The Navy announced two weeks ago that The Marauders, one of two Navy F/A-18 Hornet squadrons based at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, would be the first of three Navy squadrons to be decommissioned as part of a new tactical aircraft plan that combines Navy and Marine Corps aviation.
Navy officials have said the action has nothing to do with the 2005 round of base closures designed to eliminate excess installations so the military can operate more efficiently, and does not indicate any encroachment concerns or lack of community support in Beaufort. Decommissioning the three Navy squadrons along with one Marine Corps Reserve Hornet squadron will save the Defense Department the money needed to buy the new Joint Strike Fighter aircraft for the Navy and Marine Corps.
"I'm still concerned," Wilson, R-S.C., said on Wednesday from his Lowcountry office in downtown Beaufort. "A key selling point that I've been using is the jointness of Navy and Marine (tactical aircraft aviation) capabilities. If we lose one of the squadrons, that, I think, could have a negative impact."
According to the air station, The Marauders, which totals 200 to 250 sailors, has an annual payroll of $8.2 million.
But that isn't even close to the total economic impact of losing the squadron, said John Payne, the chairman of Beaufort County's Military Enhancement Committee, a volunteer group of the Greater Beaufort Chamber of Commerce working to protect the area's bases.
"The majority of those dollars are spent right here at Lowe's, Grayco, Wal-Mart and a lot of other places," said Payne, a retired Marine Corps colonel.
Most economic forecasters say the true economic impact would be between double and triple the payroll because of the number of times the money changes hands in the community, he said.
"So you're looking at $16 (million) to $24 million in the local economy," Payne said.
Wilson and Payne agreed that the loss of The Marauders could be a reality check for the community as far as what to expect if the base were shuttered and all 4,000 Marines and sailors stationed there left town.
And while the congressman said he was glad the local Military Enhancement Committee has dedicated a sub-committee dedicated to exploring economic development options should one or more the area's bases close, he said he wasn't in a mindset to consider the worst-case scenario.
"I'm still optimistic that we have an opportunity to add squadrons, not lose them. I'm not in the mode to think about alternative uses," Wilson said. "I really am, I have to be honest, totally focused on maintaining and expanding the base because I feel that it's a world class facility and is excellent for training."
Payne and Wilson agreed that the air station has the military value the Department of Defense is looking for.
The air station owns ranges allowing for air-to-air dogfighting and air-to-ground training, a feature unique on the East Coast, Payne said, adding that is' ownership of air space between Charleston and Savannah prevent any problems with the Federal Aviation Administration when it comes to training.
"If you give up control of that air space to the FAA, you're never going to get it back," Payne said.
Many other air bases throughout the country are nearby major airline hubs, Wilson said, referencing Norfolk, Va., the urban areas of California and the Northeast Coast.
So, the air station shouldn't be looked at as the base alone, but rather as a complex that includes "two of the most up-to-date ranges in the world," Payne said.
"I am absolutely convinced that our air station has much more to offer the Department of Defense for less money than many other installations, and to lose this base would be a blow to national defense," Payne said.