The North Dakota Air National Guard on Oct. 18 formally activated its new 219th Security Forces Squadron, which is to work with the active-duty 91st SFS at Minot AFB, N.D. to secure 91st Missile Wing ICBM facilities. When fully staffed, the 219th SFS will have 140 personnel, making it the largest security forces unit in the Air Guard. Though attached to ANG’s 119th Wing at Fargo, the 219th SFS operates from Minot and marks a new venture for the Air Guard in western North Dakota, said MSgt. Tanya Augdahl, a recruiter with the 219th. North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven, who attended the ceremony, remarked on “the strong partnership” between the state and Minot Air Force Base that enabled creation of the new unit, which began operations as a detachment in July 2007. State officials pressed the Air Force for the new mission following BRAC 2005 actions that stripped the 119th FW of its F-16 fighters. Some 30 airmen from Fargo have shifted to the new squadron at Minot. (North Dakota National Guard report by Air Force Capt. Penny Ripperger)
The Air Force and Boeing agreed to a nearly $2.4 billion contract for a new lot of KC-46 aerial tankers on Nov. 21. The deal, announced by the Pentagon, is for 15 new aircraft in Lot 11 at a cost of $2.389 billion—some $159 million per tail.