WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE — The National Air and Space Intelligence Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is about to get a whole lot roomier. NASIC broke ground on its third major expansion, termed Intelligence Production Complex III, Thursday afternoon.
IPC III adds 250,000 square feet to the already 650,000 square foot complex, and is the largest NASIC expansion to date. The facility is five stories, and will add workspace for nearly a thousand military and civilian employees. The $156 million expansion is expected to open its doors to NASIC personnel early in 2025.
U.S. Rep. Mike Turner was present to break ground, as was Sen. Rob Portman, and 88th Air Base Wing Commander Col. Patrick Miller.
“The folks who are going to help the leaders of our country defend all of us and our communities are going to be right here,” Portman said. “We are very proud of the fact that NASIC is here, a team of over 4,000 professionals already, and the ability to expand that and keep our country safer is fantastic.”
Congress has authorized a total of $256 million for modernization of NASIC in the past two years, Portman said during his remarks. Ohio congressmen, as well as state and local officials have been working hard in a bipartisan effort to secure the Dayton area as host for the US Space Force Command Headquarters.
“It makes all the sense in the world,” Portman said of the potential Space Command HQ. “Think of the synergies with NASIC. Think of the synergies with the Air Force Research Lab. As Republicans and Democrats, southern Ohioans and Northern Ohioans, we’re all together in this project.”
State Rep. Rick Perales, and the mayors of Fairborn, Beavercreek and Riverside were also in attendance. At the conclusion of the ceremony, the Air Force band performed the newly composed Space Command anthem, as well as the song of the Air Force.
“This marks the new beginning in a journey to deliver a state-of-the-art intelligence facility from which NASIC will continue to protect our forces all over the world,” said Col. Eric Crispino, Commander of the Louisville District of the US Army Corps of Engineers. The Army Corps of Engineers oversees the design and construction of military facilities.
The contract was awarded to Messer Construction in late August. Messer has been awarded construction projects at Wright-Patterson for nearly eighty years, dating back to World War II.
NASIC currently employs approximately 4,000 staff, and is expected to employ more than 5,000 by 2035. As Ohio competes for the opportunity to host US Space Force Command Headquarters, NASIC already plays a critical role in supporting the Space Force. NASIC serves as Service Intelligence Center for the military’s youngest branch, and in fact has been providing aerospace assessments for the military since Russia’s launch of Sputnik in 1957.
“NASIC has been doing space since the mid-1950s,” said NASIC Commander Col. Maurizio Calabrese. “It is integrated in our DNA. Every day, there is work for the Space Force being done.”
As Ohio’s largest single-site employer, Wright-Patterson has approximately 30,000 employees, and that number is expected to grow to 35,000 in the next few years.
