GLENDALE, Ariz. – Arizona’s local and state government officials, as well as the Arizona congressional delegation, are delighted with today’s decision that the Air Force has selected Luke Air Force Base as the preferred location for the new F-35 Pilot Training Center.
With today’s decision by the Air Force, Luke is poised to transition from its current F-16 training mission to become the Air Force’s F-35 “school house,” subject to completion of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process that is currently underway.
“Today’s announcement is great news for our region and our state and represents a major milestone and the most critical stage in the F-35 site selection process,” said Glendale Mayor Elaine Scruggs.
“Although we realize there is more work ahead of us, we are extremely grateful to our state’s congressional delegation, the Arizona Legislature, Governor Jan Brewer, Attorney General Terry Goddard, and citizens and businesses for working closely with us to champion and support the F-35 coming to Luke Air Force Base through our Luke Forward campaign,” Scruggs said.
The campaign was developed locally to send a clear, strong message to the Department of Defense that Arizona supports Luke Air Force Base continuing to serve as one of the country’s premier fighter pilot training facilities and to raise awareness of the critical role Luke plays in our national defense and the state’s economy.
The campaign was created by the West Valley Partners and Fighter Country Partnership. The West Valley Partners include Avondale, Buckeye, Glendale, Gila Bend, Goodyear, Litchfield Park, Maricopa County, Peoria, Phoenix, Surprise, Tolleson, Wickenburg and Youngtown.
Gov. Brewer said the Air Force’s decision is, in part, the result of all levels of local and state governments, as well as the private sector, working in partnership on a common vision.
“We all know that Luke is the ideal location for this next generation fighter, but I also believe that today’s decision demonstrates Arizona’s ability to roll up our sleeves and work together for the betterment of our state,” she said.
“It’s critical that we continue to do all we can to preserve current and future missions at our military installations in order to keep this very important industry viable in our state.”
Luke Air Force Base and other military installations in the state collectively represent one of the largest industries in Arizona and generate more than $9 billion annually in economic impact statewide. Luke alone contributes more than 8,000 jobs and $2.17 billion annually to Arizona’s economy, according to a recent study commissioned by the state.
Fighter Country Partnership (FCP) Chairman Charley Freericks, who is co-chairing the Luke Forward campaign with Scruggs, credits community support for today’s decision.
“Local community support of military bases is very important back in Washington, and we know the tremendous Valley and statewide support for Luke Air Force Base really helped us,” said Freericks, a senior vice president at DMB Associates.
“We reached literally tens of thousands of Arizonans through our citizen and business outreach initiatives, and community support for Luke Air Force Base was overwhelming. There is no question that this strong level of support was a significant factor in the Air Force’s decision to site the F-35 at Luke.”
Today’s announcement is being made prior to the release of the Air Force’s draft F-35 basing EIS document, which is anticipated to be published in the next 30 days. The Air Force is required to conduct an environmental assessment of each potential F-35 site before making its final basing decision.
This federally mandated assessment, which is referred to as the EIS process, allows individual citizens and communities around candidate bases to provide input during the formal evaluation of each base.
The Draft EIS will serve as the Air Force’s notice of intent to proceed. Once the Draft EIS is released, in which Luke will be identified as the Air Force’s preferred site, public hearings will be held later this year.
Once the public hearings are held and the comment period concludes, the Air Force will release its final EIS document that will provide responses to comments received from the public.
After the Final EIS document is published, there will be an additional 30-day public review period. After reviewing comments received during this time frame and after considering any environmental impacts, the Air Force will making its final basing decision. It is anticipated the Air Force’s final “Record of Decision,” which will conclude the EIS process, will be made in early 2011.
Yuma, Arizona BY JOYCE LOBECK – SUN STAFF WRITER The future for Marine Corps Air Station Yuma is rapidly approaching as development of the F-35, the nation’s new joint strike fighter, moves forward. The air station is slated to become the first base to receive the very first of the new aircraft in spring of 2012, according to the “preferred option” and current time line, said Maj. James Combs, community plans and liaison officer for MCAS Yuma, during Greater Yuma Economic Development Corp.’s quarterly investors luncheon Tuesday. It all hinges on the record of decision, scheduled for December. In the…
The town of Buckeye has supported the mission of Luke Air Force Base for decades. Just recently, the Town Council unanimously approved a resolution strongly encouraging the U. S. Department of Defense, Congress and the Administration to designate Luke Air Force Base as a training site for the Air Force version of the F-35 Lightning II fighter. The operations at Luke AFB have impacted people from all walks of life and from every state in the nation. Since 1988, Luke Air Force Base has trained 16,270 fighter pilots to fly the F-16 Fighting Falcon and graduated 9,071 crew chiefs. They…
GLENDALE, Ariz. (Feb 25 2010) – West Valley residents are turning out in large numbers this week to show their support in bringing the new F-35 fighter jet to Luke Air Force Base.
