Letter to Hon. Frank Kendall, Secretary of the Air Force, and General Charles Brown Jr, Chief of Staff of the Air Force - Led by Senator Reverend Warnock, Bipartisan Group of Georgia Lawmakers Urge Air Force Leaders to Secure Future Missions for Robins Air Force Base

Letter

February 2, 2022

Dear Secretary Kendall and General Brown,

The Georgia delegation thanks you for your service to our nation and for your commitment to ensure Robins Air Force Base (AFB) remains a pillar of our national defense. Robins has an incredible civilian workforce and an active, Reserve and Guard talent pool that remain essential to the future of the Air Force.

Robins AFB has long maintained broad and bipartisan support from the Georgia delegation. The Air Force's decision eventually to retire the E-8 JSTARS platform has been accompanied by promises from both of your predecessors regarding follow on missions at the installation. We ask for your commitment to follow through on the promises made to this delegation, and we affirm our commitment to work in good faith with the Air Force to bring the new missions to Robins.

In 2018, then Secretary Wilson committed to the Georgia delegation that Robins AFB "will host [the Advanced Battle Management System] ABMS" and that "the network would include aircraft at Robins AFB with the sensors capable of collecting and transmitting information from the battlefield." We trust the Air Force will honor this commitment.

The Air Force announced four new missions for Robins AFB in May 2021. This is a promising first-step. We now request the detailed implementation plan for these new missions and documentation to confirm the new missions will fully account for the personnel currently supporting the JSTARS mission. Additionally, we currently understand that the Battle Management Control Squadron (Kingpin) and E-11 missions, while important, may not be long-term, enduring missions for the Air Force. Therefore, along with working with your staff on understanding the detailed implementation plans for the incoming missions, we ask for your assurance that you will continue to work with the delegation to ensure Robins AFB retains its vital role in the Air Force's future and retains Active-Duty and Air National Guard Wing-level units.

Finally, we would like to understand how the Air Force's plan to establish a software wing could be part of the future for Robins AFB, as we believe that this mission fits well with the Air Force's current plan and skills and capabilities present in Middle Georgia.

To ensure we maintain full visibility the current Air Force plan of action, we request the following information:

Details of any expected personnel gaps between the current JSTARS mission and incoming missions.
Draft manning/personnel document(s) demonstrating the use of all current Active Duty and Georgia Air National Guard personnel in incoming missions.
Projected timeline/lifespan of the E-11 BACN mission.
Commitment that Robins AFB will be the host of ABMS and description of the projected ABMS-associated systems, detailing which have flying platforms.
We look forward to working with the Department of the Air Force as you continue to develop these plans and determine the details of the missions that fulfill the promises made to the Georgia delegation and Robins AFB. Thank you in advance for your attention to this important matter and timely response.

Sincerely,