ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. -- The Commander's Action Line is a forum for the Ellsworth community to make suggestions or voice concerns about Ellsworth directly to Col. Mark Weatherington, 28th Bomb Wing commander. 

QUESTION 
I had a few questions about the sensor operators for UAV's coming to Ellsworth. I know the base was selected and the original time frame was January of 2012. Is this still holding true? I have been selected to retraining into that career field and would like to stay at Ellsworth if possible. I leave for training in February. If the outlook of staying is slim or none I would like to find out so I can prepare my family to PCS and sell my house. Any information about the sensor operators and their future at Ellsworth would be great. Thank you

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Col. Mark Weatherington

RESPONSE First, congratulations on the opportunity to retrain into an exciting and growing career field. January 2012 is a little optimistic--we have been marching toward a late spring 2012 stand-up of the first combat air patrol. However, the RPA enterprise has been overwhelmed by demand, and it is possible the stand-up could shift to later in 2012. We anticipate a more refined timeline for Ellsworth's RPA mission in the next 30 to 60 days. AFPC matches RPA SO assignments once the member is enrolled in the 3 level Basic Sensor Operator Course (BSOC) at Randolph AFB (approx. 6 week course). If an Ellsworth member has around 3 years TOS or less, AFPC they may consider re-assignment to the 432 ATKS at Ellsworth. However, if an Ellsworth member has 4 or more years TOS when enrolled in BSOC, he should anticipate a PCS after graduation.