In anticipation of the arrival of Hurricane Bonnie on the East Coast, soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines have relocated hundreds of military aircraft and vessels out of Bonnie's path and are preparing to assist federal, state and local agencies in dealing with Bonnie's aftermath.
The Army's XVIII Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg, N.C. moved 100-plus helicopters to Greenville, S.C.
The Navy relocated 39 F-14 and three F-18 jet fighters, 10 E-2 observation aircraft and six C-2 transports from Norfolk, Va. to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio. FourE-2s and two C-2s were moved to Naval Air Station, Key West, Fla. Thirty-four F-14s, five F-18s, 10 E-2s, five C-2s, and three T-34 trainers remained in hangars. Of its helicopters, 11 H-3s were moved into hangars and two transferred to the USS Enterprise; two H-46s moved to the USS Nassau and two to the USS Kearsarge. Fourteen H-3s and 11 H-53s remained in hangars.
The Navy also has relocated 60 vessels from Norfolk, Va., 20 from Mayport, Fla., five from Kings Bay, Ga., and one from Charleston, S.C. to the open seas or inland waterways.
The Marine Corps moved fixed-wing aircraft from Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, N.C. to Dobbins Air Force Base, Ga. and Wright-Patterson; from Marine Corps Air Station, Beaufort, S.C. to Naval Air Station, Forth Worth, Texas, and helicopters from Marine Corps Air Station, New River, N.C. to Marine Corps Logistics Base, Albany, Ga.
The Air Force has relocated 14 A-10 close air support aircraft from Pope Air Force Base, N.C. to Moody Air Force Base, Ga. They are also moving 22 C-130 transports to Moody and Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark. At Seymour-Johnson Air Force Base, S.C., 54 F-15E jets have been sent to Wright-Patterson, and six KC-135 tankers are being re-located to Wright-Patterson, Grissom Air Reserve Base, Ind. or Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Ga. Eight F-16s from McEntire Air National Guard Base, S.C. are moving to Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala. and one C-130 to Maxwell.
From Charleston Air Force Base, S.C., 11 C-17 and six C-141 transports are moving to Barksdale Air Force Base, La., and eight C-141s are relocating to Fort Campbell, Ky. From Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., 71 F-16 fighters are moving to Wright-Patterson. From Dover Air Force Base, Del., 15 C-5 transports are relocating to Kelly Air Force Base, Texas.
From Langley Air Force Base, Va., 28 F-15s are moving to Grissom Air Reserve Base, Ind., and six C-21 transports will go to Wright-Patterson. From Francis Gabreski International Airport, N.Y., one HC-130 will relocate to Stratton Air National Guard Base, N.Y., and from Willow Grove Air Reserve Station, Pa., seven C-130s are moving to Grissom.
The South Carolina National Guard has activated 1,512 Guardsmen on state active duty (1,474 Army National Guard, or ARNG; 38 Air National Guard, or ANG). North Carolina has called up 815 Guardsmen (725 ARNG; 90 ANG). North Carolina guardsmen are assisting local and state law enforcement agencies with evacuation of more that 750,000 citizens, including more than 200,000 from the Outer Banks alone.
Active duty armed forces support for potential hurricane recovery missions has been identified and is prepared to assist once Hurricane Bonnie makes landfall. First U.S. Army has alerted four potential Defense Coordinating officers from Fort Stewart, Ga.; Fort Jackson, S.C.; Fort Meade, Md. and Fort Bragg, N.C. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, or USACE, has alerted planning response teams from its South Atlantic Division, headquartered in Wilmington, N.C.
Defense Department emergency operations centers have been operational since Aug. 21 at Forces Command and First U.S. Army at Fort Gillem. The U.S. Atlantic Command's 24-hour response cell is operational. The Director of Military Support crisis response cell at the Pentagon is maintaining 24-hour operations. This cell is jointly staffed with emergency preparedness liaison officers from First Army.
DoD will continue to respond to requests for support as identified.
