Whiteman opens new building for working on B-2 bombers

WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. -- A new facility for the B-2 bomber will reduce the need for the planes to fly to California for maintenance.

U.S. Rep. Ike Skelton and Col. Doug Raaberg, commander of the 509th Bomb Wing, were the guests of honor at a ceremony Friday marking the opening of a new $26 million Low Observable Restoration Facility.

The building can house two B-2s and has a climate-controlled hangar where crews can service the skin that helps the planes escape detection.

Skelton, D-Mo., said the new building makes Whiteman Air Force Base the most outstanding Air Force base in the world.

Skelton, who has been instrumental in bringing the B-2 program to Whiteman, recalled visiting the base in 1980 when 2-by-4s held up the ceilings of buildings.

"The Air Force had forgotten Whiteman Air Force Base," he said. "We brought the B-2 here, and it will be here for years."

All 21 of the nation's B-2s operate out of Whiteman, about 60 miles southeast of Kansas City, and had been forced to travel to Palmdale, Calif., for restoration before the new facility was built.

Congress last month approved a defense spending bill that means millions of dollars for the base.

The bill included $25.2 million for a new satellite communications system on the B-2; $6.8 million for new equipment to improve its stealth; and $50 million for radar improvements.