Hoeven Marks Completion of New MAFB Firing Range, Secured $27 Million for Safe Indoor Training Space

Senator Outlines Efforts to Update MAFB Facilities, Ensure Nuclear Modernization Stays on Track

MINOT, N.D. – At a ribbon-cutting ceremony today, Senator John Hoeven helped mark the completion of a new indoor firing range at the Minot Air Force Base. As a member of the Senate Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Committee, Hoeven secured $27 million for the range to provide a safe, indoor training space for servicemembers, who previously had to conduct combat arms training in an outdoor range, including in harsh weather conditions. Further, the previous range did not meet Air Force training standards and posed increasing health and safety risks. The new indoor range addresses air quality concerns and supports higher quality training, while having lower maintenance costs and remaining available regardless of weather conditions. The range is the third busiest range in the Air Force and is used to provide approximately 9,000 certifications each year.

“The airmen and women at the Minot Air Force Base were previously training outdoors, where extreme temperatures and weather provided poor or impossible conditions. At the same time, the range provides 9,000 certifications per year, making it the third busiest in the Air Force. Minot truly needed a state-of-the-art facility to meet these training demands, and it’s why we worked to provide $27 million for this project,” Hoeven said. “As threats grow around the world, our nuclear forces become even more central to our nation’s defense, and we remain committed to making important investments like this and keeping our nuclear modernization programs on schedule so that we have an effective deterrent for decades to come.”

In addition, Hoeven outlined the growing importance of maintaining a strong nuclear deterrent and the essential role that Minot fulfills in defending the nation against aggression from its adversaries. Accordingly, Hoeven is working as a member of the Senate Defense Appropriations Committee to ensure updates to the nation’s nuclear forces remain on schedule and is advancing the following priorities, both in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and annual appropriations bills:

• Upgrades to the B-52, including the new engine program.
• The new Long Range Stand Off (LRSO) missile to replace the Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) carried on the B-52.
• The new Ground-Based Strategic Deterrent (GBSD), which will replace the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
  • The Fiscal Year 2022 NDAA also included language prohibiting cuts to the ICBM force.
• Warhead life extension programs at the National Nuclear Security Administration.

-###-