Cannon Air Force Base is expanding.

The plans for expansion and improvement were discussed during media day at the base.

Cannon AFB hums with command chatter and the loud booming of this MC-130J, and Colonel Stewart Hammons, Wing Commander at Cannon AFB, has big plans for the base and the men and women who serve.

“There’s a couple of goals that we’re getting after on a day in and day out basis here,” said Colonel Hammons. “First and foremost, it’s really aligning with the chief of staff of the air force vision. One of the big efforts that I have is empowering the squadron commanders.”

The second big initiative Colonel Hammons is working on is coming up in October. He said that is when the 27th Special Operations Wing will be taking command of a forward wing.

The base is also expanding and improving.

“The need for the expansion really boils down to requirement on the air force side,” added Colonel Hammons. “So that just happens to be a benefit that we see on a day in and day out basis in our dealings with the community. We’re only building out the requirements to meet what we operationally need to execute our mission.”

Colonel Hammons tells us a month and a half out from now, they will have a  new medical and dental clinic. He said the clinic will be created from a 1950s-era hospital they inherited.

Colonel Hammons said that the hospital was originally built for surgeries, but he says they have not done that at Cannon AFB in decades, and as a result of sitting idle for all those years, they were in need some remodeling to become a clinic.

One of the biggest draws to Cannon AFB is the Melrose Range, and Colonel Hammons told us it is also getting a reboot.

He said for the past 10 years, they have been putting infrastructure to the range and they plan to add more to make Melrose cutting edge.