After the Air Force Reserve Command pushed back the deactivation of the 440th Airlift Wing by one year, U.S. Rep. Renee Ellmers was one of the first to say the fight wasn't over. "We will remain in this effort and on this fight, and we will be watching really closely and [will be] ready to act at anytime," Ellmers, who represents North Carolina's 2nd district, said Thursday.
Fight Over 440th Airlift Wing Remains
By Kathryn Trogdon
The Sanford Herald
Sunday, August 2, 2015
After the Air Force Reserve Command pushed back the deactivation of the 440th Airlift Wing by one year, U.S. Rep. Renee Ellmers was one of the first to say the fight wasn’t over.
“We will remain in this effort and on this fight, and we will be watching really closely and [will be] ready to act at anytime,” Ellmers, who represents North Carolina’s 2nd district, said Thursday.
The 440th, which flies C-130 aircraft in support of Fort Bragg training, had been scheduled to be deactivated Sept. 30 until Col. Karl Schmitkons, commander of the 440th, announced the extension.
While local, state and federal leaders breathed a sigh of relief, Ellmers said there was still work to be done to ensure the deactivation, which would negatively affect the country and state, would not happen.
“We live in a more dangerous world than ever right now, and we need to do everything that we can to make sure our military men and women have the training necessary to act,” she said.
Specifically, the 440th supplies C-130s to the 82nd Airborne Division for training. But if the 440th was deactivated, Ellmers said the C-130s would have to be flown in from other bases for that training or for use if members of the airborne division were deployed.
“Some of them are part of the global response force and have to be ready at any given time,” Ellmers said. “They would have to deploy within hours if they were called upon.”
But the adverse effects of a deactivation would not stop at the Cumberland County line, said George Breece, chairman of the Fayetteville Regional Chamber of Commerce.
“It would mean thousands of jobs [lost]. It would mean families moving away from our community,” Breece said. “The truth is that anytime you lose jobs and lose that kind of income, it has a negative impact, and I think it would have an impact in Lee County and certainly a significant impact in Cumberland County.”
Ellmers’ spokeswoman Blair Ellis said throughout the year and a half Ellmers has sought to halt deactivation of the 440th, Ellmers has remained in contact with families and local leaders who would be impacted.
“The effect this decision will have on service men and women, their families and the local economy is precisely why she is working so hard to prevent deactivation,” Ellis said. “Her end goal is to halt this shortsighted proposal from moving forward in order to provide certainly and stability to the families and others affected.”
Col. Robert Palmer, spokesman for Air Force Reserve Command, said the decision to delay the deactivation came because of pending legislation that is part of the National Defense Authorization Act. U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis and Ellmers have amendments in the Senate and House versions of the bill which would delay the 440th deactivation.
In the Senate version, Tillis’ amendment would require the 18th Airborne Corps, 82nd Airborne Division and U.S. Army Special Operations Command to certify the loss of the 440th would not harm training at Fort Bragg before it would be permitted to be deactivated. In the House version, Ellmers’ amendment would require the secretary of defense to personally certify deactivation of the wing would not affect military readiness.
A separate amendment by Tillis also would force the Air Force to move modernized C-130 aircraft to Fort Bragg for use by local units by September 2017. That amendment doesn't prevent the 440th from being closed, but it would create a replacement unit to which local airmen could possibly transfer.
“That remains in place and we will watch that as it plays out during the [National Defense Authorization Act] conference process,” Ellmers said. “We put the pieces in place to continue this effort, and we are going to remain incredibly vigilant and make sure we are ready to act as needed.”
Palmer said the additional requirements created by the NDAA would mean the Air Force would need more time before it could inactivate the 440th.
Ellmers, Tillis and Breece expressed their intent to continue to “leave no stone unturned” to halt the deactivation further, including reaching out to Air Force Reserve Command leaders to share their concerns and emphasize the importance of the 440th in America’s combat readiness.
“When the world dials 911, they are calling Fort Bragg,” Breece said. “When the United States of American dials 911 the phone is answered here, and we need to make sure our readiness and training stand [our soldiers] ready to protect the freedoms that you and I have every day.”
