AMERICA is bracing itself for war in space and has begun training U.S. air force personnel for science fiction-style cosmic conflicts, it has been revealed.

Defence chiefs fear Russia and China are developing space weapons which would give them a potentially catastrophic edge over the U.S. in any future conflict.

To counter this threat, the air force has launched a program called the “Space Mission Force” which is dedicated to “developing space warfighters for tomorrow”.

In a white paper, General John Hyten, commander of air force Space Command, wrote: “Despite world interest in avoiding militarisation of space, potential adversaries have identified the use of space as an advantage for U.S. military forces, and are actively fielding systems to deny our use of space in a conflict.

“This is not without precedence. Through the centuries, nations formed armies, navies and air forces to defend the right to use the global commons of land, sea and air.

“Securing our right to use space is simply an extension of an age old principle to guarantee use of global commons.”

Although a space war conjures up images of X-Wing starfighters attacking the Death Star, this sort of conflict is a long way off.

The U.S. Air Force’s new strategy is aimed at protecting its “freedom of action in space”, which will primarily involve protecting satellites and other orbital facilities which are used in military reconnaissance and surveillance.

Its training program will subject units to “demanding training … focused on improving combat capability against ever-increasing threats and complex scenarios”.

General Hyten’s white paper did not include concrete details of how the Airforce will actually fight threats in space or what these threats might be.

It is known that China has the capability to destroy satellites, while Russia recently tested a warplane capable of flying to “near space”.

Moscow is also rumoured to be developing a nuclear-armed space bomber, although Russian defence officials have denied this suggestion.

“Our space forces must demonstrate their ability to react to a thinking adversary and operate as warfighters in this environment,” Hyten added in the white paper.

“Our nation faces current and future challenges in space that demand an immediate change in how we organise, train, equip and employ our forces,” he added.

The Department of Defense has also set aside $6.6 billion to fund “space protection” schemes.

Lt. Gen. Jay Raymond, the Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for operations, recently said America was undergoing a “renaissance fuelled by the need to protect and defend these new capabilities and space capabilities that we have become so reliant on”.

This story was originally published on The Sun.