NAVY OFFICIAL TELLS SENATOR COLLINS THAT BRUNSWICK NAVAL AIR STATION HAS AN ‘ENORMOUS STRATEGIC VALUE’ TO THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

WASHINGTON, DC-- A Department of the Navy official has told Senator Susan Collins that the Brunswick Naval Air Station (BNAS) has an "enormous strategic value" and is a "critical logistics and refueling hub for Department of Defense Aircraft." That assessment of BNAS's strategic value to the Pentagon came as a result of an inquiry by Senator Collins following the recent Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) hearing where the decision was made to add BNAS to the list for consideration for closure.

Specifically, as the result of issues raised by BRAC Commissioner Admiral Gehman during a hearing in Washington, DC, Senator Collins contacted the Department of the Navy and asked: "What is the strategic importance of BNAS and define the associated homeland defense and surge capability requirements of BNAS?"

Anne Rathmell Davis, the Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Navy for Base Realignment and Closure responded in a letter to Senator Collins outlining specific reasons why Brunswick is crucial to the Navy.

"This response from the Navy is very significant because it acknowledges what a crucial role BNAS plays to the Navy and our homeland defense. These are points that we have been making throughout the entire BRAC process," said Senator Collins.

In a July 26 letter to Senator Collins, the Navy official wrote, "Commander Fleet Forces Command (CFFC) supports retention of NAS Brunswick as Naval Air Field because it will support future requirements for homeland defense and surge capability….The loss of [Brunswick] will increase P-3 response time to any maritime threat against the northeast coast of the United States.…Brunswick continues to be viewed by the Navy as the optimal site in New England for P-3 detachment operations."

The letter further stated, "[Brunswick] has enormous strategic value as the last remaining active DoD airfield in the northeast. [It also] supports several large NATO joint training exercise opportunities. In addition, [Brunswick] is a critical logistics and refueling hub for DoD aircraft flowing in and out of the US Central Command and US European Command Theater of operations."