BELLEVILLE – Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today expressed their support for Scott Air Force Base’s 126th Air Refueling Wing’s bid to become a KC-46A’s main operating base (MOB) after the Air Force announced Scott was selected as a finalist for the role. The KC-46A aircraft is the first phase in modernizing the U.S. Air Force’s aging tanker fleet and selecting Scott would protect the 347 ANG positions currently overseeing the KC-135 aircrafts while adding 94 new ANG positions to support the incoming KC-46A’s— overall expanding the Metro East’s local economy as well as helping to ensure the continued success of the Base.
“Scott Air Force Base (AFB) is an important driver of our state’s economy, a key piece to our country’s national security and a critical support network for the individuals who serve, along with their families,” Duckworth said. “I’m proud to see U.S. Air Force leadership recognize the 126th Air Refueling Wing as one of the top prospective basing sites for the new KC-46A aircraft. The work done at Scott AFB is something all Illinoisans can be proud of, I hope the Air Force ultimately selects it for this MOB and I will continue to push for the support and resources that Scott AFB deserves.”
“The airmen and women at Scott Air Force Base have shown time and time again that they are up to any task put before them. The 126th Air Refueling Wing has proven itself to be a strong candidate for a new set of KC-46 aircraft, and I’m pleased that U.S. Air Force leadership has recognized that with its recent selection of a shortlist,” said Durbin. “I believe that no base is better equipped to receive new aircraft than Scott Air Force Base and look forward to the Air Force giving them full and fair consideration as it makes a final decision in the months ahead.”
As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Airland, Senator Duckworth has been pushing for Scott Air Force base to be chosen as the new MOB 7 location. In May, asked the Deputy Chief of Staff for Planning Programs, Lieutenant General Richard Moore Jr., USAF about the basing criteria for MOB 7 and plan for the aging national guard aircraft during a hearing on Air Force modernization and FY25’s budget.
For Fiscal Year 2023, Duckworth and Durbin secured $2.5 million for the planning and design of a new Refueling Hangar Facility at Scott Air Force Base for the 126th Air Refueling Wing. The original hangar was constructed in 1956 and with help from this funding, the new facility is now equipped to house the KC-46A aircraft. The KC-46A provides greater refueling, cargo and aeromedical evacuation capabilities compared to the KC-135, the KC-46A will provide aerial refueling support to Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and partner-nation receivers.
Duckworth and Durbin have been champions in strengthening Illinois’s military bases and National Guard units. Duckworth and Durbin worked tirelessly to support the 182nd Airlift Wing and protect the future of C-130 aircraft, ensuring that the mission of the182nd Airlift Wing is safeguarded, protecting the jobs of 1,200 Airmen and approximately 370 full-time employees. Duckworth secured a provision in the Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act to establish a minimum inventory for the Air Force’s C-130 fleet, ensuring that the Air Force has sufficient C-130 capacity to carry out critical missions domestically as well as overseas. In the Fiscal Year 2023 Omnibus Appropriations Bill, Durbin, a member of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, helped secure $1.7 billion for 16 new C-130J aircraft for the Air National Guard, which Duckworth also supported.
Scott Field was one of 32 Air Service training camps established after the United States entered World War I. Since then, Scott Air Force Base’s mission has been to develop and care for Airmen and their families, while promoting base and community partnerships extending beyond their location in St. Clair County. The base is home to the headquarters of many major military organizations and currently employs 13,000 people.
