Bedford Minuteman
Wednesday, January 21, 2004

Town voices concern
Air Force base review prompts letter from board

By Peter Martin / Staff Writer

Bedford selectmen have penned a letter to the Pentagon, registering their
concerns about criteria to be used in a military realignment process that
could result in the downsizing or closing of Hanscom Air Force Base.

Hanscom, located in Bedford south of Hartwell Road, provides thousands of
jobs and about $1 billion in business contracts to the area every year.
Prominent local companies, such as MITRE, Lincoln Laboratories, and
Raytheon, depend on the air force base for much of their business.

"The closing of Hanscom would be a terrific blow to the local economy," said
Selectman Shelly Moll, who drafted the letter on behalf of the board.

Hanscom is just one of the nation's military bases up for reevaluation as
part of the Defense Department's Base Realignment and Closure process
(BRAC). BRAC's agenda is to streamline operations and reduce expenses. An
Army base in New Jersey and a Navy base in San Diego are also slated for
evaluation.

Selectmen believe one of four things could happen to Hanscom, or any of the
other bases being assessed. One, the base's funding and operations remain
the same. Two, the base is totally eliminated. Three, some activities at the
base are moved and essentially consolidated at another base. Four,
activities at the base are augmented to compensate for cuts at another
base(s).

Part of what will determine the outcome is the set of criteria used by the
Pentagon in evaluating each base. Selectmen believe this criteria does not
sufficiently consider all the favorable aspects of a technical facility like
Hanscom. The board's letter suggests that the Pentagon's criteria does not
adequately account for:

- the area's local engineering talent;

- the base's access to technology and academic centers;

- the region's concentration of intellectual resources not limited to MIT,
Harvard, and Tufts.

The Pentagon has agreed to accept recommendation and comment on the BRAC
criteria until Jan. 28. After that point they will establish the final
criteria and begin completing a report to Congress. Congress will interpret
the report and make a recommendation to the president for a decision in
2005.

Hanscom Air Force base, unlike many other operational military bases, does
not fly active combat missions from its runways. Instead it is charged with
the mission to research and develop command and control systems for the
Defense Department. Hanscom may not be directly involved in putting air
force pilots in flight but it is the technology produced at Hanscom that
tells pilots where they are, where they are going, and what they are
targeting.

"We're talking about sensors that pull information in, process the
information, and generate something that is intuitively digestible by
someone in the battlefield," said Chuck Paone, spokesman for the Air Force
Electronics Systems Center based at Hanscom.

AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control Systems), the large aircraft topped with
enormous saucer-shaped radar, which detect air threats, and many other
electronic systems, including missile guiding systems and Joint Star
reconnaissance planes, were developed at Hanscom. What pops up on many
generals' computer screens is the result of intricate computer software
programs ironed out at research facilities like Hanscom.

It can not be overlooked that when Hanscom was last evaluated five years
ago, Massachusetts Sens. Edward Kennedy and John Kerry had influence with
the sitting president, Bill Clinton. Hanscom may not benefit from that form
of political influence during this new and upcoming round of evaluation.

Selectmen also noted at the end of their letter that they may submit
comments "regarding the multi-faceted impact of a possible Hanscom AFB,
Electronic Systems Center closing up the surrounding civilian and industrial
community and the entire New England region."

On the flip side some Bedford residents are concerned that if Hanscom is not
closed, but instead expanded, it may put an unreasonable strain on the town
and its local infrastructure.

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