Article published Mar 2, 2008

Big changes are in the air for local military installations

By PETER JOHNSON

Tribune Staff Writer

The city's major military installations will undergo significant changes in 2008.

The Air Force decided to eliminate 50 of Malmstrom Air Force Base's 200 nuclear Minuteman III missiles. The 564th Missile Squadron, which has a different communications system than the nation's nine other squadrons, creating extra expenses. The base will lose 500 of its 3,500 military personnel soon after the last missile is pulled by midsummer.

The Montana Air National Guard will have a new face later this year, at least as far as aircraft go.

MANG's F-16 fighter jets will be replaced with F-15s later this year and in early 2009.

Base coal plant proposed

The biggest potential news — the Air Force's seeking a developer interested in building and running a $1-billion coal-to-liquid-fuel plant on extra Malmstrom land — is by no means certain. But it could bring 1,000 construction jobs and 400 to 500 permanent jobs.

"We're running a 10-mile race and are barely out of the starting gate," Assistant Air Force Air Force Secretary William Anderson said late last month.

The Air Force could award a contract by fall for a project expected to take four years, he said. It will move forward only if it can be done in an environmentally friendly way and not harm other base activities.

The loss of the 564th squadron will be partially offset by the Air Force's decision to boost personnel in Malmstrom's Red Horse mobile construction unit by 162 active-duty folks, a 58 percent increase to 442, over 30 months.

In addition, the Secretary of Defense's Office of Economic Adjustment approved an almost $500,000 grant to study the impact of the loss of the 564th squadron.

The grant will fund efforts to help communities adjust to the loss of the squadron's 500 personnel and accompanying road subsidies to rural communities where the 50 Minuteman III missiles are located.

The grant application was a cooperative effort by Cascade County, Great Falls Development Authority, Sweetgrass Development, the city of Great Falls, Pondera, Teton and Toole counties and the Great Falls Area Chamber of Commerce Committee of 80.

The Great Falls Region Defense Diversification Project will also receive a $70,000 grant from the Montana Department of Commerce.

In addition to the impact study, the project will implement strategies to develop economic diversification for the counties impacted by the deactivation.

"This study is critical to help us find out what the real economic impact of this loss will be," said Pondera County Commissioner Cynthia Johnson. Pondera County houses 37 of the squadron's 50 missiles.

The U.S. Department of Defense pays for snow removal and upgrades for roads that serve missiles sites.

"We are eternally grateful for the roads the Department of Defense will leave us, but now we need to pick up the slack and it will impact our budgets," Johnson said.

A nearly 400-unit Malmstrom housing project trumpeted by Montana's congressional delegation last spring was delayed a year but construction is expected to start this fall. It will be broken into six parts, which will allow smaller, local contractors a shot to win some work. At the same time, contractors were working to complete three earlier phases, totaling about 415 houses.

Air Guard prospects soaring

Meanwhile, the news was nothing but upbeat across town at the Montana Air National Guard, which calls Gore Hill home.

Air Force officials assured MANG that its conversion from F-16 to F-15 fighter jets will go off as planned in 2008 and 2009, despite the temporary grounding of aircraft after a Missouri Guard F-15 broke apart in midair.

Col. Mike McDonald, commander of MANG's 120th Fighter Wing, said it will send out three F-16s a month starting in March, and will get its first two F-15s in August with which mechanics will train. The 19 F-15s will filter in between August 2008 and August 2009. There will be a gap of a few months when no fighter jets will be flown in Great Falls. MANG pilots will train on F-15s at other bases during that span.

About 270 MANG pilots and mechanics will go to the Middle East for two months in March.

MANG's F-15s will be newer, more powerful and require more personnel and renovated buildings than the F-16s they'll replace. And they're expected to remain in operation until at least 2025, much longer than the F-15.

"Gaining F-15s gives us a long time to keep everything going, and possibly gain a follow-on fighter mission, either F-22 or F-35," McDonald said.

That was confirmed early this year, when the Air Force released its "Weapons Systems Roadmap" listing where it might place aircraft and weapons in the 2025 to 2030 time frame. MANG and the Great Falls International Airport were listed as possible sites for both the F-22 and F-35.

"That's a huge step forward from MANG being recommended to lose its flying role in the initial Base Realignment and Closure, or BRAC, report in 2005 to its being on a short list to get the latest fighter jets in 20 years," said Great Falls Airport Director Cynthia Schultz.

Combo mission suggested

Now MANG, Montana's congressional delegation and the town's military boosters are lobbying the Air Force to make Malmstrom an "active-associate wing" with MANG.

"The Air Force has totally embraced the idea of pairing active-duty and reserve/guard units into teams," McDonald said. "It makes sense because Guard components have so much experience and represent half the Air Force's strength. I believe that the futures of Malmstrom and the Montana Air Guard are linked together."

At first that would mean assigning 75 active duty pilots and mechanics to Malmstrom for housing, but having them work at MANG. It would allow younger Air Force folks to get training from veteran Guard personnel. Local boosters hope the Air Force would appreciate the great, uncluttered air training space in Montana and consider reopening Malmstrom's runway for an even bigger combined flying mission.

Montana's senators stuck a provision in a defense spending bill that requires the Pentagon to study the MANG/Malmstrom "active-associate wing" proposal before it can finish removing the 50 Malmstrom missiles. The study is due around April.

"The year 2007 was pretty good for local military installations," said Warren Wenz, chairman of the chamber of commerce Committee of 80 military lobbying group. "It was a lot better than it could have been if BRAC had eliminated MANG's flying mission a few years ago or if the Air Force had pulled more Malmstrom missiles. We ought to be satisfied with gains we made."

Missions vital to economy

Business folks monitor complex military issues because defending the country is big business here. Military-related programs represent 40 percent of the Great Falls area economy.

Some 4,000 military and civilian employees worked at Malmstrom last year, plus nearly 800 private construction workers. Malmstrom's main role is to operate, maintain and protect silo-based Minuteman III missiles. The base spent $325 million last year on payroll, construction and operations. Estimates show Malmstrom's presence created another 1,575 ripple-effect jobs in the area valued at $45 million.

The Montana Air National Guard also plays a major role, flying, maintaining and arming fighter jets. It has 1,000 traditional guardsmen, 350 of whom also work full-time for MANG. The unit spent $64.4 million on payroll, construction and purchases. Estimates show MANG's presence created another 265 ripple-effect jobs valued at $7.2 million.

State and local officials strive to keep Malmstrom and MANG strong as they seek private projects to diversify the economy.

"Malmstrom, the Montana Air Guard and other military assets are extremely important to the local economy," says Great Falls Area Chamber of Commerce President Teresa Olds. "Military folks also contribute in other ways, including providing 44 percent of the matches for Big Brother/Big Sister. Their volunteer efforts are incredible."

The Chamber of Commerce has begun preliminary work creating a community charter, so local governments and economic-development groups can speak with one voice in support of military missions, she said.

"The military is a staple industry for the community and region," says Great Falls Airport Director Cynthia Schultz. "If we fail to diversify and expand both missions, we could risk losing jobs."

"If we lost either Malmstrom or MANG, it would cause a severe economic impact on Great Falls and nearby towns," agreed Wenz.

Encroachment issue weighed

Wenz and Schultz say the Air Force now is leaning toward fewer, but larger, combat air wings blended between active and reserve forces. The airport would not have space to handle 50 to 75 fighter jets, Schultz said, but some could be stationed at Malmstrom if its runway is reopened.

Wenz said Malmstrom's large runway, modern hangars and the region's huge air training area should be attractive to the Air Force as urban bases and training spaces face overcrowding.

But there are a few roadblocks to overcome for Malmstrom to gain a big flying mission.

Malmstrom's runway has been closed since the 1995 BRAC Commission shifted the base's KC-135 aerial refueling tankers to a Florida base.

An initial "footprint" drawing of where the Air Force proposed a developer place the 700-acre coal-to-liquid plant overlapped the runway, and Assistant Air Force Secretary William Anderson said flatly the Air Force has no plans to bring planes to Malmstrom.

However, Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer said the coal to liquids plant "wouldn't preclude reopening the runway." He said two later Air Force maps placed the coal plant away from the runway.

Still, encroachment by commercial and residential development too close to Malmstrom could ruin the chance of reopening the base runway, Wenz said.

Yet property owners have been patient to wait a decade after the runway was closed to consider high-end residential and commercial projects near the base.

The Great Falls Development Authority commissioned a study of how much land modern military and civilian planes would need set aside in "accident prevention zones" near Malmstrom if the runway is reopened.

In the second stage of the study an appraiser is calculating how much money it would cost to either buy private land that falls in such accident prevention zones or development easements.

GFDA President Brett Doney and Wenz believe local governments, community business groups and maybe even the state need to decide if they want to protect that area from residential and commercial encroachment to retain the option of reopening Malmtrom's runway for flying.

To do so, some way must be found to compensate property owners through payments or state land swaps, they said.