AURORA | Preserving a state-led National Guard and the F-16 at Buckley Space Force Base were among priorities identified Tuesday by a local task force created to ensure the future of the Aurora military installation.
“We are unified,” Aurora Congressperson Jason Crow said. “We are ready to fight and advocate for Coloradans.”
Crow, Colorado Sen. John Hicknelooper, Lt. Gov Diana Primavera and Aurora City Manager Jason Batchelor met Tuesday with top Buckley officials as The Future of Buckley Task Force.
State leaders, including Crow and Primavera, are concerned about the future of the Buckley base, including its service members, missions, and aging F-16s.
“We talked about the protection of the 140th Fighter Wing, which are those F-16 teams that fly over Colorado that Coloradans know and love so well,” Crow said. “We talked about directing our National Guardsmen and women who do space missions.”
Earlier this year, the Air Force proposed transferring National Guard personnel from across the country — currently supporting the United States Space Force — into active duty with the Space Force, removing them from their respective state National Guards.
Governors from every state, leaders from all territories, all adjutant generals and numerous members of Congress and the United States Senate are working in a unified way to oppose the proposal, Crow said. Many of these leaders think the change also threatens National Security.
“Not on our watch,” Crow said. “You’re not going to take our men and women who served, who signed up to serve their communities and their country and remove them from state service.’”
The second pressing issue Crow mentioned is the United States Air Force’s proposal to cut several aging fighter wings nationwide. Although the Air Force has not explicitly identified the 140th Wing and Buckley as part of these cuts, the F-16s at Buckley are among the older aircrafts in service.
The task force is pushing for the Department of Defense to allow the base to receive newer aircraft to replace the aging F-16s.
For years, the Air Force has struggled with a program that would phase out the use of F-16 fighters, replacing them with F-35s, a complicated and expensive proposition. Since Buckley has not been sanctioned to use F-35s in its Fighter Wing, it’s air mission depends on keeping the F-16 fleets in use.
The task force combines military and state leaders to discuss the missions, the units, the base’s future and how leaders can protect jobs in Colorado and protect and expand the defense, aviation and aerospace industries, Crow said.
“We were able to get a lot done,” Crow said.
The task force also addressed land-use concerns and power expansion to ensure that the units stationed there have sufficient electricity. Additionally, they discussed potential challenges facing Colorado’s National Guard members, active duty personnel at Buckley, and the thousands of civilians employed on the base.
“We know that Buckley Space Force Base plays a critical role in National Security, whether strategic theater missile warning missions are being conducted by U.S. Space Force Delta Four, or the Colorado Air National Guard with F-16s sitting alert 24/7 to ensure our homeland defense from airborne threats,” Primavera said.
This was the third task force meeting, and they plan to meet on a regular basis. The task force includes Major General Laura Clellan.
“The State of Colorado and the Polis Primavera Administration are committed to being the best home possible for our military families, whether that be a great education system or affordable housing,” Primavera said. “We want to make sure our military families have the opportunity to thrive as well.”
Locally, the base is credited with having contributed about $2.5 billion to the local regional economy in 2023 and is linked to about 6,000 jobs, according to a January annual report.
No mention of the spooks working underground.
Those “golf balls” are not there for nothing.
We need to keep Buckley SFB open and operational for the decades to come. It’s fantastic for our community and the local economy. I live on the south side of the base, and it’s a joy to see the planes taking off and landing from their exercises. I take comfort in knowing the dedicated men and women working at the base are supporting our great country!