Air Force selects Kauai for new squadron charged with monitoring satellites

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - The Air Force will create a new squadron on Kauai to monitor U.S. satellites as part of the national security space mission, U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz announced Monday.

The unit at Pacific Missile Range Facility Barking Sands was named the preferred alternative for the Air National Guard’s Space Control Squadron.

The squadron will have 88 Hawaii Air National Guard positions, 29 of which are full-time.

“This decision reaffirms the importance of Hawaii’s strategic role in our national security and is proof that the men and women of Hawaii’s Air National Guard are the best in the world,” Schatz said, in a news release.

“While this new unit will help strengthen the Air Force’s space capabilities and advance our national security interests, it also means more federal funds for the state and more opportunities for local jobs.”

Schatz said the new squadron could become fully operational by 2022.

Air Force selects Kauai for new squadron charged with monitoring satellites

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