A Visit to Ellsworth Air Force Base

On Tuesday, April 27, 2010, Colonel Jeffrey B. Taliaferro, Commander, 28th Bomb Wing at Ellsworth Air Force Base invited a group of people to Ellsworth AFB to discuss concerns the group might have with the expansion of the proposed Powder River Training Complex expansion. To augment the discussion and understanding of the proposal, the group was given the opportunity to view the B1 Lancer aircraft up close, spend a little time in two flight simulators for the B1, and to experience three fly-over’s by the B1. After the B1 experiences, the group was treated to an excellent meal. After the meal, Col. Taliaferro presented a short update on the status of Ellsworth AFB and the military personnel assigned to the base relative to the local area, the nation, and the world. He followed with another short presentation of the proposed expansion of the training area. Following the presentations the Colonel answered questions from the visiting group.

Col. Taliaferro was very cordial, confident, friendly, neighborly, and believable. He was very straight forward in his responses to questions. He explained what the training activities involved currently and that the Air Force did not have plans to change many of them. The Colonel confirmed that some additional training capabilities would come along with the training complex expansion. He would not speculate on the likelihood of additional use of the training area by the National Guard or other combined force training activities. He did not say that there would be no future plans for increased training area use. It is hard to shake the feeling that it wasn’t what he said that would be cause for concern; it is what he didn’t say that is of concern.

There were no news media representatives in the group of visitors. However, the news media was invited to a news conference about the group’s visit immediately following the departure of that group. This may have been an efficient method of providing the press with a news release, but it also precluded any possibility of the visitors responding to questions from the press about their visit and how it may or may not have relieved their concerns about elements of the training complex expansion.

I was a member of the group of concerned citizens that visited Ellsworth Tuesday. The hospitality and information provided by the base commander is very much appreciated. The people that answered questions for the group and showed us around are top-notch; they are a credit to the military and to Ellsworth AFB. I thank them for their efforts, not just for that day, but throughout their service to our country.

Another group of invited guests enjoyed a visit to Ellsworth AFB earlier. That group included some elected officials, members of the Ellsworth Taskforce, members of the local Chamber of Commerce, and members of the news media. Immediately following a presentation to that group, the news reporters interviewed the guests to get their opinions and observations on the topic presented. This is what most people would expect from the military. The military has reason to promote the things that will portray Ellsworth AFB in a positive light. Apparently, the military is also very careful to limit the free press and free speech when there is a possibility that some of the military’s activities may not be viewed in the most positive light.

Col. Taliaferro told our group that he wanted to be a good neighbor, and he did a good job of making us believe that. However, learning of his decision to separate our group from the press seems to depreciate that neighborly feeling considerably.