Tuesday night’s meeting in El Mirage and last night’s meeting in Surprise each attracted big crowds of approximately 300 people. Luke supporters donning military hats, t-shirts, pins and stickers could be found everywhere at the meetings, which are being conducted by the Air Force to solicit input from citizens in preparation of the F-35 environmental study at the Glendale base.
Based on reports from other communities, such as New Mexico, Utah and Idaho, which are also under consideration to receive the Air Force’s joint strike fighter program, the Luke meetings are drawing record crowds.
“At last night’s meeting in Surprise, there was a line of people waiting to get inside the meeting room,” said Fighter Country Partnership’s Steve Yamamori, whose organization is working with 12 West Valley cities and Maricopa County to bring the F-35 to Luke. West Valley residents and others are showing up in force at these meetings to express their support for the Air Force to bring the F-35 to Luke. This strong support by local citizens is definitely going to send a clear message to decisions makers back in Washington, D.C. that Arizona strongly supports the F-35.”
Based on the criteria the Air Force will use to evaluate sites for the F-35 mission, Luke is well positioned to receive the F-35 and continue to serve as the Air Force’s “school house” for America’s fighter pilots and maintainers.
Local leaders know, however, that until a decision is made, nothing can be taken for granted, and they urge continued strong support from Arizonans statewide.
Luke has been training fighter pilots since 1941, and Arizona features the ideal climate, land, airspace and training rangers – including the Barry M. Goldwater Range in southern Arizona – that cannot be replicated anywhere in the country.
For more information on the public-scoping meetings, which run through Friday, or to register your support for the F-35 at Luke, visit www.LukeForward.com.
CONTACT: Steve Yamamori, Fighter Country Partnership, 623-882-2191
The Wickenburg meeting is this Thursday (Feb. 25) at the Wickenburg High School Media Center, at 1090 S. Vulture Mine Road. This is an open-house scoping meeting and will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. to provide the public an opportunity to learn about F-35s and to provide input to help define the proposed action and alternatives. Other meetings are being held around the valley. For meeting locations call 623-856-6169 or visit http://lukeforward.com/. Residents are encouraged to attend one or more of these meetings and to complete comment forms that will be used during the process of the Environmental…
The Luke Forward Committee has been sending out thousands of emails to registered supporters the past week providing an alternative option to physically attending these meetings from across the valley. The F-35 Public Scoping meetings are a critical part of the Environmental Impact Study being conducted by the Air Force. The Air Force proposes to establish training F-35A Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) training aircraft at one or more existing Air Force installations within the continental United States. F-35A is a conventional take-off, multiple-role fighter with an emphasis on air-to-ground missions. The aircraft was designed to replace and supplement F-16 and…
by Surprise Mayor L.E. “Lyn” Truitt As mayor of Surprise, I see the positive difference Luke Air Force Base makes daily in our community. That is why I fully support bringing the F-35 training program to Luke Air Force Base. Surprise has more flyovers from Luke’s F-16 jets than any other West Valley city. To us, the roar of those fighters is the sound of freedom. Luke AFB is a true West Valley native. Its mission of defending freedom blossomed decades ago, when it was a training site for young WWII pilots. Many of them loved Arizona and settled here;…
Tensions between F-35 jet supporters and skeptics will have another chance to boil over next week, as the Air Force will hold a series of scoping meetings to hear the public’s concerns. The public scoping process is intended to actively involve citizens and government agencies in helping identify the environmental issues to be addressed in the environmental analysis of the F-35 at Luke. These meetings will provide residents with an introduction to the F-35 and its capabilities and mission. Specific information on how the F-35 will be integrated at Luke as a training facility will also be covered. Meetings are…
In the last several months, there has been a flurry of public meetings, media coverage and varying opinions on the campaign to bring the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) Program to Luke Air Force Base (AFB). Unfortunately, there have been many opinions that were misconstrued as facts that could potentially hurt the opportunity to have Luke AFB chosen as the new JSF training base for the Department of Defense. As mayor of Surprise, I want to state my full support for bringing the F-35 training program to Arizona. Surprise has more flyovers of aircraft than any other West Valley city…
