No funding has been pulled from the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence (USAACE) at Fort Novosel to be sent to Ukraine, according to what officials told U.S. Sen. Katie Britt (R-Montgomery) and U.S. Rep. Barry Moore (R-Enterprise).
The two lawmakers responded Thursday to social media posts circulating online showing a screenshot of an email alleging the U.S. Department of Defense diverted $130 million of its $140 million training budget for the USAACE to aid Ukraine.
The poster, Patrick Webb, further stated that the information had been "confirmed by multiple senior aviation officials."
Both Britt and Moore said they were aware of the post and had contacted military officials about it.
"Our office is aware of social media posts that are circulating claims regarding U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence flight training programs at Fort Novosel," Britt said in her response on X. "We are in touch with senior military officials and received the following comment: 'At this time no decision has been made and no dollars have been diverted.'"
Moore said the U.S. Army has been "dealing with a funding issue" and that he's working with U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Saks) to get answers about any alleged changes to Fort Novosel's budget. The Army plans to give a "formal briefing" on the matter, Moore said, at which time officials could decide to move forward with a version of the alleged plan.
"My staff and I have been working with House Armed Services Chairman Rogers and the rest of the Alabama delegation to get answers on this issue. We have made multiple inquiries to the Army and they have agreed to provide a formal briefing," Moore said on X.
"While we have received acknowledgment that the Army is dealing with a funding issue, the nature of it has not been disclosed and we have also been assured that flight training at Fort Novosel has not been disrupted. We will continue to closely monitor the situation and push for a definitive response as soon as possible."
Last week, Congress passed a $95 billion aid package, for which $60 billion was earmarked for Ukraine.
Britt pointed out how she helped secure funding for Fort Novosel in a separate defense appropriations bill.
"In the recently passed FY24 Defense Appropriations bill, I helped secure $1.38 billion for flight training at Fort Novosel, and I'll continue to fight for every cent of that money to be spent as congressionally intended," she said.
Editor's note: This article has been updated to clarify that though the funding claims are currently inaccurate, military officials plan to provide more information that could include some version of the alleged claims.
To connect with the story's author or comment, email daniel.taylor@1819news.com or find him on Twitter and Facebook.
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