GREAT FALLS – Great Falls is being considered as a potential location for a new US Air Force squadron.
In a letter to the Secretary of the Air Force, Senator Jon Tester backed the idea, stating he’s confident Great Falls is key to meeting and exceeding the Air Force’s many mission factors that are weighed and measured during the strategic basing process.
The new squadron is called an Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron (AES) and is being considered in more than 10 other locations.
According to Montana Defense Alliance Chair David Weissman, the Montana Air National Guard has the ability to take a C-130 and turn it into an AES. It would even be an opportunity to hire 100 new people for the squad.
Weissman said it would add value to any C-130 mission that MANG would complete in the future.
He added that the new squadron would be a positive for not only our military but for Great Falls and that it’s something they have worked on for quite some time.
If approved, the plan will be executed in 2021.
-Elizabeth Transue reporting for MTN News
