State elected and military officials hope a 28-million-dollar hangar project will help attract a new fighter aircraft mission to Selfridge Air National Guard Base.
Steve Carmody reports, over the next five to six years...the United States Air Force plans to retire its fleet of aging A-10 Warthog fighters. The A-10s have been a critical part of the mission at Selfridge Air National Guard Base.
That’s why getting a new fighter is important to the Macomb County base.
Many of Michigan’s top elected leaders... including Governor Gretchen Whitmer gathered Monday ....to ceremonially shovel dirt in a box in a hangar at the base.
Whitmer said, “We’re all focused on fighting for a Selfridge fighter mission.”
The hope is the new hangar system at Selfridge will convince the U-S Air Force to station F-35s there. Winning that mission could be economically important...since officials say the base supports upwards of five thousand jobs.