1995 Army Team Lead Desk Material - DoD Investigative Hearing Transcript, June 14, 1995 Page: 45 of 111
This legal document is part of the collection entitled: Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission and was provided to UNT Digital Library by the UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Multi-PageTr
Page 241
I late, as a matter of fact. And we believe that the Coast
2 Guard has other options in the Aleutian Chain and elsewhere
3 in Alaska to support their operations. However, if they wish
4 to take over NAS Adak and pay $25 million a year to operate
5 it, I'm sure that we can come to some kind of an agreement.
6 COMMISSIONER COX: You're willing to work with
7 them, to work out their operation problems.
8 MR. PIRIE: I'm willing to work with the Coast
9 Guard any time.
10 COMMISSIONER COX: Thank you.
I COMMISSIONER CORNELLA: Thank you, Commissioner.
12 It's my distinct privilege at this time to introduce our
13 chairman, the distinguished chairman of the 1995 Defense Base
14 Closure and Realignment Commission, former senator from the
15 great state of Illinois, Alan Dixon.
16 CHAIRMAN DIXON: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
17 Gentlemen, may I first say to you I apologize for being gone
18 during some of your testimony. As men of your importance, I
19 hope you understand there arc some housekeeping duties by now
20 with the vote starting next Thursday. I'm only going to ask
21 three questions.
22 One is one I would rather not ask. And I say inPage 242
I advance of the question, Mr. Secretary and Admiral Boorda
2 that I know and respect you both for everything you do; and
3 even when I don't agree with you, I understand pretty clearly
4 what your position Is.
5 Now, I'm compelled to make this statement and ask
6 this question. I hope you understand it. I'm not trying to
7 put you on the spot, but eight of us have to vote.
8 You recently revised the projected pilot training
9 rate -- nowr it's been discussed a little but we haven't
10 gotten specific -- to reflect increases in pilot training
It requirements, including the introduction of additional FA-
12 18s, EAG-P squadrons. I have seen, and it is in our packet,
13 Admiral Boorda, the letter you sent to the distinguished
14 congressman from that district who all of us have great
15 affection for.
16 Now, you conclude -- I won't bore the audience with
17 the whole question by saying this -- the combination of
Is increased strike PTR in a single-strike training base makes
19 successful completion of our projected PTR more difficult and
20 reduces our capacity for surge operations, and that could be
21 unacceptable. I understand that.
22 But the trade-off remains the degree of difficulty2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22Page 243
or risks versus costs to operate two strike training bases.
And I understand that. Now, this morning one of my
distinguished colleagues asked General Sullivan, and
Secretary Togo said, Now, here, you're closing two depos" --
and then they went through kind of a hypothetical case. And
I said, "Isn't there a lot oT risk in this? He said, "Yeah.
There's a lot of risk in that, but we considered it as an
acceptable risk; in view of the cost, we recommend doing it."
And, you know, I'm going to be honest with you now.
This is one of them that we re going to have a tough time
with around here, so I'm compelled to ask both ofyou in a
specific way about Meridian. Now, what are you telling us
here? We know you're getting it down to one, you're going to
save a lot of money, but is It an unacceptable risk? Now, is
it acceptable or isn't it acceptable? I guess that's what I
have to ask you.
ADMIRAL BOORDA: As I was -- Mr. Secretary, do you
want to go first?
CItAIRMAN DIXON: I almost hesitate to use your own
words to ask the question, but --
ADMIRAL BOORDA: No, I'm glad you did. Inasmuch as
they were mine, let me answer your question. I think we2
3
4
5
6
7
9
10
II
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22._ :
I
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22June 14, 1995
Page 244
talked about it a minute ago.
It's my personal opinion -- it's not the
Department s opinion -- that we're right on the margin (of
surge capability. I agree with the numbers that the BCEG has
done. And that would give us about 18 percent excess
capacity training at Kingsville, using the Kingsville-Corpus
complex. That requires everything to go just right.
I would like -- personally, not the Department s
position -- to be able to find a way to work better with the
Air Force to keep some residual capability there for surge;
to keep that place open, not totally closed, and still try to
get the flexibility to get the savings from combining things
at Kingsville. That would require you to give us more
flexibility than we have asked for. And that's why I say
it's mypersonal opinion.
It everything goes exactly as planned, we'll be
okay and we will close a very good and very new base that was
hard for us to put on the list.
CHAIRMAN DIXON: Well, I hear you, but let me tell
you my problem with -- I respect the answer. Let me tell you
my problem now. I was here in the Reagan years. I voted
for the build-up. If I was here I'd still be voting against
Page 245
the reductions. All right? But that's Alan Dixon, and
that's not the country, and that's not the Congress right
now. And I accept that. There's a change.
Now, all of us wish there was more. And we're
going to have to make some tough choices here. Now, there's
a 40 percent reduction , in authorized and appropriated
amounts, and a 30 percent reduction in force level. And if
we give you everything that all of you have asked for --
nothing more than that, let's assume that, it's not the way
it's going to happen, exactly, but let's just assume that I~r
the purposes of our discussion -- if we give the DOD
everything they ask for, it's 21 percent. So there's excess
capacity out there.
Now, I know there's a lot of risk and a lot of
stuff we're doing, but I have to say that, unfortunately,
you, the guys that are going to have to make these judgmental
decisions mn many cases -- now, I don't say we can't change
these things, some of them we're arguing about, we might have
some different ideas, in fact, and all the services might
have some different ideas, some at the margin, some at the
heart, maybe. But it's on numbers where there's an arguable
difference.Page 246
I But it's hard for those of us, I will say in due
2 respect we have three distinguished men that had the
3 experiences you had up here that I'm privileged to serve with
4 here -- but it's hard for us to make that kind of a udgement
5 about this doggone thing. I just want to level with ytou
6 about that. I don't feel comfortable with it. I don't want
7 to take an unnecessary risk. So I hate to pursue it beyond
8 that.
9 I don't know, Mr. Secretary, do you have anything
10 further you want to say?
Ii SECRETARY DALTON: Mr Chairman, as the CNO has
12 indicated, this was a tough recommendation for us because of
13 the points that he has outlined. We do feel like that the
14 Kingsville-Corpus Christi complex has sufficient capacity to
15 single side all our Department of the Navy strike training
16 Even if we do add the 10 flight squadrons and relocate the
17 E2-C2 train to Kingsville.
18 He's made the point with respect to what would
19 happen. We don't plan on bringing on 10 additional squadrons
20 at this time. As a matter of fact, we're talking with
21 discussions between three and six. But if we did, we could
22 make it. So we have the ability to do it. It still makes itDiesfe Reotn Sevies itic. (22)29-229Pae 41Pac4
Base Realignment & Closure
Diversified Reporting Services, Inc.
(202) 296-2929
Page 241 - P'age 246
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This document can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Legal Document.
United States. Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission. 1995 Army Team Lead Desk Material - DoD Investigative Hearing Transcript, June 14, 1995, legal document, February 17, 2006; (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc25516/m1/45/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.