Colorado's Buckley Air Force Base Passed Over For New Jet
AURORA, Colo. (AP) — Buckley Air Force base in Aurora won't be getting new F-35 fighter jets anytime soon.
The Air Force released a list Wednesday of five National Guard installations under consideration to get the costly aircraft in 2020, and Buckley wasn't on it.
Buckley's Air National Guard wing flies aging F-16s.
Colorado Republican congressman Mike Coffman, whose district includes the base, says he's disappointed Buckley was passed over. He says the base could be in the running in future selection rounds.
The Air Force is in the process of picking two National Guard installations to house F-35s. Candidate bases announced Wednesday are in Alabama, Idaho, Florida, Michigan and Wisconsin.
Previously, the Air Force announced that air bases in Utah and England and a National Guard station in Vermont would get F-35s.
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