Hoeven: B-1 Bomber Visits Grand Forks In Preparation for Upcoming Move

Hoeven: B-1 Bomber Visits Grand Forks In Preparation for Upcoming Move

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven issued the following statement after a B-1B Lancer bomber visited Grand Forks Air Force Base in preparation for the upcoming move of the aircraft and related personnel from Ellsworth Air Force Base. Grand Forks Air Force Base is set to begin housing 17 of the aircraft starting next year, and this week's visit was made to test the base's fueling systems and facilities to ensure the bomb wing can be adequately accommodated during the temporary relocation.

Hoeven serves as a member of the Senate Defense Appropriations Committee, through which he has worked to fund and advance the relocation effort, having made the case for Grand Forks to serve in this role to the head of the Air Force Global Strike Command General Thomas Bussiere and Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall. This comes as part of the senator's long-term efforts to strengthen North Dakota's role in the nation's defense, including the unmanned missions in Grand Forks and Fargo and the nuclear missions in Minot.

"This week's visit of the B-1B aircraft to Grand Forks is an important step as the Air Force prepares to temporarily move the bomb wing," said Hoeven. "Grand Forks Air Force Base has the capacity needed to house this and the wide variety of other missions we've worked to bring to this region due to our decades-long effort to invest in the base's facilities, build up our expertise in aviation and unmanned aerial systems in the region and establish the one-of-a-kind Grand Sky business and technology park. Such efforts have enabled us to expand North Dakota's role in our national defense, whether on the ground, in the air or up into space."

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