WASHINGTON — The Senate Armed Services Committee has scheduled a July 28 hearing to consider the promotion of Army Lt. Gen. James Dickinson to general and his nomination to be the next commander of U.S. Space Command.

Dickinson is currently deputy commander of U.S. Space Command and was nominated by President Trump in late June to be the commander of the newly established combatant command focused on space operations.

The SASC at the same hearing also will consider the nomination of Air Force Lt. Gen. Glen VanHerck for promotion to general and commander of U.S. Northern Command.

Dickinson became deputy commander of U.S. Space Command in December 2019. He previously was the commander of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command.

The current commander of U.S. Space Command is Gen. John “Jay” Raymond, who also serves as the chief of space operations of the U.S. Space Force. In the legislation that established the Space Force, Congress made Raymond dual-hatted for one year. If Dickinson is confirmed by the Senate he will take over the command and Raymond will remain chief of the Space Force.

U.S. Space Command is currently headquartered at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs. The Air Force in May launched an open bidding process to select the permanent location of U.S. Space Command headquarters. The service said communities from 26 states have submitted bids.