Virginia lawmakers get last chance to salvage jet base

The Virginia congressional delegation is gearing up for a critical public hearing Thursday, with the fate of the Master Jet Base at Oceana Naval Air Station -- and about 10,000 military and civilian jobs -- on the line.

If the Base Closure and Realignment Commission opts later this month to shutter the southern Virginia base, the community stands to lose more jobs than any other in the country.

The Pentagon passed over Oceana when it announced its base-closure recommendations in May, but the commission last month voted to add it to the list for consideration, giving the state only a month to make its case against closure.

The state's lawmakers -- including Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner -- began lobbying the commission to spare Oceana immediately after it was added to the list. In letters to the commission, and during a site visit Monday, they argued that, despite overcrowding issues, the Navy believes Oceana still is the best location on the East Coast for a jet base.

"The bottom line is that Sen. Warner's position is the same as the Navy's position in that there is no viable alternative," a Warner spokesman said Wednesday.

Warner, along with Sen. George Allen, R-Va., and Democratic Gov. Mark Warner, will have one hour to persuade the commission. They will be joined by Adm. Michael Mullen, the chief of naval operations, who agreed to testify in response to a July 26 letter from Sen. Warner.

"I believe on such a critical matter of national security and military readiness, commissioners must be provided the department's best military judgment and professional advice available on the military value of Naval Station Oceana," Warner wrote. "You are the most qualified to provide this testimony."

During a hearing on Capitol Hill last month, commissioners said they were concerned that development in surrounding Virginia Beach was impeding flight-training missions. Oceana is the Navy's busiest jet base -- with more than 200 aircraft -- and takeoffs and landings occurring every 2.5 minutes. If it is closed, the Navy would be forced to set up a new jet base in a less populated area.

During its own base-closure discussions, the Navy realized it would eventually have to relocate the jet base, but decided doing so would take longer than the six-year timeframe mandated under BRAC law. Commissioners, however, see the move as inevitable and said they might offer short-term solutions to the problem.

Commission Chairman Anthony Principi and member Harold Gehman will be at the hearing. Gehman, a retired Navy admiral and a Virginia resident, has recused himself from voting on all Virginia recommendations. He can, however, participate in deliberations, a commission spokeswoman said.