Maelstrom AFB opens Helicopter Operations Alert Facility

Maelstrom AFB opens Helicopter Operations Alert Facility

5-Aug-2020 Source: US Air Force

Team Malmstrom hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony Aug. 4 for the new Tactical Response Force/Helicopter Operations Alert Facility, the first of its kind in Air Force Global Strike Command.

Construction for the project officially began in August of 2018, and many years of planning and preparation have gone into making this facility a reality.

“This project has been a culmination of five years of hard work,” Said Lt. Col. Michelle Sterling, 341st Civil Engineer Squadron commander. “The team that brought this project together by adapting to the changes to ensure we continue to meet the needs of our country.”

The new facility will house the 341st Security Forces Group Tactical Response Force alongside the 40th Helicopter Squadron. The TRF teams and 40th HS crews work in tandem to provide missile field security.

The co-location will improve communication, organization and deliver faster response time to support the combat capability of the 341st Missile Wing.

“Living and working in the same spaces will lead to a more organic development of connectivity between the two teams that will be using this space,” said Col. Jennifer Reeves, 341st Missile Wing Commander.

The TRF and helicopter operations is a one-of-a-kind mission among AFGSC’s three missile bases.

Together, they are essential to protecting and securing Malmstrom’s 13,800 square-mile missile complex.

“This facility is vital to the stability of the world. It will help us secure our missile fields much better than we ever had in the past,” said Reeves.

The facility will also be the location of the U.S. Air Force’s new operational helicopter, MH-139 Grey Wolf, which is set to replace the Vietnam-era UH-1N Hueys used across AFGSC.

This facility is essential to ensure the wing will be able to effectively carry out the mission that comes with fielding a new aircraft.

The community can expect to see these new helicopters in the Great Falls skies in 2021-2022 as MAFB will be the first operational base to receive the helicopters.

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