain does not lend itself to easy hands-on training, prompting greater demand for high-fidelity, immersive virtual M&S tools. Space Training and Readiness Command prepares Space Force Guardians to fight and win in a contested, degraded and operationally limited space environment. This panel discussion how the National Space Test and Training Complex (NSTTC) will support Space Force operational test and training infrastructure.

The NCO’s role in multiple services for leadership, training and operations are critical. This panel will provide a forum for our NCO Service Members to discuss their training challenges and how M&S will be used to overcome those challenges.