KC-135 aircraft switch to add 27 jobs at New York air base

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The Associated Press

A US Airforce KC-135 tanker aircraft is being prepared for take-off by the crew at the Airbase of Kecskemet, 87 kms from Budapest, Friday, June 26, 2015. The Hungarian Defense Forces’ aerial refueling skills, the aerial refueling routine of the Gripen fighters and the preparation for the Baltic Air Policing international engagement were demonstrated at the airbase. (Sandor Ujvari/MTI via AP)

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — Members of New York’s congressional delegation says the Air Force’s decision to transfer eight KC-135 refueling aircraft to the Niagara Falls air base will add more than two dozen new jobs at the facility.

U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand say the Air Force has budgeted more than $25 million in 2017 for the conversion process at the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station.

Officials announced earlier this month that the C-130 airlift planes at the base will be replaced by KC-135s. Schumer and Gillibrand announced Monday that the conversion to the refueling aircraft will add 27 new full-time employees at the base next year.

The base is home to Air Force Reserve and New York Air National Guard units.

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