U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) commended plans by the U.S. Department of the Air Force to conduct infrastructure planning in 2022 for construction and renovation projects at the North Dakota-based Grand Forks Air Force Base that are slated to begin in 2023.
The department’s plan, announced on Aug. 26, will provide the construction and renovations necessary to enable the 319th Reconnaissance Wing to develop and train crews in support of future Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance (ISR) missions as the Air Force looks to restructure ISR capabilities to meet national defense priorities and support joint all-domain command and control capabilities.
The plans also result from advocacy by Sen. Hoeven and U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) with Air Force Chief of Staff General Charles Q. Brown Jr., about restructuring Air Force ISR capabilities to meet national defense priorities.
“In next year’s budget, we are addressing emerging threats posed by our adversaries and ensuring that the Air Force will have the most capable ISR systems,” Sens. Hoeven and Cramer said in a joint statement released on Aug. 26. “Grand Forks Air Force Base and the 319th Reconnaissance Wing are foundational in the Air Force’s long term plan for ISR and joint all-domain command and control capabilities to meet the highest national defense priorities.”
According to Sen. Hoeven’s staff, the senators also have secured commitments from the Air Force to budget for construction and renovation projects to occur during 2023-2026 at Grand Forks Air Force Base in support of future 319th Reconnaissance Wing missions, and expand the number of operational units under the command of the 319th Reconnaissance Wing that are involved in next-generation missions.
Additionally, Sens. Hoeven and Cramer have worked to ensure Grand Forks Air Force Base remains core to the United States’ national security mission, prompting the Air Force to lay out its plan for North Dakota, which includes keeping the RQ-4 Block 40 at the base through the late 2020s, and ensuring the base and the 319th Reconnaissance Wing are central to the Air Force’s long-term future in ISR, according to the senator’s staff.