MQ-9 focus of celebration

PANAMA CITY, Fla. – Florid Gov. Rick Scott stopped by Gulf Coast State College on Tuesday to congratulate everyone who helped get Tyndall Air Force Base selected as the preferred site for the MQ-9 Reaper wing. Scott was one of many people who attended a ceremony at the school’s Advanced Technology Center celebrating Tyndall likely getting the wing. An environmental analysis, which could take nine months to two years, still has to be completed before it’s a done deal, but military and Bay County leaders already are expecting big benefits. Airmen could arrive in 2020, with aircraft following in 2022. The wing is expected to increase Tyndall’s workforce by more than 30 percent. The Reaper is an armed, unmanned, remotely piloted aircraft that can travel more than 1,100 miles and stay airborne 10 to 12 hours. (Source: News Herald, 01/24/18)