Brown-Portman amendment offers boost to Youngstown air base

Staff report

VIENNA

The Youngstown Air Reserve Station and its 910th Airlift Wing received a boost for the future via an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act crafted by U.S. Sens. Rob Portman and Sherrod Brown of Ohio.

The NDAA conference report, released Wednesday after months of negotiations between the House and Senate, includes the senators’ amendment to prioritize C-130 upgrades, thereby strengthening YARS and its special-mission capabilities.

Specifically, the amendment directs the Air Force to report on how it will prioritize upgrades to new C-130J aircraft for special-mission units like the 910th at YARS, which has special capabilities such as aerial spray, airborne firefighting and weather reconnaissance.

Portman, a Republican of Terrace Park near Cincinnati, and Brown, D-Cleveland, have been urging the Air Force to replace the 910th’s aging fleet of C-130H aircraft with new C-130J aircraft to ensure that the 910th’s Department of Defense-mandated specialized aerial-spray mission continues safely and without interruption.

“This is a victory for Youngstown and strengthens our national defense capabilities,” Portman said in a news release.

Read more about the situation in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.