May 08--Technical Sgt. John Hughes of Hazel Park was doing the annual maintenance on an A10 Warthog, one of the fighter jets with 107th Fighter Squadron, 127th Wing of the Air National Guard out of Selfridge Air National Guard Base. The plane's wiring and systems were mostly exposed and the body was up on man-high jacks, making it clear this job is more than giving your car an oil change.
Hughes, however, said he doesn't know how much longer he'll be doing the job. The Air Force has decided to get rid of Selfridge's A10s, a move that will cost Michigan almost 700 jobs, about one-third of the Harrison Township base's personnel. Hughes conceded it's tough working every day with the fate of your job in jeopardy.
"There's some anxiety with it. No one knows where we're going to be a year from now," Hughes said. "Right now, it's in Congress so we'll have to see what happens."
The Air Force, under orders to cut about 10% of its budget for 2014, did much of their cutting in the guard and reserve components. Some said too much of the cutting came out of the guard and reserve.
For Michigan, the Air Force's plan calls for cutting 24 A10s from Selfridge and adding four KC135 air refueling tankers to the base's existing fleet of KC135s. But that would replace just 70 of the jobs lost. And the Air Force was is also proposing moving the 110th Airlift Wing from Battle Creek, taking with it another 110 Michigan jobs.
There's been plenty of negotiating going on over mitigating the job cuts. The Council of Governors suggested moving a squadron of F16s to Selfridge, which would bring about the same number of jobs lost with the A10s -- a move the Air Force has rejected. The Air Force countered with moving 24 C130s to Selfridge, which the governor's rejected. That plan included aging aircraft and only about 70 jobs.
There is talk of possibly moving F16s from a base overseas, possibly Europe, as the Mideast war winds down and forces are contracted toward the U.S. The original F16 plan had the planes coming from a U.S. base.
Selfridge had F16s before the last round of BRAC cuts, which sent Selfridge's F16s to Toledo. Should F16s return, most of the A10 personnel are expected to be able to transition to the F16s. After all, most of them were on F16s and transitioned to A10s in those last cuts.
But there's no word on that plan and meanwhile the budget is in wending its way through Congress.
Today was a media day at Selfridge, and along with the tour of the base facilities, the 127th again pitched their case to the public.
"Everybody's really nervous," said base commander Col. Michael Thomas.
Losing the jobs would also lose combat readiness for the Air Force, Thomas said, since Guard and Reservists would return to the private sector and their skills as pilots and mechanics would be lost. He also pointed out the Guard and reserve provide about 30% of the active duty forces at about 6% of the cost, since most are part time. Selfridge's A10s just returned from Afghanistan in January.
Contact Peggy Walsh-Sarnecki: 586-826-7278 or [email protected]
Copyright 2012 - Detroit Free Press
