Though no response was ever made to his initial idea for an Air Force sponsored space law symposium, General Kuhfeld had succeeded in helping to create (from the informal structure) a permanent working group to coordinate the Air Force position. Eventually the Air Force JAG did sponsor a space law symposium in July 1964 in Washington, D.C. Brig Gen Hagan, without Air Force f'mancial assistance and at his own personal expense, and with General Kuhfeld's support, pulled together the first Air Force space law symposium. He did the staff work and accomplished at least informally what Generals Kuhfeld and Menter earlier had not been able to achieve.[1]
The metamorphosis of the growing Air Force interest in space law and doctrine continued, eventually leading to the creation of the Space Panel within the Air Force board structure.[2] However, before the creation of the Space Panel, several conventions and treaties were negotiated. A review of the Air Force's participation during the passage of these various international conventions, from the Principles Treaty[fn 1] to the Moon Treaty[fn 2] reveals an Air Force that was content to simply coordinate and not originate. Although the Air Force JAG has had an attorney assigned to space matters since the 1950s, only relatively recent actions within the Air Force particularly the creation of Space Command, the dedication of personnel assets within the Air Staff as "space experts," the biennial Conferences on the Law Relating to National Security Activities in Outer Space, and a more aggressive approach by the JAG regarding space matters, indicate that General Kuhfeld's recommendation for a more active leadership posture may now be coming to fruition.
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