Hundreds of National Guard members with the 233rd Space Group in Greeley will receive new assignments in intelligence, infrastructure and construction support, Gov. Jared Polis announced over the weekend.

“Without a new mission, we risked losing these talented, dedicated service men and women,” Polis said in a news release.  

The space group based at the Greeley Air National Guard Station employs 178 full-time and 215 part-time airmen, and of those, 14 had left for other units, separated from the guard or retired from the military. Another 19 airmen expect to transfer to the Space Force, the release said.

“These men and women have dedicated their lives to protecting our state and nation, and their families deserve certainty about their mission and their service,” said U.S. Rep. Jason Crow, D-Aurora. “I’m proud to have fought to get them that certainty and ensure military leadership are looking out for Colorado’s citizen soldiers.” 

The 233rd Space Group and all other space-focused National Guard units turned over their missions to the Space Force last year. It was the end to a years-long fight over whether to create a Space National Guard or to integrate those missions into the young military branch. 

A Space National Guard would have allowed members of the National Guard working in space fields, such as electromagnetic warfare or missile warning and tracking, to continue working at the same bases on the same missions.

Instead, lawmakers passed a mandate for the Space Force to absorb all National Guard space-focused missions by Oct. 1, 2025. The Air Force planned to maintain the same number of National Guard positions despite the transition to preserve jobs. 

Crow questioned Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink last week during a House Armed Services Committee hearing about the positions because the Greeley-based guard members had yet to receive new assignments.

“We just want to get them working,” Crow said. 

Meink seemed to agree. 

“We need to get on with that remissioning,” he said. 

The news release that Polis’ office posted online Saturday noted that the Air Force still needs to sign a Record of Decision to “initiate the transfer activities.”

In addition to asking for answers during the hearing, Crow also penned a letter to Meink and the chief of staff of the Air Force asking for a decision. All the members of Colorado’s congressional delegation signed the request.

U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank, R-Colorado Springs, praised the new missions. 

“These dedicated men and women are an essential part of our national defense and this decision protects their vital contribution to our community,” Crank said in a news release. 

The 233rd Space Group oversaw the one-of-a-kind Mobile Ground System, which provided missile warning to the North American Aerospace Defense Command, also known as NORAD, in the event of a war. 

The 137th Space Warning Squadron, charged with operating the system, retired it last year.  

But that retirement was not expected to leave a gap in capability because Space Force’s Delta 4 is charged with missile warning and tracking and operates three constellations of overhead persistent infrared satellites and two types of ground-based radars.

The group also oversaw the 233rd Space Communications Squadron, 233rd Security Forces Squadron, 233rd Logistics Readiness Flight and the 138th Electromagnetic Warfare Squadron. 

Electromagnetic warfare has become more visible because of the ongoing war in Ukraine, where jamming GPS signals to interfere with drones is common.