Issue Position: Military in Idaho

Issue Position

Issue Position: Military in Idaho

Mountain Home Air Force Base enjoys world-class training facilities in Southwest Idaho. It's remote training areas over the Owyhee Desert to the south, with bombing targets that include a simulated airfield and buildings, have been used by many U.S. Air Force units, as well as foreign air forces. With about 4,000 active-military personnel and approximately 880 civilian employees, the base is the largest employer in the area and the eighth largest in the state. It contributes almost $900 million to the local economy.

Mountain Home AFB was recognized with the 2007 Commander-in-Chief's Annual Award for Installation Excellence in March 2007. The Installation Excellence Award recognizes the outstanding and innovative efforts of the people operating and maintaining U.S. military installations around the world. Mountain Home was one of roughly 85 active-duty Air Force installations originally vying for this year's award. Excellent installations enable better mission performance and enhance the quality of life for military men and women and their families, according to Colonel Rock. Each winning installation succeeded in providing excellent working, housing and recreational conditions. The award was presented at a ceremony in May 2007 rd ceremony May 4 at the Pentagon.

The 366th Fighter Wing is comprised of four groups: the 366th Operations Group, 366th Maintenance Group, 366th Mission Support Group and 366th Medical Group. The wing is home to three fighter squadrons: the 389th Fighter Squadron, 390th Fighter Squadron and 391st Fighter Squadron. The wing includes both F-15C Eagles and F-15E Strike Eagles with a projected total of 70 aircraft assigned. Additionally, the 388th Electronic Combat Squadron, located at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington, is assigned to the 366th Operations Group. The squadron is responsible for suppression of enemy air defenses in support of expeditionary aircraft and ground troops by disrupting enemy electronic activity and obtaining tactical electronic intelligence. Nearly 1,100 troops from Mountain Home AFB have been deployed in support of the War on Terrorism.

In the 2005 BRAC Recommendations, the Pentagon recommended a realignment of the forces at Mountain Home Air Force Base. The most significant change would redistribute the 18 F-15Cs to the 57th Fighter Wing in Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, to the 125th Fighter Wing, Jacksonville International Airport AGS, Florida, and to retirement. The Wing would redistribute F-16s to the 169th Fighter Wing McEntire AGS, South Carolina, to the 57th Wing, and to backup inventory.

The Pentagon also recommended the realignment of Elmendorf Air Force Base in Alaska. The 366th Fighter Wing would receive 21 F-15E aircraft from the 3d Wing, Elmendorf Air Force Base, AK and attrition reserve. Thereafter, the 366th Wing would fly only F-15Es changing its mission to air-to-ground, low-level, and air-to-air flight training.
Naval Acoustic Detachment, Bayview, Idaho

The Naval Acoustic Laboratory, a unit of the U.S. Navy's Naval Sea Systems Command, is located on the southern end of Lake Pend Oreille, Idaho. The relatively deep (1150 ft) and pristine, quiet body of water provides a unique free-field ocean-like environment without the problems and costs of open ocean testing environments. Specialized experimental hardware and floating platforms are used to support a wide variety of research and development programs, ranging from the measurement of water flow on sonar domes to the calibrations of full-scale surface ship sonar transducers. The detachment supports experiments that have been extremely valuable to the U.S. Navy, especially in the area of submarine sonar dome development. The Large Scale Vehicle (LSV), a large-scale structural model of the SSN-21 Class submarine is being used extensively in this research work. (Information courtesy of Carderock Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center.)
Idaho Army National Guard
Idaho Air National Guard

The Idaho Air National Guard, 124th Wing, is comprised of 3,000 personnel who are assigned to two flying wings and six units throughout the state. The Guard headquarters are located at Gowen Field located at the Boise Air Terminal. Gowen Field is also home to the Army National Guard and reserve units of the Army, Navy and Marines. The Idaho ANG is host unit and is reserve component of the U.S. Air Force. It is one of the few Air Guard units in the country with three separate federal missions.

The 124th Wing was formed from the 405th Fighter Bomber Squadron, which saw a lot of action in Europe during World War II. The Wing maintains a number of squadrons: Aerial Port Flight; Air Support Operations; Maintenance Squadron; Civil Engineer Squadron; Communications Flight; Maintenance Operations Flight; Logistics Readiness; Medical; Services Flight; and Support Flight are among the list.

Source