07.19.05

Cantwell: High-ranking Air Force officials confirm that Washington state was not consulted about moving fighter jets

bases safe: No surprise additions to closure list

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As public hearings of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission concluded today on Capitol Hill, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) cited testimony from high-ranking Air Force officials as further proof that Washington state was not consulted before the Pentagon recommended moving vital fighter jets from the region.

Along with Washington state's top homeland security officials, Cantwell has lobbied the commission repeatedly in recent weeks to reverse the Pentagon's recommendation to remove critical Northwest-based F-15 Fighters and KC-135 tankers.

"This issue boils down to regional homeland security," Cantwell said. "The Pentagon failed to consult with state officials before recommending changes that could weaken the security of the Northwest. That is not the direction we should be taking."

The hearings this week also confirmed that none of Washington state's major bases would be closed during this year's round of base closures. Commissioners voted this week on whether to add certain facilities to the list of bases considered for closure, and no Washington state bases were added to the list.

In May, the Pentagon recommended that all fifteen Portland-based F-15 fighter jets be moved to New Jersey and Louisiana. These fighter jets patrolled the Northwest skies for three days after the September 11 th attacks, and continue to provide security to the Northwest skies. If these planes are relocated, the nearest fighter jets available in an emergency may be as far away as Fresno, CA. Relying on jets so far away could delay response times to heightened security threats in the Northwest.

Cantwell talked with BRAC Commissioner James Bilbray at the end of June, urging him to press Air Force officials on their lack of consultation with Governors and State Adjutant Generals as they prepared to publish their proposed realignment and closure list in May. When Bilbray questioned Air Force officials about the issue at a hearing yesterday, they confirmed the lack of state consultation.

"Let me tell you this," responded Lt. Gen Stephen Wood, the Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Programs. "That we, as an Air Force, in the BRAC, did not brief individual TAGS [Adjutants General] or the governors about the individual moves within their states."

Wood and Maj. Gen. Gary Heckman, an Air Force Assistant Deputy and Chief of Staff for Plans and Programs, acknowledged that they had not consulted with Governors and State Adjutant Generals before publishing their recommendations.

Major General Timothy Lowenberg, Commander of the Washington National Guard, and Major General Frank Scoggins, Commander of the Washington Air National Guard, have joined Cantwell in recent weeks to press the BRAC Commission to revise the Pentagon's recommendations, and save Portland's F-15s and the KC-135 tankers, which are based at Fairchild Air Force Base in Spokane.

In addition to her conversation with Bilbray, Cantwell has sent two letters to the BRAC Commission asking them to reconsider the proposed realignment of these critical air security assets.

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