Senior Airman Kendra A. Ransum, 5th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. —
Beneath the icy crust of North Dakota’s unforgiving winters, where temperatures plunge to extremes most Americans never experience, a dedicated team of Airmen and civilians work around the clock to keep a decades-old installation ready. They’re the Airmen of the 5th Civil Engineer Squadron and they’re responsible for maintaining Minot Air Force Base’s infrastructure.
It’s a job that never stops. Minot AFB is home to B-52H Stratofortress bombers and a portion of the nation’s Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile force. Both platforms rely on the 5 CES to ensure their buildings, roads, utilities and systems can support the weight of national defense. The squadron often finds itself at the frontline of a quiet, constant battle: age.
“One of the biggest things about Minot is that almost the entire installation was built during the Cold War, so everything’s aging,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Dylan Bechen, 5 CES Director of Operations. “We have an extreme freeze cycle that we experience here, and that degrades the infrastructure more rapidly than what I’ve seen on other installations.”
Minot’s location adds a unique layer of challenge. Arctic blasts and subzero temperatures frequently trigger infrastructure emergencies—burst pipes, cracked concrete and faltering heaters.
While many Air Force bases have civil engineers, Minot AFB’s unit operates under challenging circumstances. The remote location limits access to contractors, driving up costs and delaying support. Unlike installations located near metropolitan areas, Minot AFB lacks a large local pool of skilled labor to call upon. That means more tasks fall to the in-house team.
“Minot’s unique as far as the scale we do stuff on,” said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Ryan Powell, 5 CES pavements and equipment section chief. “We’re not just doing stuff for the 5th Bomb Wing, we’re also maintaining stuff for the 91st Missile Wing.”
At any given time, members of the 5 CES could be handling dozens of simultaneous issues. The squadron is composed of 13 different Air Force Specialty Codes, representing a diverse set of trades and skills. Electricians, plumbers, heavy equipment operators—known colloquially as “dirtboys”— heating, ventilation and air conditioning technicians and more make up the team.
Despite the challenges posed by aging infrastructure, limited resources and North Dakota’s severe climate, the 5 CES remains a cornerstone of Minot’s operational readiness. They do one of the dirtiest jobs in the Air Force, keeping the power projection infrastructure that supports the B-52Hs, missile fields and Airmen functioning.
As global security demands remain high, their ability to keep facilities functional and mission-capable is not just essential—but a strategic imperative.
