"Second question....how did they make it past the entry gate?" On a US Air Force base with tactical or strategic resources, they wouldn't have gotten past the pop-up security barriers. If they somehow had, AF Security Forces are ready and fully authorized to use deadly force. Past incidents of this type have not ended well for gate crashers.
I’m very familiar with those things and the posts that go up and down. What did they tell the gate guards? Given who is at that base, I could be wrong, but I’m thinking that you couldn’t just drive on without talking to someone.