Photo: Cody Scanlan ~ USA TODAY NETWORK
May 15, 2023 ~ As the Michigan Selfridge Air National Guard Base is set to lose one of its main missions, state and federal leaders are working towards setting the base up for the future.
On Monday, the air base located in Macomb County broke ground on a $28 million project to build a 41,900-square-foot maintenance hangar. Among those in attendance was Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), the latter helped secure federal funding for the project.
Peters, who is part of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said to 760 WJR’s Paul W. Smith that Selfridge is the largest military airspace complex east of the Mississippi River. In 2021, Peters helped secure $28 million in funding for the base.
PODCAST:
May 16, 2023 ~ U.S. Senator Gary Peters talks to Paul W. about the new jet hanger at Selfridge Air National Guard Base and he says it is great for the community.
(CONTINUED) The Selfridge Air Base also employs about 5,000 people, with Whitmer adding at the groundbreaking ceremony that the hanger will create hundreds of additional jobs.
Recently, the U.S. Air Force announced the A-10 Warthog fighter would be retired over the next 5 to 6 years, a mission long held at Selfridge. A new fighter jet mission is now trying to be secured for the air base, with Peters telling Paul W. that the new hanger will accommodate any jet fighter brought to Selfridge.
Whitmer has pledged $100 million in state tax dollars to the air base if it can secure a new fighter mission.
Peters and others have been trying to campaign to the Air Force on the importance of the air base.
“We are on the northern (U.S.) boarder,” Peters said to Paul W. “When you think about potential adversaries, the likely attack vector for the United States would be over the Arctic coming down from the north. Having an air base located where Selfridge is with advanced fighters would be critical for national security.”
The project is estimated to be completed by 2025.
760 WJR TOP NEWS STORIES:
