Capitalizing on his new House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee assignment, Congressman Mo Brooks (AL-05) on Wednesday helped secure two military construction projects important to the Redstone Arsenal defense community.
During the subcommittee’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) mark-up, Brooks successfully obtained authorization for $38 million for construction of an aircraft and flight equipment building on Redstone Arsenal and $40 million for construction of a new air traffic control tower and airport terminal on Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands.
In a statement, Brooks said, “The Army’s next generation of rotorcraft is a top priority that helps ensure that America stays ahead of our adversaries. Much of this rotorcraft work is done at Redstone Arsenal because of the Tennessee Valley’s vast aerospace engineering expertise.”
“Unfortunately, existing Redstone Arsenal facilities are inadequate for this developmental task,” he continued. “The new $38 million facility at Redstone Arsenal that I helped to successfully insert into the Readiness portion of the National Defense Authorization Act will ensure there is sufficient hangar space to properly shelter, test, and support new rotorcraft.”
He also explained the significance of the Kwajalein Atoll funding.
“Key Redstone Arsenal agencies— namely Missile Defense Agency, U.S. Army Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office, and U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command— rely heavily on access to the Reagan Test Site on Kwajalein Atoll for missile and hypersonic weapons testing,” Brooks outlined. “Unfortunately, the Kwajalein air traffic control tower and airport terminal were constructed 65 years ago and are in disrepair. New, updated facilities are desperately needed.”
“At my request, construction of a new air traffic control tower and terminal is being included in the Readiness portion of the National Defense Authorization Act. I’m pleased Redstone Arsenal employees will be better able to access Kwajalein so they can conduct vital developmental and operational testing,” he added.
While inserting the authorization for the two projects during the Readiness subcommittee markup was important, there is still a long battle ahead to keep the language in the legislation.
Brooks advised, “It is important to emphasize that these successes are just the beginning of a long legislative process. The next step is to defend these authorizations before the full House Armed Services Committee and, thereafter, on the House Floor. Thereafter, the fight resumes in the Senate and then concludes in the appropriations process.”
“Of course, getting these two much-needed projects in the initial draft of the National Defense Authorization Act are big, first step victories that can go a long way to helping ensure long-term success,” he concluded.
Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
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