Der nächste Chef der Space Force lehnt die Idee von Weltraumfreibeutern ab | Es stellt sich heraus, dass einige der Meinungen Benjamin Franklins von vor 240 Jahren auch heute noch relevant sind.

>In the early years of the United States, when the nascent US Navy was still getting its sea legs, several presidents used privateers to capture or destroy enemy warships when armed naval vessels were unable to do so.

>President John Adams was one of the most vigorous proponents of commissioning private vessels for national ends. His administration issued letters of marque and reprisal during the so-called “Quasi-War” with France in the final years of the 18th century. These letters created the legal distinction between privateering and piracy.

>One of the letters signed by Adams, dated November 1799, authorized the use of a merchant ship to “subdue, seize, and take any armed French vessel” found near US coastal waters of “elsewhere on the high seas.” France also routinely used privateers against US shipping at the time.

>The Continental Navy also relied on privateers for military purposes during the American Revolution, and President James Madison approved the use of merchant ships to fight against the much larger British Royal Navy in the War of 1812. America’s use of privateers declined as the government expanded the size of the US Navy.

>The Constitution explicitly gives the government the power to use privateers. But the practice has become more controversial over the last 250 years. Many leaders in the late 18th century already considered privateering a morally ambiguous practice, according to Michael Crawford, a former senior historian at the Naval History and Heritage Command. The use of private vessels in warfare is largely moot in today’s era of US naval dominance.

„The use of private vessels in warfare is largely moot in today’s era of US naval dominance.“

The war in Ukraine casts some doubts on this assertion. Ukraine managed to destroy the Russian fleet in the Black Sea, even though they don’t have a real navy. Same as what Iran is doing. Naval dominance is a concept that needs drastic revisions in the current context.

Anyhow, space combat is totally different from naval combat. The biggest threat that could make space impossible are anti-satellite systems that aim to physically blow up satellites. Any such combat would trigger a Kessler syndrome. The priority should be to negotiate with all governments to ban completely and forever any ASAT system. Good luck with that.