This is another huge story for North Dakota, and great news.
Shaffer said the base has a total population of about 3,500 people, which includes about 1,800 active duty personnel and their families. The base will lose another 50 or so active duty personnel by the end of the month as they’re transferred to other bases.
But 460 additional active duty personnel are set to be permanently assigned to Grand Forks between now and Oct. 1 as the base gears up for its unmanned aircraft mission. All together, Shaffer said the base could see its population grow by about 1,000 in the next year.
The base’s KC-135 Stratotanker mission for the past 50 years ended in early December.
