Consolidation of the Air Force’s human performance research at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, took an important step forward April 16 with the award of the construction contract for the new 680,000 square-foot complex that will host the mission under the newly established 711th Human Performance Wing. The Army Corps of Engineers let the $195 million contract to the joint venture of Butt Construction of Dayton, Ohio, and Archer Western Contractors, a part of the Chicago-based Walsh Group. “We are beginning the largest base construction effort since World War II,” said Col. Colleen Ryan, commander of the 88th Air Base Wing. The base plans a ground-breaking ceremony in June, and officials anticipate completion of the complex by early 2011. Creation of the 711th HPW March 25—which combines the units of the 311th Human Systems Wing from Brooks City-Base, Tex., with the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Human Effectiveness Directorate—came about as a result of a BRAC 2005 mandate. (Wright-Patterson report by Derek Kaufman)
The Pentagon plans to use U.S. Air Force C-17s and C-130s to deport 5,400 people currently detained by Customs and Border Protection, officials announced Jan. 22, the first act in President Donald Trump’s sweeping promise to crack down on undocumented immigrants and increase border security.