04-02-2025
Another state wants to be considered for Space Command headquarters
(WHNT) — Ohio General Assembly members threw the state's hat into the ring for consideration to be the new location for Space Command's headquarters, according to a congressional petition.
On Monday, the General Assembly of the State of Ohio sent a petition to the Senate Armed Services Committee 'urging the federal government to select Ohio for the permanent headquarters of the United States Space Command.'
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'Ohio's history of support for national defense, along with its many space-related resources, would make a fitting host for new Space Force missions or the permanent headquarters of the United States Space Command.'
PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS; Congressional Record Vol. 171, No. 22
The General Assembly of the State of Ohio states that the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton is 'uniquely situated' to help Space Command for the following reasons:
The Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is one of the largest and most complex bases in the United States Air Force, with a long history of flight tests spanning from the Wright Brothers into the Space Age
It is the headquarters of the Air Force Materiel Command
The base is the home of the 88th Air Base Wing consisting of more than 5,000 officers, enlisted Air Force, civilian and contractor employees and the 655th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Wing
Ohio's federal resources include the National Air and Space Intelligence Center, the Air Force Research Laboratory, the 178th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Group as well as the NASA Glenn Research Center
Because of this, the members of the 135th General Assembly of the State of Ohio are asking that the Senate pick Ohio as the new permanent home of Space Command since the government has not made a final decision on the final, permanent location.
In a 2023 plea to the federal government, Ohio State Representative Tom Patton said, 'Ohio is proud to be known as the 'birthplace of aviation.''
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'Not only are we the birthplace and state of aviation, but we are the home of aerospace pioneers. Ohio has been the home for 26 astronauts, who in total, have logged more than 22,000 hours in space.'
After President Trump was reelected, Alabama State Lawmakers were hopeful that Trump's return to the Oval Office could end the Space Command Headquarters debate and complete the transition to Redstone Army Airfield.
Huntsville was named a finalist in early 2021. Then, in 2022, the Department of Defense named the city as the 'preferred permanent location for U.S. Space Command headquarters' over Colorado Springs.
Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., told Mobile radio FM Talk 106.5 that Trump would settle the dispute as one of his first moves in office. In the radio interview, Rogers claimed President Biden kept the command in Colorado for 'political reasons.'
'But I knew he would because if you remember, not only did Alabama win two nationwide competitions, but President Trump's secretary of the Air Force recommended Huntsville, President Biden's secretary of the Air Force recommended Huntsville, and then Biden took it away for political reasons,' Rogers said.
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The Rocket City finished first in both the Air Force's evaluation phase and the selection phase, while Colorado Springs finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
According to the Air Force, the six candidate locations were:
Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico
Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska
Patrick Air Force Base in Florida
Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado
Port San Antonio in Texas
Redstone Army Airfield in Alabama
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