Posted on 09/17/2009 9:57:10 AM PDT by Domandred
Pilots would get 29 percent more elbow room and the base’s airspace would edge farther into Oregon and Nevada. If approved by federal officials, the expansion could pave the way for state-of-the-art aircraft like the F-35 at the base.
More importantly, according to 366th Fighter Wing commander Col. John Bird, the expansion would double the effectiveness of the airspace and the training offered in Idaho.
“We are starting to get customers,” Bird said. “It’s the perfect practice ground.”
An expansion would make Mountain Home comparable to Nevada’s Nellis Air Force Base, Bird said.
(Excerpt) Read more at idahostatesman.com ...
'Red flag' training
F-16 pilots from Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada are the bad guys, hunted by fighter pilots from other states.
OK, maybe they aren’t really bad. In fact, according to Col. John Bird, the wing commander at Mountain Home Air Force Base, they are really good “professional bad guys.”
It’s all part of the first-ever “Gunfighting Flag” at Mountain Home, which started Sept. 14 and runs through Sept. 25. The flag is a multinational training exercise intended to put a variety of aircraft through advanced air-to-air and air-to-ground tactics.
Participants include: F-15 Es from Mountain Home, CF-18 Hornets from Canada and other aircraft from Nevada, Washington, Oklahoma and Arizona.
-- EOA
Mountain Home was at one time on the Clinton era chopping block. Was very worrisome as without the Air Force Base, Mountain Home would have turned into almost an abandoned city.
With obama in charge, maybe our AF should start getting tactical training from the French.
LOL
My son (WSO) just got posted there. Doesn’t know which squadron yet.
Not a military guy so don’t know how much time he gets off base or anything, but depending on what he likes to do in his free time there are several fishing areas, some great chukar hunting (watch for the snakes), prime big game territory, and several ski resorts all within 2 hours of the base. Some less than an hour drive.
This has been a long time in coming. I started working this back in the late 80’s when I was stationed there. BRAC actually highlighted the value of Mountain Home. To the Air Force, training airspace is extremely valuable because there is so little of it. When you are traveling at 9 miles a minute or better, you eat a lot of ground fast and many Air Force bases have but a postage stamp worth of airspace. To those with kids and into the outdoors, Mountain Home is almost an idealistic place to be stationed. Travel time to Boise for shopping, etc. was the only drawback.
My dad was stationed at Mountain Home during Vietnam (I was born in Mountain Home). He was originally from Missouri. Air Force moved us around, but when he got out and finished with college he moved us to Boise (I was 7 then) because of his time at Mountain Home AFB and the outdoor activities available there.
Never plan on leaving the area, though I would like to buy some property in a smaller populated area, outside any city limits, instead of living in Boise metro.
The ranges up there were the reason that the Wild Weasel mission was transferred to the Boise ANG in '91. Unfortunately it never panned out. The ANG could never get the clearance to use the Weasel Electronics and they eventually converted to cargo planes.
This would be a very good thing. There aren't a lot of places where you can employ long range weapons. There's only White Sands, Nellis, and Eglin in the US as far as I know.
- Mystery science theater
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