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Q. What is the Proposed Action?
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A. The Department of the Air Force (DAF) proposes to beddown an FMS PTC at Ebbing Air National Guard Base (ANGB), Arkansas. An alternative to the Proposed Action is to beddown the FMS PTC at Selfridge ANGB, Michigan.
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Q. What is the purpose of the Proposed Action?
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A. The DAF’s purpose of the Proposed Action is to establish a permanent FMS PTC, initially providing beddown of up to 12 F-16 and 36 F-35 aircraft, at a single location within the continental United States.
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Q. Why is the Proposed Action needed?
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A. The Proposed Action is needed to provide a centralized location for training and pilot production associated with Foreign Military Sales. Multiple nations have agreements with the Air Force to purchase F-35 aircraft. This drives the need for a location suitable for initial F-35 training before returning to their home country. The Republic of Singapore is among the nation’s purchasing F-35s and plans to keep some of their aircraft in the U.S. for an indefinite period of time. The Republic of Singapore also desires to consolidate their pilot training, requesting to relocate the 12 F-16s located at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona, to the FMS PTC location.
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Q. What does the Proposed Action involve?
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A. The Proposed Action involves the beddown of up to 36 foreign F-35 aircraft at any one time, and relocation of 12 Republic of Singapore Air Force F-16 aircraft from Luke AFB, Arizona at a single location. Infrastructure construction and renovation would be required to support the F-35 and F-16 FMS aircraft. Additional personnel would also accompany the aircraft. Flight training would occur within established airspace; there are no proposed changes to airspace under the Proposed Action or Alternatives.
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Q. Has a decision been made as to where the FMS PTC will go?
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A. No decision has been made regarding the FMS PTC beddown location. While Ebbing AGNB, Arkansas is the DAF Preferred Alternative, Selfridge ANGB, Michigan is also being considered as a reasonable alternative to the Proposed Action. A decision regarding the location of the FMS PTC will not be made until after completion of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process.
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Q. Why is the Air Force developing an EIS?
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A. NEPA requires Federal agencies, such as the DAF, to identify and consider the environmental consequences of implementing proposals. The analyses of those consequences is presented in an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). NEPA requires a rigorous process to be followed prior to making a final decision, including consideration of comments from the public and regulatory agencies. The EIS will identify and describe the affected environment, evaluate the potential environmental consequences of reasonable alternatives, and identify environmental permits and specific mitigation measures to avoid, minimize, or reduce adverse environmental impacts.
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