Congressman: Air Force Ôshort-sighted' for 440th decision

Two-term Republican U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson calls the departure of the 440th Airlift Wing on Fort Bragg “a short-sighted decision” that has spawned a series of troubling issues.

The Army long opposed Air Force plans to shut down the 440th, fearing that it could compromise training.

“The process is done for the 440th now,” Hudson said Thursday during a visit to The Fayetteville Observer newsroom. “The Air Force had to make its decisions based on limited resources.”

Hudson is running for re-election against Thomas Mills, a former political consultant from Carrboro. Hudson’s 8th Congressional District is made up of seven counties, including about half of Cumberland County.

Hudson said both he and U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis have “put in language” requiring the Air Force and Army to report how many training jumps have been requested and how many fulfilled.

Tillis has vowed to track Air Force participation in Bragg paratrooper training.

“We need to step back and say our goal is to make sure paratroopers get the jumps they need to stay certified,” Hudson said. “Make sure our nation’s 911 units are ready. Are they truly ready? Have they gotten the jumps they need? Let’s look at the numbers.”

The 44-year-old Hudson, who lives in Charlotte, said another issue that he’s looking at involves how much planning the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division can do “with this model. I think that’s something, too, between the needs of the Air Force. That’s one of the requirements now - it has to meet the training needs of the Air Force and the training needs of the Army. With the weather and mechanical issues, I still don’t see how it’s going to work.”

Hudson expressed some concern over how a new airlift unit would mesh with the 82nd Airborne, seeing how the 440th had developed a long-working relationship with the post’s paratroopers and Special Forces troops.

“With a new unit,” he said, “I don’t want them having to figure some of that stuff out. I want them to work with those units and not be any problems. Whether time delays or creating some risks for the paratroopers - there are a lot of issues there. I’m convinced it’s not going to work.”