The Spokane community reacted with optimism when Fairchild Air Force Base made the short list of sites that the U.S. Air Force is considering to house its next generation of air-refueling tankers.

We join our neighbors in applauding that good news. Now, however, business leaders and elected officials alike must band together to make the best possible case for Fairchild specifically and Spokane in general as the choice to be the new home to the Boeing KC-46A Pegasus tankers.

We’ve made clear our concerns about Spokane Tribe of Indians’ planned STEP project’s potential impact on Fairchild. Now that the casino project is moving forward, however, the focus must be on doing what we can do, as a community, to champion the base and to protect it from future encroachments that the Air Force might deem to be a liability.

Fairchild currently is home to the 92nd Air Refueling Wing and the 141st Air Refueling Wing Washington Air National Guard, flying KC-135 refueling tankers on missions around the world. For our community, landing the new KC-46As would help to maintain Fairchild as an essential part of the Air Force’s mission—and make less likely that it could fall victim to a base closure at some point in the future.

The Air Force said it will visit each of the five sites on the short list this summer and make its decision by the end of the year. If Fairchild is selected, it’s expected to receive the new tankers in 2020. 

For Fairchild, making the short list is familiar territory. In 2013, the Air Force evaluated bases to determine which would receive the first round of KC-46As. While Fairchild was a finalist and scored better than some of its competitors in the Air Force’s evaluation of the site, McConnell Air Force Base, in Kansas, ultimately was chosen. 

Then and now, Greater Spokane Incorporated has lobbied tirelessly for Fairchild. That organization along with the federal delegation that represents Eastern Washington has laid a solid foundation for an effective argument on Fairchild’s behalf. 

In a statement following the short-list announcement, U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., said Fairchild should be the preferred alternative because of “visionary leadership, strategic location, mission expertise, and community support.”

She also noted that she has had a number of meetings with Pentagon officials to pitch Fairchild. We hope she has their ear. 

Whether U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., has their ear remains to be seen, but it’s clear she has spent some time bending their ears. Murray repeatedly has expressed some concerns about the Air Force’s decision to expand its criteria to include smaller bases that can accommodate only 24 tankers, rather than limiting it to those, like Fairchild, that can handle 36 aircraft. She has contended consistently that a base the size of Fairchild is best suited to host KC-46As. 

Fairchild currently employs 5,000-plus people. Many of those who leave the military chose to stay in Spokane, retiring or started second careers. The Air Force has the community’s backing, something it should hear loud and clear when it comes to Spokane.