Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) met with Gen. Norton Schwartz, Air Force Chief of Staff, on Sept. 23 to discuss the way ahead for USAF and Air National Guard forces in North Dakota. In a statement, Conrad called the conversation “frank and positive.” He said Schwartz knows that both Grand Forks and Minot Air Force Bases have “tremendous community support” and believes that Schwartz understands “the valuable role each [base] will continue to play in securing our nation.”
Lt. Gen. Stephen L. Davis, the Department of the Air Force’s top internal watchdog, has been nominated to lead Air Force Global Strike Command, which oversees the service’s bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles.