A statue of a B-52 bomber stands in front of C2F, US Strategic Command's new command and control facility at Offutt AFB in Neb, is seen following a dedication ceremony in honor of General Curtis E. LeMay , Monday, Nov. 18, 2019. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. (AP) — An Air Force base south of Omaha has been dedicated as the new, $1.3 billion headquarters for the command unit that, under direction of the president, controls the nation’s nuclear-armed forces.
Officers and enlisted men joined civilian dignitaries for ceremonies Monday at Offutt Air Force Base.
The facility is named the Gen. Curtis E. LeMay Building. LeMay headed what was then known as the Air Force’s Strategic Air Command until 1957 when he left to take a Pentagon post. Strategic Air Command eventually became a multiservice unit under a new name: the U.S. Strategic Command, or StratCom.
Work on the 916,000-square-foot (85,000-square-meter) command and control center began in October 2012. Contractors worked through several setbacks, including floods and persistent mold.
Around 2,000 of StratCom’s 3,200 employees have moved in.
Vice Adm. Charles A. Richard, new commander of US Strategic Command, speaks during a change of command ceremony at Offutt AFB in Nebraska, Monday, Nov. 18, 2019, with Deputy Secretary of Defense David Norquist, left, and Air Force Gen. John Hyten, outgoing commander of US Strategic Command, right. A dedication ceremony was also held for C2F, US Strategic Command’s new command and control facility. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)Deputy Secretary of Defense David Norquist, left, awards Air Force Gen. John Hyten, outgoing commander of US Strategic Command, right, the Defense Distinguished Service Medal during a change of command ceremony at Offutt AFB in Nebraska, Monday, Nov. 18, 2019. Vice Adm. Charles A. Richard, center rear, has been appointed new commander of US Strategic Command. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
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