Grissom runway project on track to meet deadline

PERU, Ind. - The 434th Air Refueling Wing at Grissom Air Reserve Base says the reconstruction of the runway there is on track to meet its July 15 deadline to reopen the airfield.

Wing Commander Col. Doug Schwartz said Thursday that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has reported the project at the northern Indiana base has progressed well.

The $3.2 million project began June 1 with a projected 45-day timeline, although Corps engineers have said poor weather could delay the project. Part of the project is adding expansion joints in the runway so pavement does not heave up during the hot summer.

Nearly all of Grissom's 16 KC-135R Stratotanker aircraft are currently operating out of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, during the runway reconstruction.