[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 101 (Thursday, June 10, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4024-S4025]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                        Ellsworth Air Force Base

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, last night, the Air Force announced some 
historic news for South Dakota, and today I am proud to share that 
Ellsworth Air Force Base in Western South Dakota has been officially 
named Main Operating Base 1 for the future B-21 Bomber, home of the 
Raider. This designation not only means that Ellsworth will be the 
first base to host the B-21 Raider, but it will also host the formal 
training unit and the first operational squadron.
  Those who have heard me talk about the importance of this decision 
likely know the outlook for the base wasn't so rosy 16 years ago. I had 
just arrived here in the Senate in 2005 when Ellsworth was placed on 
the base realignment and closure, or BRAC, list that May. It was an 
all-hands effort by the congressional delegation and Ellsworth and 
State and community leaders to make the case to the Bush administration 
and to the BRAC Commission to remove Ellsworth from the closure list.
  Many thought South Dakota might not have the clout to make this 
stand; that we didn't wield enough influence. We were only given about 
a 12-percent odds of pulling through, but we were determined that we 
weren't going to lose Ellsworth.
  We started by challenging the cost-savings assumptions of the BRAC 
Commission, which began to unravel under

[[Page S4025]]

scrutiny, and we proved it would actually cost money to close 
Ellsworth. We also pressed the Commissioners not to put all of our eggs 
in one basket when it comes to our Nation's security interests, 
highlighting the organizational risk of consolidating all of our B-1s 
at one location. The outlook was grim, but we stood our ground and we 
won the day and we were removed from the BRAC list that August.
  But we didn't stop there. We got right to work on building up the 
base so that we would never again find ourselves in the same position. 
In 2007, we saw the Air Force Financial Services Center open at 
Ellsworth; 2011, saw the arrival of the 89th Attack Squadron and its 
command and control stations for MQ-9 Reapers. In 2015, a decade-long 
mission paid off with the quadrupling of the training airspace for the 
base. The Powder River Training Complex is now the largest training 
airspace in the continental United States and can be used for large-
force exercises that draw combat aircraft from across the country, and 
it is well suited for B-21 training. This is just one of the efforts 
that we undertook to put Ellsworth in the best position possible to 
secure this new mission, and it is wonderful to see it pay off with 
yesterday's announcement.
  I know that while South Dakota is celebrating today, others are 
disappointed in this decision. For those who were seeking to have the 
Main Operating Base 1 in their State but will now follow Ellsworth in 
the sequencing and wait a little longer for the B-21 mission to arrive, 
know this: My support for the B-21 enterprise will not lessen because 
we are at this milestone.
  As I said, we argued 15 years ago that the United States should not 
put all its eggs in one basket when it comes to strategic assets. I 
stand by that reasoning to this day. Under the current bomber roadmap, 
every bomber base will keep a bomber mission well into the future. The 
Stealth B-21 will eventually replace our B-1s and Stealth B-2s at bases 
around the country. Meanwhile, our fleet of B-52s will be given new 
modern engines through a service life extension program. All of our 
bomber bases which have played and continue to play an essential role 
in our national security will continue to do so. Long-range strike will 
remain a team effort.
  The core of our military strength is our men and women in uniform. 
They volunteer to lay down their lives, if necessary, in the service of 
our Nation, and it is incumbent on us here in Congress to do our part 
to ensure that they have the tools they need to succeed in their 
missions.
  The B-21 is an essential part of that equation. I remind my 
colleagues that the United States is one of only three countries in the 
world that operate a strategic bomber. The other two countries are 
Russia and China, and they are both working to develop their own next-
generation bombers. We cannot afford to cede any ground.
  The B-21 is scheduled to take its first flight in 2022 and should 
enter service around 2027. It will replace our aging B-1s, which have 
proven a workhorse over the last several decades, as well as two 
squadrons of B-2s.
  But our small bomber fleet is growing smaller. Seventeen of the most 
structurally fatigued B-1s are being retired this year, which has 
actually permitted maintainers to concentrate resources on the 
remaining aircraft. Flight hours are up, and the B-1 has been a key 
component of the new Bomber Task Force missions.
  But that doesn't mean a smaller bomber force is sustainable in the 
long run without reinvestment and modernization. Our national security 
requires that the B-21 Program move full-speed ahead. Fortunately, 
public reports indicate the B-21 Program is on-budget and on-time. ``B-
21 speeds to IOC,'' or initial operating capacity, reads a headline 
recently from June 3.
  In an interview, the Air Force Global Strike Commander, Gen. Timothy 
Ray, detailed the agile and adaptive B-21 process. He noted that adding 
certain capabilities to the bombers could take one-tenth of the time it 
has for previous airframes.
  The ability to incrementally add new capabilities and upgrades, 
instead of being forced to make wholesale block upgrades, should keep 
B-21 development moving quickly. And Congress--Congress can do its part 
by providing stable funding for the B-21.
  Now, with the record of decision for Main Operating Base 1 signed, we 
also need to restart in earnest on the investments necessary to prepare 
Ellsworth for the B-21. We can now get to work building the high-end 
maintenance facilities for the B-21's stealth coating, training, and 
operations buildings for the new missions and a secure weapons facility 
for the nuclear mission.
  Ellsworth has come a long way since it was placed on the chopping 
block 16 years ago.
  I am grateful to the Air Force for this decision and the hard work by 
so many to get us here today. From BRAC to B-21, I am humbled to have 
been a small part of this effort, and I remain steadfast in my support 
for the mission and the men and women of the 28th Bomb Wing. I can't 
wait to get to work on this new chapter of Ellsworth's story.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.