Murray vows to fight for Westover
Date: 3/20/2012
March 21, 2012By G. Michael Dobbs
news@thereminder.comCHICOPEE — The importance of telling the story to decision makers about the positive impact made by Westover Air Reserve Base (WARB) was the message brought by state officials last week.
Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray brought members of his Military Asset and Security Strategy Task Force to WARB on March 15 for a tour and a subsequent discussion about the impact of proposed cuts to the defense budget on the nation's largest reserve military base.
After seeing a massive C-5 transport plane being repaired, Murray and his team met with elected officials and business leaders at the Westover Metropolitan Airport facility.
Murray explained the proposed cuts to the defense budget involve $500 billion over a 10-year period. The state's approach, he added, is to assess the six military facilities in the Commonwealth Barnes Air National Guard Base, Hanscom Air Force Base, the Massachusetts Military Reservation / Otis Air National Guard Base, Natick Soldier Systems Center and Fort Devens — and then seek ways to lobby against the cuts that affect those installations.
Besides the budget cuts, the Pentagon also requested that Congress authorize a Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) to recommend the closure or consolidation of select military bases across the country.
"We are going to make sure we're advocating vociferously for all of our facilities," Murray said. He added, "We need to be clear-eyed: there are going to be reductions in the budget."
Community engagement, though, is one of the criteria used by the military when considering what facility or program to decrease, he explained.
"We think Westover has a tremendous story to tell," Chicopee Mayor Michael Bissonnette said. He added the base's C-5As do more than fly personnel and equipment to help fight wars.
"These big birds fly humanitarian missions all over the world, especially to Europe and Africa," he said.
Bissonnette added that under the current proposals eight of the base's C-5As would be reassigned and there would also be a loss of jobs.
According to information released by the governor's office, in 2010 the defense industry and military bases accounted for thousands of jobs and more than $14 billion in defense contracts awarded to Massachusetts firms. Locally, WARB and the civilian Westover Metropolitan Airport have a direct financial impact of $229.1 million with an additional $75.4 million in indirect benefits and provide 5,484 jobs.
Murray noted that WARB was rated as the number one air reserve base in the nation in 2010 and that its presence on the east coast puts it closer to many of the "hot spots" around the world.
State Reps. Donald Humason Jr., John Scibak and Nicholas Boldyga all spoke on behalf of the base and pledged their help in advocating on its behalf.
