Omaha World-Herald February 03, 2009
Offutt has rivals for 2 commands
By Henry J. Cordes
As the Air Force seeks to find a home for a coveted new nuclear command, supporters of Offutt Air Force Base see the Bellevue installation as the natural spot for it to land.
After all, Offutt is home to U.S. Strategic Command, the premier nuclear strategist and oversight agency in the entire Defense Department.
But not so fast, some national defense experts say.
The five other bases competing for the command are home to the ballistic missile operators and long-range bomber wings that hands-on perform the nuclear mission.
Since the purpose of the new command is to improve oversight of those operations, Air Force officials could decide it's better to put it directly on such an operating base.
"It would certainly make sense at Offutt, but there are other issues as well," said Hans Kristensen, nuclear analyst for the Federation of American Scientists.
Indeed, it's difficult to predict Offutt's chances of landing either of two plum missions the Air Force is seeking a home for.
Offutt recently was announced as a finalist for both the 900-person Air Force nuclear command and a new 400-person unit that would wage war in cyberspace. The Air Force will spend the next several months evaluating the contending bases, with a decision expected by July.
While national defense experts agree that Offutt is a serious contender for both missions, the competition is stiff. Supporters of all 10 bases in the running can make good arguments why their base is the logical choice.
"You can understand why all these places made it to the top of their respective lists," said John Pike of GlobalSecurity.org, a defense analyst.
Still, Offutt has its strengths.
It more than meets the Air Force's key evaluation criteria: current missions that dovetail with the new ones; a well-maintained base with room for growth; world-class communications infrastructure that comes with being the home of StratCom.
And being in a good-sized metro area, it can offer things the others can't, including educational institutions and a large, well-trained workforce that could help fill civilian jobs in the units. Most of Offutt's competitors, particularly for the nuclear command, are comparatively quite remote.
Local officials say they plan to work to make sure Air Force officials understand those strengths.
"We are not bashful about making them aware of what's happening here and the support for future missions," said Ned Holmes, a military recruiter for the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce. "We are well aware and ready."
One need only spend time in Bellevue to realize why the new commands are so coveted. The base's nearly 10,000 uniformed and civilian workers are deeply ingrained in the community, both economically and socially.
Visit the Amarillo Barbecue at noontime and there are sure to be Offutt personnel, standing out in military fatigues or sharp, pressed uniforms.
"We support the military, and they've definitely supported us," said restaurant manager Sheila Tschirren. "They are a great bunch of people."
There are hundreds of spin-off jobs from the base, too, with nearly all the nation's top defense contractors having opened offices in the metro area. In all, the annual economic impact of the base on the region has been estimated at more than $2.4 billion.
Given that, it's not surprising that talk of base expansion sparks excitement.
"That's good for us," said George Rybar, who owns the Offutt Collision Repair body shop in Bellevue.
So where are these plums likely to fall?
Interviews with former Air Force officials and defense analysts revealed no obvious front-runners for the cyber outfit. Though StratCom already has strategic oversight over all U.S. cyberwar operations, Offutt's claim seems no stronger than that of several other bases, the observers said.
"Cyber could pretty much go anywhere," said Whit Peters, an Omaha native who served as Air Force secretary under President Bill Clinton.
Offutt is listed by most of the observers among the favorites for the nuclear command. Not only is the base home of StratCom, for decades it was home to the Strategic Air Command, which headed Air Force nuclear operations. The new Air Force unit is seen by some as a partial reconstitution of the old SAC.
But Offutt is definitely no lock.
When the Air Force announced last fall it was creating the new command, Kristensen was quoted in a defense publication saying it was likely to go to Offutt. But the analyst has since changed his thinking.
The Air Force is creating the new command because of some high-profile mistakes airmen made in handling nuclear weapons, an indication that the mission had lost its emphasis.
That might make it more likely that the Air Force would put the new command at a bomber or missile base where the mission is performed, Kristensen said.
Analyst Pike agreed that one of the five operational bases might have a better shot. But that assessment isn't shared by all.
"If sloppiness is your problem, what you need to do is crack down on people," said Chris Hellman of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. "And you can do that from anywhere."
Hellman said he thinks the Air Force is most likely to locate the command where it can be set up most cheaply and quickly. That will come down to a technical analysis of base facilities.
A wild card in the decision, analysts say, is whether key members of Congress will try to arm-twist decision-makers to steer the units to their state.
Several of the states have representatives who could be in a position to try to influence the decision, including Nebraska. Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., sits on both the Armed Services Committee and on a key defense appropriations subcommittee.
While the services often argue that congressional lobbying has no impact, "only a fool believes that to be true," Hellman said.
Supporters of Offutt say they look forward to having their chance to sell the Air Force on Offutt's benefits, including a quality of life often praised by even the most traveled of Air Force veterans.
In the end, Offutt supporters say, the Air Force should put the units in the place that's best for the nation's security.
It just so happens, they say, that place is Offutt.
"I could probably give the same argument if I'm sitting at Barksdale (Air Force Base)," said Bob Hinson, a former StratCom vice commander who heads the local office of defense contractor Northrop Grumman. "But parochially speaking, we do have a lot to offer."
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