The past year definitely finished on a high note for the Illinois Air National Guard’s 182nd Air Mobility Wing. The BRAC commission overruled the Pentagon, stripping the 182nd at Greater Peoria Airport of four C-130s and eliminated a planned personnel increase. Yet, the Peoria unit, according to the Peoria Journal Star, is about to embark on a nearly $10 million construction project. It is just in the design phase, expected to be completed this spring, but the plan calls for a new 37,700 square foot squadron operations building.
The U.S. military is sending more fighter jets to the Middle East to step up its war with Iran, adding to what is already the largest buildup of airpower in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. For now, the operation shows little sign of coming to a quick…