DANIEL CARSON / News Herald Writer
It was the news that area officials were hoping for: A new mission — and jobs — are headed to Tyndall Air Force Base.
Tyndall’s future will include the addition of a new F-22 Raptor squadron, officials announced Thursday, with the base receiving 21 new fighter jets as part of the Air Force’s consolidation of its F-22 fleet.
Rep. Allen Boyd, D-Monticello, said the Air Force’s decision to add an operational squadron to the base’s exist-ing F-22 combat training mission would result in the addition of almost 600 personnel at the base and stemmed from government and area civic leaders’ continued efforts to secure Tyndall a follow-on mission.
Thursday’s announcement comes months after Tyndall started the drawdown of its two F-15 squadrons, as part of an Air Force-wide restructuring plan.
“I’m very pleased today that we can celebrate achieving this very important goal,” Boyd said during a confer-ence call, as he praised the work of the Bay Defense Alliance and other Bay County officials.
Boyd said the first of the new F-22s would arrive at Tyndall toward the end of 2012. He said it would take about six months to get all of the F-22s into the base.
Bay County leaders, as well as U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson and George LeMieux, welcomed the news the base would be getting the F-22 squadron, with Panama City Mayor Scott Clemons calling it a needed shot in the arm to the area’s economy.
“I was hoping we were going to hear this,” Clemons said.
BDA member Glen McDonald said that although it seemed like it took a long time to secure a follow-on mission at Tyndall, the actual process and decision came quickly by government standards.
The addition of another F-22 squadron secures Tyndall’s future for a long time, said McDonald and BDA President Tom Neubauer.
“I can’t tell you how much this means for the community,” McDonald said.
Neubauer said the Air Force would release additional details regarding the new F-22s in the coming days.
How it happened
Boyd first announced in May that Tyndall was one of four bases in the running for additional F-22 Raptors.
At that time, he said the Air Force would score each of the four bases being considered in accordance with specific criteria it has established, complete environmental impact studies of the bases and an operational needs assessment.
Boyd said Thursday that Tyndall had received the maximum number of jets possible and the most of any of the bases under consideration, as the Air Force looks to consolidate its F-22 facilities from six to five.
An Air Force announcement Thursday listed Holloman Air Force Base, N.M.; Elmendorf AFB, Alaska; Langley AFB, Va.; and Nellis AFB, Nevada, as other bases affected by the F-22 consolidation.
Holloman will deactivate one F-22 squadron and redistribute that squadron’s aircraft to other units, while relo-cating a remaining F-22 squadron to Tyndall, according to the Air Force. Elmendorf and Langley each will pick up six additional F-22s, with Nellis receiving two. The moves are contingent on completion of appropriate environ-mental analyses.
Nelson and Boyd said they thought Tyndall’s proximity to the Gulf of Mexico training range played a significant part in the Air Force’s F-22 decision. The senator said the announcement represented a great victory for Panama City and groups such as the BDA that had worked so hard to make the follow-on mission a reality.
“I’m very glad to see that that mission is not only going to be continued, but is also going to be substantially en-hanced,” Nelson said of Tyndall, referring to the 29 F-22 Raptors already assigned to the 325th Operations Group’s 43rd Fighter Squadron.
Boyd said that, on an intangible level, the way the community conducts itself and shows support for its military installations also was a factor.
Boyd specifically cited the June 2009 visit to Tyndall by Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz, where the Air Force officials listened to community leaders talk about the F-15 drawdown and air their concerns about the base’s future.
“I hope the community recognizes what the BDA did that day,” Boyd said.
Prior to Schwartz and Donley’s visit, the Air Force released its Fiscal Year 2010 Combat Air Forces restructuring plan that called for retiring all 48 F-15s assigned to Tyndall by the end of 2010.
The Air Force originally had planned to retire the F-15s in FY 2013, but Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced plans in April to accelerate the retirement of 250 legacy fighters, a move that would impact F-15s, F-16s and A-10s.
The F-15 has been at Tyndall since December 1983.
In July 2009, Neubauer said the base originally was supposed to get up to 60 Raptors assigned to the base, but that number was reduced as production levels for the F-22 fighter were lowered.
Efforts to obtain another F-22 squadron at Tyndall intensified in late 2009, with Boyd, the BDA and Schwartz meeting to discuss the base after the Air Force announced Tyndall did not make the Air Force’s first group list of candidate locations for the F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter.
Boyd repeated Thursday that Tyndall and the Gulf of Mexico testing range were more suited for the F-22 than the F-35, which is an air-to-ground fighter jet.
Even more jobs
Other area officials also weighed in on the F-22 announcement.
Bay County Chamber of Commerce president/CEO Carol Roberts said the chamber was excited about the news.
She said the 589 new personnel at the base cited by Boyd and Nelson didn’t include additional high-tech, high-wage contractor jobs that defense companies like Lockheed Martin might need to bring in as support for the F-22 squadron.
Roberts said the announcement sent a positive message to the world and businesses looking to potentially lo-cate in the Bay County area.
“The federal government has confidence in our community and in our military bases,” Roberts said.
Callaway Mayor Ken Meer said he also was encouraged that Tyndall would be seeing the influx of new fighter jets and had thought the base eventually would get something to replace the departing F-15s.
He said the city always had a good relationship with the neighboring Tyndall base and looked to do whatever it could to support the installations.
“It just shows that if you work together, you can accomplish good things,” Meer said.
Tags: Bay County, Florida Panhandle, Panama City, Tyndall Air Force Base
