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By PAUL DEMARCO / Guest Columnist 

Note: This is an opinion column.

While it seems like everything we hear out of Washington D.C. is bad these days, two announcements this past week will bring welcome news to Alabama.

First, the United States Air Force released the news that the city of Huntsville made the final list of prospective sites for the home of the United States Space Command. There were only five other locations around the nation that made the cut. The Command will bring 1,400 employees to staff the mission. Huntsville had made the original short list before the Air Force was ordered to review their choices again.

The city already is the home for some of the country’s most important missions with NASA and the Army’s Space and Missile Command located there. In addition, the city already has the infrastructure and skilled workforce to man the operation. The decision will come in early 2021.

That same week the Air Force also revealed that Montgomery’s Maxwell Air Force Base will soon house a flying training unit for the new MH-139 Grey Wolf Helicopters. Pilots will be trained to fly the new generation helicopters that will protect the Nation’s intercontinental ballistic fields in the Western United States. Both of these announcements should not be a surprise considering the number of important military facilities already in the state. Let’s welcome the new unit to Montgomery and hope Huntsville lands the Space Command in the new year.

It has been a tough year for the state, so these announcements are encouraging news for Alabama.

Paul DeMarco is a former member of the Alabama House of Representatives.