Davis-Monthan 
AFB, Ariz., is abuzz with military construction activity. In fact, it’s one of the busiest USAF sites in this regard, with more than $240 million in projects under way and the possibility for a total of twice that over the next five years. Among the MILCON, workers are erecting an HC-130J simulator building as part of the beddown of the new rescue tanker there and the establishment of a personnel recovery center of excellence. Due for completion this summer are the new Fire and Crash Rescue Station and new 144-person dormitory. Construction will start this year for a double hangar for the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group that will be large enough to fit two KC-135s or 16 F-16s. Construction of a 350-room visiting quarters will start in Fiscal 2013. The base will also host a 170-acre 14.5-megawatt solar photovoltaic system. (Davis-Monthan report by 1st Lt. Michael Borradaile)
While U.S. defense officials have spent much of the past decade warning that China is the nation’s pacing threat and its People’s Liberation Army represents an urgent threat in the Indo-Pacific, several defense researchers are skeptical that the PLA has the human capital, the structural ability, or the political appetite…