Air Force Secretary Deborah James was among the dignitaries on hand on Tuesday at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, near Dayton, as officials broke ground on the National Museum of the US Air Force’s new building. The $35.4 million, 224,000-square-foot facility will be the museum’s fourth building. Scheduled to open to the public in 2016, it will house the museum’s Presidential, Research and Development, and Global Reach collections, as well as a new and expanded Space Gallery. The non-profit Air Force Museum Foundation is financing the project. “As the Air Force’s window to the public, the museum is where the people come to learn about the history, mission and evolving capabilities of America’s Air Force and about the airmen who are truly the foundation of everything we do,” said James at the June 3 event. In December, the Army Corps of Engineers awarded the contract for the building to Turner Construction of Washington, D.C. (Dayton report by Rob Bardua)
The six-week government shutdown did not affect the hours flown by Air Force pilots, a service spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine—avoiding what could have been a major blow at a time when flying hours are already lower than they have been in decades.
