Airbridge program losing 20 personnel
The Maine Air National Guard's 101st Air Refueling Wing in Bangor is losing 20 jobs as of Nov. 30, and the future of the entire program remains in question.
The wing's 150 active-duty personnel learned last month their orders had been extended only until Oct. 31 as federal officials debate whether to scrap the so-called Airbridge program, which provides in-air refueling service for cargo planes and military jets, to cut military spending. This week, 20 Guard members were told their orders would not be funded past the end of November, according to the Bangor Daily News. Gen. Raymond Johns Jr., a top-ranking U.S. Air Force official and commander of its Mobility Command, visited Bangor yesterday at U.S. Sen. Susan Collins' urging and praised the wing's performance, but also stressed budget pressures facing the Air Force.
A Senate appropriations bill includes $378 million that would keep the Airbridge program operational until September 2011, but a House version of the bill does not. About 850 Guard personnel are assigned to the Bangor base, but should it lose all 150 active-duty personnel, its status would shift to a training unit.
Go to the article from the Bangor Daily News >>
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments