TYNDALL AIR FORCE, Fla. (WMBB) — The Air Force has taken a huge step toward the rebuilding of Tyndall Air Force Base.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded the $532 million construction contract to Hensel Phelps on May 10.
This is the Air Force’s single largest military construction contract ever.
It encompasses 11 projects that support flightline operations for the three F-35A Squadrons expected to arrive at Tyndall in September 2023.
“It is over half a billion dollars because of the magnitude of the mission being brought here this procures an entire campus of brand new buildings to bed down up to 72 primary assigned F-35’s here at Tyndall,” Natural Disaster Recovery Division Deputy Chief Mike Dwyer said.
The first phase of this project includes the construction of several hangars, a maintenance complex, group headquarters, an aircraft parking apron, aircraft support equipment storage, a corrosion control facility, and an F-35 flight simulator training facility.
They will be built to be resistant to future hurricanes and flooding.
“These facilities will integrate many of the new technologies that we are bringing in as part of the ‘Base of the Future’ also they will be constructed to a new higher designed wind speed. The hangars that are right next to the apron where the hangar will be parked will be designed to a 170 mph wind speed, well above that of Hurricane Michael,” Dwyer said.
This is just one part of the overall base reconstruction.
But Dwyer characterized this contract as the “crown jewel” accusation of Tyndall’s rebuild.
All the design work is done, so construction should begin sometime later this summer. The project will take several years to complete.