Black Skies 23-3 marked a clear escalation in how the U.S. Space Force and joint partners are training for contested electromagnetic environments. The third iteration of the BLACK SKIES series ran in September 2023 and, by the organizers’ count, was the largest joint Space Electromagnetic Warfare exercise to date, with participation roughly tripling to more than 170 personnel from across services and components. That growth is important because it demonstrates expanding buy-in for tactical SEW training beyond a handful of specialists.

What the exercise was designed to accomplish

BLACK SKIES is an operationally focused training construct intended to link planning to tactical execution for SEW. The 23-3 iteration emphasized two things: realistic “live-fire” engagements against space links and integration of multi-source intelligence and joint EW assets. Practically, this meant combining space operators, electromagnetic warfare squadrons, space range and aggressor elements, intelligence squadrons, and ground command and control in scenarios that tried to simulate contested, degraded, and operationally limited environments.

Live-fire versus closed loop

A key technical takeaway is how BLACK SKIES 23-3 used both live-fire and closed-loop modes. Live-fire here does not mean kinetic. It means operators transmitted radiofrequency or electromagnetic signals to actual satellite transponders or operational network endpoints to exercise real link effects, then observed how those signals propagated and were affected. Closed-loop exercises replicate the same procedures but within contained networks and instrumentation to avoid impacting operational traffic. Both modes are necessary. Closed loop lets you iterate safely and cheaply while live-fire validates assumptions against real-world hardware and propagation paths. The organizers explicitly framed the live-fire activity as a crucial realism multiplier.

Notable participants and scenario elements

BLACK SKIES 23-3 included a broad roster: Combined Space Operations Center, multiple Electronic Warfare and Space Control squadrons, the 527th Space Aggressor Squadron, Reserve and National Guard EW flights, 26th Weapons Squadron elements running Remotely Piloted Aircraft Electronic Combat Officer Course (RECOC) scenarios, and the Army’s 1st Space Brigade participating in multi-intelligence processing drills. The RECOC scenarios targeted potential threats to RPA operations, which is the kind of cross-domain problem set that will show up in near-peer conflicts where space effects cascade into air and ground domains.

Tactical and technical implications

1) Instrumentation matters. Live-fire validation exposed the gap between modeled link effects and measured results. If you want to train SEW, you need calibrated receivers, spectrum monitoring, time-tagged telemetry and reproducible injects. Range instrumentation must be able to capture both RF spectra and system-level impacts on command and data links so you can convert noisy measurements into actionable lessons.

2) Spectrum deconfliction and safety are nontrivial. Real transmit events directed at operational transponders put a premium on coordination. Exercises that mix live satellite links and terrestrial EW emitters demand very tight scheduling, permissioning and tracking across range authorities, satellite owners, and regulatory bodies. That administrative friction is real but solvable with mature procedures. The exercise organizers relied on a mix of closed-loop rehearsals and closely controlled live windows to manage risk.

3) Cross-domain scenarios are the future. Including RECOC and Army multi-INT elements is not a gimmick. It is an operational recognition that space EW effects will be felt by RPAs, ground sensors and tactical networks. Training that keeps those links in the scenario produces better tactics, techniques and procedures for margin-critical mission sets.

4) People and processes scale faster than kit. BLACK SKIES 23-3 grew primarily by increasing participants and scenario complexity rather than fielding new hardware en masse. That shows the limiting factor for many SEW programs remains trained personnel who can plan, execute and analyze complex EM operations, and the institutional processes that let multiple services operate together effectively.

Where practitioners should focus after 23-3

  • Measurement baselines: Build repeatable test cases with agreed waveforms and metadata so teams can compare model predictions to live measurements.

  • End-to-end telemetry: Ensure EW effects are traceable from emitter to system impact, with logs that link RF events to higher-layer failures.

  • Joint playbooks: Standardize C2 handoffs, deconfliction steps and escalation pathways for mixed live/closed-loop drills. Exercises should capture not just technical lessons but also the operational choreography required for multi-service employment.

  • Legal and regulatory hygiene: Practitioners must be clear about what can and cannot be radiated. When civilian ranges or shared spectrum are involved, get written approvals and simulate worst-case spurious emissions in closed loops before live transmission.

Concluding assessment

BLACK SKIES 23-3 was a tangible step toward operationalizing space EW across the joint force. It demonstrated that realistic live-fire SEW training is possible when combined with extensive closed-loop rehearsal, rigorous instrumentation and multi-service coordination. For EW engineers and operational planners the message is straightforward: the technology envelope is important, but doctrine, range infrastructure and trained personnel are what make realistic space EW exercises useful. Continued iteration on measurement standards, cross-domain scenario design and inter-service playbooks will convert these exercises from proof of concept into a sustainable training pipeline for SEW fight clubs in the years ahead.