Funds talk: Tyndall may grow larger

Tyndall Air Force Base officials sent a list of rebuild projects to Congress on Aug. 5 designed to tackle Panama City, Fla., facilities destroyed by Hurricane Michael in October, Col. Brian Laidlaw, 325th Fighter Wing’s commander, told a Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship hearing in NW Florida on Aug. 14. Rebuilding about 50 percent of damaged buildings is estimated to cost about $3B over seven years, he told the committee, which included U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott (both R-Fla). Air Force Magazine reported in April that new military construction (MILCON) at Tyndall would likely cost about $2.5B - about half of total restoration. The base plans to spend about $650M more on recovery and repair contracts by Sept. 30, the end of FY 2019, Laidlaw said. He expects the base will execute more than $1B in contracts for supplies, repairs, utilities, and other base services for the entirety of FY-19, not including MILCON. With $1B in supplemental funding for MILCON (and $670M for operations/maintenance expenses at Tyndall and Offutt AFB, Neb.), the base had to prioritize projects that left some “on hold for a while,” he told Sen. Rubio. Recovery contracts are split into two categories: Salvageable buildings and total rebuilds. Seventy-three percent of military and civilian personnel are back at Tyndall – 85 percent counting airmen working at nearby Eglin AFB, Fla. With the exception of our F-22 and T-38 flying operations, much of which is at nearby Eglin AFB, and its Non-Commissioned Officer Academy (standing up in 2020), Tyndall has “fully resumed all of our missions,” he said. Recently repaired facilities include an air traffic control tower, 1st Air Force HQ, and the Air Battle Manager schoolhouse. The Air Force is studying the environmental impact of putting three F-35A squadrons and a new MQ-9 wing at Tyndall. The F-35A squadrons are tentatively scheduled to arrive in Fall 2023. That will drive a certain minimum number of MILCON projects needed to “prioritize with the funding that we do get,” Laidlaw said. Tyndall likely will add up to 1,800 more personnel to staff both programs – if formally approved, he said. Future staffing levels are “still under consideration,” but the two platforms will grow the base “larger than it was before the hurricane.” After recently consulting with a range of stakeholders, Tyndall is scheduled to hold a third “Industry Day” on Sept. 12 in Panama City to discuss reconstruction. (Source: AF Magazine 08/14/19)