The PLA’s Updated Space Operations Textbook: What You Need to Know

China Aerospace Studies Institute

China’s Academy of Military Sciences and National Defense University have updated their authoritative space warfare doctrine with the publication of the 2024 textbook, *Introduction to Space Operations*. This new volume replaces the 2013 edition, *Lectures on the Science of Space Operations*, signaling a major shift in how the People's Liberation Army trains its postgraduate cadets for future orbital conflicts.

Author Jiang Lianju, formerly of the Academy of Military Sciences, restructured the text from a lecture-style format into a standardized, authoritative manual. This structural evolution reflects the military's broader efforts to codify space operations within its regular ten-year planning cycle. The updated doctrine expands on preestablished guidance while adjusting previous priorities to align with contemporary geopolitical realities. Space is now a contested domain. Ultimately, these comprehensive revisions provide a critical window into the strategic, doctrinal, and operational evolution of Chinese counterspace capabilities, detailed further in the full report.

Comment

The transition from *Lectures on the Science of Space Operations* to *Introduction to Space Operations* signals a shift from theoretical academic instruction to standardised operational codification. By removing the pedagogical prompts of the 2013 edition, the Academy of Military Sciences has elevated space warfare from an emerging concept to an established, highly structured combat discipline. This formalisation indicates that the People's Liberation Army now views orbital confrontation not as a supporting capability, but as a primary, independent line of effort.

This doctrinal maturation directly aligns with the April 2024 dissolution of the Strategic Support Force and the creation of the dedicated Aerospace Force. Standardising this literature ensures that newly minted officers entering the Aerospace Force possess a uniform tactical baseline for executing counterspace operations. Consequently, the integration of offensive space capabilities into the Eastern Theatre Command will likely accelerate, streamlining the co-ordination of kinetic and non-kinetic orbital strikes during a Taiwan Strait contingency.

Strategic Question for Discussion

If the standardised doctrine in *Introduction to Space Operations* is fully operationalised, how will the newly formed Aerospace Force balance its centralised strategic command with the tactical requirements of the Eastern Theatre Command during a high-intensity conflict?

The transition suggests that Beijing will likely employ a dual-command structure, where the Aerospace Force retains strategic control over orbital assets while delegating direct tactical support to theatre-level commanders. My assessment is that this model will rely heavily on pre-delegated engagement authorities for non-kinetic counterspace operations to maintain operational tempo. However, the friction of co-ordinating space-based electronic warfare with local joint fires under the Eastern Theatre Command remains a critical bottleneck.

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