Senator Cramer and General Wilsbach to Visit Grand Forks Air Force Base and “Happy Hooligans” in Fargo Next Week

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), and General Kenneth Wilsbach, Commander of Air Combat Command (ACC), will visit the Grand Forks Air Force Base on Monday to discuss base quality of life, current and future intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities, the growth of the Space Development Agency (SDA), and other potential missions. The following day, they will visit the 119^th Wing in Fargo. 

“I look forward to showcasing the innovative aviation ecosystems we have in Grand Forks and Fargo,” said Cramer. “General Wilsbach will see the way our Airmen built and utilize this ecosystem, and how future military missions will thrive here. Grand Forks Air Force Base significantly contributes to the common defense of the nation, while remaining mission-focused. Gen. Wilsbach will see firsthand how our expertise in operating Global Hawks has led to our selection for operating SDA satellites, and how that combined expertise will make it a seamless transition to operating cutting edge ISR capabilities and prepare for other emerging technologies such as Collaborative Combat Aircraft. No ISR visit to North Dakota would be complete without a stop with Fargo’s Happy Hooligans to see the critical work they do. I appreciate Gen. Wilsbach visiting to see our state’s robust and growing defense ecosystem firsthand.”

Besides mission briefings, Cramer and Gen. Wilsbach will see the base infrastructure, dormitories, and the site of the future school. He will also accompany Gen. Wilsbach to the University of North Dakota and participate in a tour of Grand Sky Business and Aviation Park. 

Gen. Wilsbach first assumed leadership of ACC on in February and is responsible for organizing, training, equipping and maintaining combat-ready air, cyberspace, and electromagnetic spectrum forces for rapid deployment and employment while ensuring strategic air defense forces are ready to meet the challenges of peacetime air sovereignty and wartime defense.

ACC operates more than 1,000 aircraft, 35 wings, 12 bases, and 1,336 units at more than 263 operating locations worldwide with 154,219 total force military and civilian personnel.

Cramer met with Gen. Wilsbach at the end of January to discuss the runway conditions at Grand Forks AFB and the vision for the future of ISR missions out of Grand Forks.