JANUARY 28, 2025 – Best known for operating the Global Positioning System (GPS) — a gold standard system that delivers position, navigation and timing signals to users around the world, Mission Delta 31 is equally committed to navigating the growth and development of its people.
Through the Guardian and Airmen Development Program developed by Space Operations Command, MD 31 is fostering a new generation of leaders and equipping them with the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities to meet current and future demands of the U.S. Space Force.
Tech. Sgt. Kristeo Torres, 2nd Navigational Warfare Squadron Crew Chief, is one of many Guardians working within the delta to achieve this.
“The Guardian and Airmen Development Program is about developing our junior Guardians to have those tools to help develop them into future leaders,” Torres said. “But it’s not just for the mission, it’s also on a more personal level. A lot of Guardians come in at the age of 18 so they may need assistance with things like finances or education and so on.
“In support of the program, I coordinated the 2nd NWS’ first-ever mentorship round robin. The way it came about was the junior and senior NCOs were having a meeting where we were discussing professional development opportunities for our people. That discussion jogged my memory of the mentorship I experienced when I was in the Navy. So, I brought it up and my leadership thought it was a good idea.”
Given the go-ahead, Torres booked a conference room and sent out 10 invitations — five junior enlisted and five NCOs. On the day of, Torres sat the ranking members on one side of the table and the junior members on the other, established the ground rules and then started the clock at five minutes per person.
“They spoke with each other to better understand expectations for mentors and mentees,” Torres said. “Once the event concluded, the mentees were able to go into an spreadsheet and put together a priority list of who they wanted as their mentors. Because five minutes is short, we are now setting up follow-up meetings to get them together again to further grow those relationships.
“A mentor is someone that you can go to at almost any given time to speak about professional development, personal growth or anything in between. In the Navy, it was mandatory to have a mentor. Getting lost in space can be a challenge. Not due to a lack of drive or interest, but because the Space Force is still new and things are still getting stood up. Our junior people are not always seeing the opportunities that are available to them. I would like to see leaders stepping up and bringing outside perspectives, especially from other inter-service transfers like me. That will lead to more opportunities like what has happened here. We can turn their ideas into action.”
MD 31 consists of three squadrons and one detachment, across geographically separated locations — 2nd NWS, the 31st Capability Development Squadron and the 31st Sustainment Squadron.
To learn more about MD 31, visit https://www.spoc.spaceforce.mil/.
Story by Keefer Patterson
Space Base Delta 1