Private space startups complete complex orbital spy mission for US Space Force
Original: Private space pilots are flying orbital missions for the US Space Force
Why This Matters
Demonstrates private sector's growing role in military space domain awareness as US-China-Russia space competition intensifies.
True Anomaly and Rocket Lab completed the Victus Haze mission for the US Space Force in June 2026, demonstrating close orbital inspection of a spacecraft launched with only 16 hours 42 minutes notice, in what True Anomaly's CEO called the most complex rendezvous in modern private spaceflight history.
Two space startups, True Anomaly and Rocket Lab, completed a high-complexity orbital rendezvous mission for the US Space Force in June 2026, dubbed Victus Haze. Rocket Lab launched its Puma spacecraft just 16 hours and 42 minutes after receiving notice — remarkable given that most rocket launches are planned months in advance. True Anomaly's Jackal spacecraft was already in orbit and, without prior knowledge of Puma's destination, used onboard sensors to locate and identify the target from 2,000 kilometers away. Jackal then flew close to Puma — exact distance classified — orbited it, captured imagery of multiple parts of the vehicle, and returned to its original orbital position. True Anomaly CEO Evan Rogers, a former US military space veteran, told TechCrunch: 'China and Russia launch capabilities to space on a regular basis, and part of the Space Force's job is to understand what those capabilities are. Right now we have gaps in our collection capability.' Rogers described the mission as 'probably the most complex rendezvous and proximity operation between two spacecraft in modern history' outside of NASA and Space Force crewed missions. Both companies plan additional exercises in coming weeks, potentially including evasion and counter-inspection maneuvers. True Anomaly was founded in 2022 by Rogers and former military space experts to build hardware and software for the US Space Force, which was established in 2019.