Thune Supports Annual Defense Bill, Ellsworth Air Force Base Priorities

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Thune Supports Annual Defense Bill, Ellsworth Air Force Base Priorities

“I remain committed to ensuring that Ellsworth Air Force Base and its surrounding communities have everything they need for the B-21 bomber mission so Ellsworth can continue to serve as one of our nation’s essential military assets for decades to come.”

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today issued the following statement after the Senate overwhelmingly passed the bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The bill contains numerous priorities that benefit South Dakota and the future B-21 bomber mission at Ellsworth Air Force Base, including authorization for $5.3 billion for continued aircraft development and initial procurement and $396 million for the construction of three new facilities on the base. The NDAA also includes a 5.2 percent pay raise for servicemembers, requires the Pentagon to create a plan to counter cartels’ human and drug trafficking on the border, and prioritizes military modernization to combat the growing threat from China. Thune recently spoke on the Senate floor about the NDAA’s importance to the men and women at Ellsworth Air Force Base and to the advancement of the future B-21 bomber mission.

“The NDAA is one of the most important measures Congress passes every year, and I’m pleased that the Senate passed it today with overwhelming bipartisan support,” said Thune. “The bill strengthens our national security and Ellsworth Air Force Base’s position in defending it, addresses concerns about U.S. military readiness, and provides support for Ukraine in its war with Russia. I remain committed to ensuring that Ellsworth Air Force Base and its surrounding communities have everything they need for the B-21 bomber mission so Ellsworth can continue to serve as one of our nation’s essential military assets for decades to come.”

NDAA priorities for South Dakota include:

  • $396 million for B-21 military construction, including:
    • Fuel System Maintenance Dock, $75 million
    • Phase Hangar, $160 million
    • Weapons Generation Facility, $160 million
  • $5.31 billion for B-21 development and procurement, including:
    • Research, development, test, and evaluation of the B-21 Raider, $2.325 billion
    • B-21 procurement, $1.617 billion
    • Advance B-21 procurement, $708 million
  • $5.25 million to complete National Guard Readiness Center
    • BG Dean Mann Sioux Falls Readiness Center, $5.25 million
  • Continued procurement of long-range munitions used by the B-1 bomber and future B-21, including:
    • Joint Air-Surface Standoff Missile, $1.685 billion
    • Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile, $187.7 million
    • Long-Range Standoff Weapon, $958.2 million

Thune-Sponsored Provisions:

Critical Minerals University Affiliated Research Center (UARC)

The bill includes a provision for the Department of Defense to create a UARC for critical minerals to focus on applied research, commercialization, and workforce development with schools like South Dakota School of Mines and Technology.

Quantum Workforce

The bill includes a provision to bolster Department of Defense engagement in quantum information science and workforce development by utilizing existing partnerships, scholarships, and research programs within the department.

Equipping Ground Forces with Small Drones

The bill requires the Department of Defense to develop a strategy to equip ground combat units with small drones or unmanned aerial systems like those being put to use in Ukraine, especially the quadcopters with payload release mechanisms that have been used to notable effect against Russian armor.

Strategy on Attritable Decoys

The bill’s report language requires the Department of Defense to create a comprehensive strategy on the use of attritable decoys in the Indo-Pacific, noting that deception activities, including the use of decoys, provide cost-effective options for complicating adversary decision making.

National American Indian Veterans, Inc (NAIV) Congressional Charter

The bill includes an amendment introduced by Thune and Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) that would grant a federal charter to the NAIV.

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12 thoughts on “Thune Supports Annual Defense Bill, Ellsworth Air Force Base Priorities”

  1. I support all that too. Everything except allowing Silly Milley to retire with 4 stars.

    1. After what he admitted to doing and was willing to do…Sir, you are kinder than I am.

    2. john bolton likes milley and that’s good enough for me. oops i forgot, you all thoroughly hate and loathe bolton now too.

      1. Well quite honestly, you have demonstrated you don’t know jackshit about chain of command and/or command authority.

        1. i have a clear notion of your opinions on the matter. milley isn’t mentioned in this article at all btw. his retirement is probably being handled in some other manner. but i wouldn’t know jacks**t about that either.

  2. enquirer…Please be assured that I am 100% in agreement with you on General Miley. I believe he did all he could, and was willing to do all that was necessary and constitutional, to save the country from Donald Trump’s madness.

    1. Great, another ignorant baffoon who doesn’t know how the chain of command or command authority structure works in the US Military.

      1. you do know that all the men who ran hitler’s death camps were the world’s greatest followers of their command structure. probably the greatest ever. none better. it’s obviously what every person in the military should always do no matter what.

        1. there’s a type of command structure at dwc, where the admin would like people to STAY ON TOPIC. no part of this story is about milley, YOU brought that up for no great reason at all so your knowledge and adherence to structure is bad too.

          1. Wow…but yet here you are STRUGGLING to make your irrelevant points relevant.

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