PANEL HEARS BASE CASE LEADERS ARGUING MILITARY CLOSURES.

Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer

LANCASTER - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger needs to get personally involved in boosting California's military bases as a new round of Pentagon cutbacks nears, civic leaders told a state panel Monday.

Speaking before the California Council on Base Support and Retention at a Lancaster City Hall hearing, Antelope Valley leaders also urged the panel to try to get a Californian named to the Pentagon panel that will decide which bases to close nationwide.

``When the list comes out, you want somebody who understands the value of California bases who will defend our interests,'' said Phil Arnold, a member of the Southwest Defense Alliance, an organization that promotes military bases in California and other western states.

Civic leaders said the governor should meet with the governors of Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas to promote the capabilities of defense at southwestern U.S. bases, handling a large portion of the military's testing, research and training.

``It builds a sense of unity with the southwest states to protect those bases,'' Arnold said of the governor's involvement.

Monday's all-day hearing was one in a series being held up and down California by the state panel, which was appointed by Schwarzenegger.

The panel's task is to learn what communities are doing to protect their bases, suggest improvements for those community efforts, and learn what actions the communities want the state to take, said panel co-chairwoman Donna Tuttle.

Recommendations will be formulated and put together in a report due out in February.

The panel took no action Monday other than to take testimony, but individual members did offer suggestions.

For example, retired Marine Corps Maj. Gen. O.K. Steele suggested highlighting the California desert and mountain terrain that resembles world hot spots such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

Member Andrea Seastrand suggested highlighting the work at Mojave Airport, where designer Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne went into space last year and which has included projects for the Defense Department.

Civic leaders representing such bases as Edwards Air Force Base and China Lake Naval Weapons Center highlighted their installations' capabilities and their collaborative joint service efforts.

Among the arguments in favor of Edwards is its sheer size at 310,000 acres. Of that amount, 50,000 acres at the base could be developed to house other programs and missions.

Edwards is also electronically interconnected with 13 other military bases.

It is unlikely Edwards will be closed but there is a possibility of units and projects being transferred elsewhere, civic leaders say.

``Taking missions away and moving them can be just as devastating,'' said Bob Johnstone, an aerospace consultant for the city of Lancaster.

Part of the morning's testimony was dedicated to the R-2508 Range, a massive restricted air corridor that stretches from Edwards along the Sierra Nevada and is used by 15 military bases.

Civic leaders said it is the largest restricted airspace range in the nation and it covers a wide range of terrain, including Death Valley, the lowest point in the United States, and Mount Whitney, the highest point in the continental United States.

``It is arguably the most important block of airspace in the Department of Defense,'' Johnstone said.

There is pressure to open the range to commercial flights, Johnstone said.

For Air Force Plant 42, officials urged the continuation of tax incentives to draw in defense work for the installation's employees.

The state could also help by using its clout to unite California's congressional delegation in lobbying for military programs, civic leaders said.

Los Angeles World Airports officials urged the panel to promote the possible use of Plant 42's neighboring Site 9 for missions or programs being displaced by base closures.

Owned by Los Angeles, the site was formerly used for assembling B-1B bombers.