Florida is not on the short list for the U.S. Space Command

Cape Canaveral, Fla — The Florida Space Economic Development Agency said Tuesday, that Florida is no longer in the running to host the newly established U.S. Space Command.

The news comes after Space Florida told a state-wide summit in Orlando last Friday that it was working hard to secure the Air Force's next combatant command.

The Air Force will make the final decision on the location and yesterday a short list of six sites were released: they include four Colorado locations: Buckley Air Force Base, Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, Peterson Air Force Base and Schriever Air Force Base; the Army's Redstone Arsenal in Alabama; and Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, according to the Air Force.

The final decision is expected sometime this summer.

Despite the bad news, officials are still working to make Florida an option for the defense department's newest unified combatant command which would eventually become the Space Force or the sixth branch of the armed forces.