MANAGEMENT ON THE MOVE
LOCATIONS
LAND
28 Aug 09. Navy Announces Delay of Environmental Impact Statement for East Coast Landing Field Sites. The Navy announced today that it will delay the expected release of a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) that examines five sites in Virginia and North Carolina for an outlying landing field (OLF) to support training for aircraft stationed at and transient to Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana and Naval Station Norfolk. The environmental planning which would lead to a decision to establish an OLF has been a challenging process. Various delays have pushed the OLF timeline to the point that it will now coincide with the commencement of the EIS process for homebasing of the F-35C Navy Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). As NAS Oceana is the East Coast master jet base and the home for the F/A-18 C/D aircraft, the Navy will likely consider whether it should be identified as a potential candidate site for the JSF.
27 Aug 09. BAE Systems has established a new, state-of-the-art aircraft maintenance centre in North Queensland to better support the Australian Defence Force (ADF)’s current and future aviation needs. The Hon Greg Combet, Minister for Defence Personnel, Materiel and Science, today officially opened the company’s new, purpose built hangars at Townsville Airport. The facility, built at a cost of $10 million, is the home of BAE Systems’ support program for the Australian Army’s Black Hawk and Chinook helicopter fleets, and provides employment for 140 people. It replaces former hangars used by BAE Systems which dated back to World War II and lacked space, amenities and air conditioning. (Source: Google)
31 Aug 09. The imminent use of seven bases in Colombia by the U.S. military is “a serious problem” that has to be discussed further by South America’s leaders, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Aug 31. “The treaty between Colombia and the United States needs to have a legal guarantee allowing any other country that feels threatened to go before international forums,” Lula said in his weekly radio broadcast. The controversial bases deal, details of which first came to light in Colombia’s press mid-July, was the subject of a stormy summit between South American presidents on Aug. 28. That meeting heard fears by Venezuela and other countries that the expanded U.S. military presence in Colombia – ostensibly to fight drug traffickers – could be used against neighbouring nations, several of which have leftist anti-U.S. governments. It issued a statement warning “foreign military forces” against threatening the national sovereignty of other countries, without mentioning the U.S. or Venezuela by name. It also agreed South America would examine the issue further in future meetings. Lula said he wanted the region’s fledgling defense council to study the “real border situation of all the countries” and another council on fighting drug
trafficking to examine ways the region can tackle the issue itself with U.S. involvement. (Source: Defense News)
MARITIME
02 Sep 09. Dock ready for Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers. Modifications to No.1 Dock at Babcock’s Rosyth dockyard in preparation for the final assembly and outfitting of the massive new Queen Elizabeth (QE) class aircraft carriers have now been successfully completed. The achievement marks a significant milestone in the substantial programme of civil engineering works being undertaken at Rosyth to allow entry of the mega-blocks, assembly and then departure of the completed 65,000 tonne, 280 metre long, 74 metre wide, 56 metre high vessels. Works to modify the dock began in March 2008. The dock (originally built in 1916 and extended in the 1960s) was long enough to accommodate the new carriers, but work was required to cut back the huge granite steps (known as altars) benching out from the sides of the dock (giving it a V-shaped profile) to accommodate the modern warship flat-bottomed and slab-sided desig