Secretary of War Pete Hegseth went on a test flight in Florida on Monday, flown by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, as the agency prepares for its Artemis II launch expected for next week.
The same day Hegseth visited their facilities in Port Canaveral, NASA began one of its final tests of the Space Launch System rocket, which will take four astronauts further into space than anyone has since the Apollo program ended more than 50 years ago.
NASA does not have a specific launch date for the Artemis II mission, though the test run will provide indications of whether the launch, scheduled as early as next Sunday, can proceed without delay. At roughly 11:25 a.m. ET on Monday, the Artemis launch director gave the green light for personnel to begin loading cryogenic liquid propellant into the rocket for the “wet dress rehearsal.”
“Really well done,” Hegsth told Isaacman after they got off the plane following the test flight. “This guy is going to make NASA great again, that much I know. And anything we can do to partner together, we’re going to do.”
On social media, Isaacman said it was an “honor” to fly with Hegseth: “Just as we share this critical facility at the Cape, we share a common goal of American superiority in the ultimate high ground of space. Next up is America’s return to the lunar environment, with the Artemis II wet dress rehearsal underway today.”
The secretary visited NASA headquarters on Monday morning before stopping by the Jeff Bezos-owned Blue Origin, as part of his nationwide Arsenal of Freedom tour, where he addresses local defense-related manufacturers to discuss the importance of strengthening and diversifying the defense industrial base.
He spoke about the need for the United States to dominate space — with both offensive and defensive weapons — during his address to Blue Origin workers.
Under President Donald Trump and Hegseth, the military is working to develop what the president has named the “Golden Dome,” a massive, multi-layered air defense system intended to protect the entire U.S. homeland.
“We’re talking about a vigilant constellation of next generation sensors and satellites that will see every threat from every corner of the globe, paired with a network of space based interceptors ready to neutralize any ballistic missile, any hypersonic weapon, any drone, long before it threatens our homeland, the kind of protection President Trump has promised the American people and the War Department will delivery that is how we establish total orbital supremacy,” Hegseth said.
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“No more business as usual, which I know, Mr. Bezos, is music to your ears. You’ve never done business as usual, and at the War Department, business as usual is over. Our job is to unleash space pioneers, just like we are unleashing our war fighters,” he added. “Based on what I saw today, Blue Origin is going to be [doing] plenty of winning, and that’s a great thing.”
The secretary also led an enlistment ceremony for dozens of new service members at the Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum.
