POINT MUGU : Gulf Transport Chief to Dedicate Base
The general in charge of transporting U.S. troops and materiel to the Persian Gulf will be the main speaker at the Sept. 8 dedication of the Channel Islands Air National Guard base at Point Mugu.
Air Force Gen. Hansford Johnson, commander in chief of the U.S. Transport Command and Military Airlift Command, heads a long list of military and political leaders expected for the dedication.
Lt. David L. Corrick, a base spokesman, said Johnson is expected to discuss the importance of the Air National Guard in the Persian Gulf mobilization. Air National Guard reservists are expected to make up nearly a third of the 49,703 military reserves authorized for active duty last week.
The Channel Islands base, home of the 146th Tactical Airlift Command, already has been tapped for 45 volunteer reservists for medical evacuation duty. Col. Daniel H. Pemberton, air commander at the base, has put other reservists based there on a “heightened state of awareness” because of the possibility of further call-ups.
About 300 full-time Air National Guard personnel are attached to the Channel Islands base, as well as 1,100 part-time reservists. About half of the personnel live in Ventura County.
The $80-million, 260-acre Channel Islands base opened in April, replacing a crowded, 40-acre facility at Van Nuys Airport.
The base is just north of the Point Mugu Naval Air Station, and its 16 C-130 Hercules cargo planes use the naval station’s runway.
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