Md.'s U.S. senators push to keep Navy air squadron in state

Maryland’s U.S. senators are pushing to block the Navy from moving an air squadron out of Joint Base Andrews, charging that the relocation would cut hundreds of Maryland jobs and leave the Washington area open to attack.

Democrats Barbara Mikulski and Ben Cardin teamed up with Illinois Republican Mark Kirk to introduce legislation that would keep the VAQ-209 Navy Reserve Electronic Attack Squadron from moving to Washington state. VAQ-209, nicknamed the “Star Warriors,” is a 222-person squadron that can destroy radar sites, gather radio intelligence and jam improvised explosive devices with its four electronic warfare jets. The squadron returned from Afghanistan in October 2011, after its fifth deployment to Afghanistan or Iraq since 2006.