The US Air Force has estimated start up costs for a proposed US Space Force, a new military service championed by President Donald Trump, will be around $US13 billion ($A18 billion) in the first five years.
The Air Force, the US military branch that takes responsibility for space, authored a September 14 memo outlining a proposal for "a lethality-focused organisation that will field space superiority capabilities."
The Trump administration in August announced an ambitious plan to usher in the force as the sixth branch of the military by 2020. It would require Congressional approval.
The Pentagon memo was written by Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson, a former Member of Congress from New Mexico.
The memo estimated that creating a Space Force will cost in excess of $US3 billion in the first 12 months with an additional $US10 billion needed over the following four years.
The US Air Force estimated that there could be more than 13,000 people in the new "Department of the Space Force."
