European Base/Facility Closures Stars and Stripes reports numerous military resale industry facilities and many others will close &/or be returned to their host nation. Executive Summary: DeCA - commissary’s at three posts in the Stuttgart military community — EUCOM’s Patch Barracks, Africa Command’s Kelly Barracks and the housing community at Robinson Barracks — all will eventually close. In their place will be an upgraded commissary on Panzer Kaserne, home to the garrison headquarters. Commissaries at Illesheim and Sembach also will close. AAFES - Giessen Depot will close once AAFES relocates their Distribution Center (unsure of new location) MWR & Housing: Garmisch golf course, Garmisch, Germany, no longer used. Breitenau skeet range, Garmisch, Germany, no longer used. General Abrams hotel and dispensary, Garmisch, Germany, no longer needed with Edelweiss Lodge and Resort in Garmisch. Wiesbaden recreation center, Wiesbaden, Germany, no longer required. Fintherlandstrasse family housing, Wiesbaden, Germany, no longer needed with off-post housing available and less expensive. Kastel housing area, Mainz-Kastel, Germany (in 2016), no longer required. RAF Mildenhall to close amid other Europe consolidations By John Vandiver, Stars and Stripes, Published: January 8, 2015 STUTTGART, Germany — A major U.S. Air Force base in the United Kingdom and 14 other installations scattered across Europe will close as part of a sweeping reorganization of forces on the Continent, the Pentagon announced. Operations at RAF Mildenhall — home to Air Force special operations forces, air refueling tankers and 3,200 military personnel — will end, and missions carried out there will be moved to other locations such as Germany. RAF Alconbury and Molesworth, two other facilities in the U.K., also will close as part of a consolidation effort. Most of the missions there will be moved to RAF Croughton. Meanwhile, the Pentagon plans to station two squadrons of F-35s at RAF Lakenheath by 2020, which ensures the continuous presence of U.S. air power in the country. As a result of the moves, there will be a slight reduction in overall force levels. However, Germany and Italy are expected to gain troops through the Pentagon’s moves. It is expected to take several years for all of the Pentagon’s basing decisions to be implemented. In all, the Pentagon expects to save about $500 million annually from the consolidations, which have been under review for more than a year. The European Infrastructure Consolidation review and F-35 basing decisions will result in a decrease of about 2,000 U.S. military and civilian personnel in the U.K. over the next several years, according to the Pentagon. The removal of 3,200 people from Mildenhall will be offset by the addition of 1,200 personnel at Lakenheath, who will be added to support new missions like the arrival of the F-35 fighters, according to the Pentagon. In the case of the Army, most of the announced consolidations target small outposts and support infrastructure rather than key operational hubs. For the past decade, the U.S. Army in Europe has been steadily drawing down and consolidating its network of garrisons around Europe. In 2012 for example, USAREUR was the main focus of a downsizing on the Continent when it announced it would inactivate two brigades and close garrisons in Bamberg and Schweinfurt in Germany. Officials at USAREUR have said their force and basing structure, after years of transformation, are about where they need to be. The pending closure of Mildenhall, however is the first major Air Force base elimination in Europe in years. In Germany, various troops movements will result in an increase of several hundred U.S. military personnel, the Pentagon stated. Germany will receive Mildenhall’s KC-135s and the 352nd Special Operations Group, which includes a fleet of CV-22 Ospreys. The move will put the tilt-rotor aircraft, favored by special operations troops, closer to troops assigned to Stuttgart-based Special Operations Command Europe and Africa. Mildenhall’s RC-135s will remain in the U.K, however. In Italy, the Pentagon said it would add about 300 military positions once the 606th Air Control Squadron relocates from Spangdahlem, Germany. In Portugal, efforts to reduce the mission at Lajes Field will continue with the reduction of 500 military and civilian personnel assigned there and the returning of some infrastructure to Portuguese authorities, according to the Pentagon. The consolidations come as the U.S. and its allies in Europe attempt to bolster their presence in eastern Europe as part of an effort to reassure allies and deter Russian aggression in the region. Plans to increase troop rotations throughout the region will continue, according to the Pentagon. The already approved $1 billion European Reassurance Initiative aims to boost the U.S.’ rotational presence in Europe for a range of training and exercises with NATO partners, as well as support infrastructure improvement projects that will help efforts in eastern Europe. While moves such as the closure of Mildenhall will alter how the military executes some of its missions, other measures will have an effect on more mundane day-to-day matters. For example, commissary’s at three posts in the Stuttgart military community — EUCOM’s Patch Barracks, Africa Command’s Kelly Barracks and the housing community at Robinson Barracks — all will eventually close. In their place will be an upgraded commissary on Panzer Kaserne, home to the garrison headquarters. Commissaries at Illesheim and Sembach also will close. DOD said the following sites are scheduled to be returned to their respective host nation: Germany U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria Garmisch golf course, Garmisch, Germany, no longer used. Breitenau skeet range, Garmisch, Germany, no longer used. General Abrams hotel and dispensary, Garmisch, Germany, no longer needed with Edelweiss Lodge and Resort in Garmisch. Frechetsfeld radio site, Grafenwoehr, Germany, no longer required. U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden Wiesbaden recreation center, Wiesbaden, Germany, no longer required. Fintherlandstrasse family housing, Wiesbaden, Germany, no longer needed with off-post housing available and less expensive. Kastel housing area, Mainz-Kastel, Germany (in 2016), no longer required. U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz Closure of three American Forces Network (AFN) AM sites: Heidelberg AFN relay facility, Sambach AFN facility and Weisskirchen AFN transmitter facility. Hill 365 radio relay facility, alternate communications make this site unnecessary. Three Sembach water well sites: Enkenbach Water System Annex #1, Neukirchen Water System Annex #1, Niedermehlingerhof Water System Annex #1. Giessen The Giessen General Depot will no longer be required once the Army & Air Force Exchange Service distribution center relocates. Spangdahlem Air Base Siegenburg Range, Bavaria, Germany, no longer in use nor needed. Italy U.S. Army Garrison Vicenza Tirrenia Recreation Site, no longer required. Navy South Bagnoli-Naples Former NATO headquarters facility, no longer required due to consolidation. NATO HQ Air Force South, Nisida Island-Naples Provided support services, no longer needed. Port Customs Office, Catania-Sigonella Lease not renewed as part of facilities consolidation. Denmark Karup Air Base Munitions storage and airfield facilities, no longer used or needed. Greece National Support Element Larissa Support services facility, no longer required due to consolidation. United Kingdom RAF Mildenhall Ammunition storage annex, facilities are not in use and not required. RAF Feltwell 15 housing units (partial return), excess housing requirements. Belgium U.S. Army Garrison Benelux Daumerie Caserne (in 2015), facilities consolidation. A small signal support element will move to a nearby location.
Posted on: Sat, 10 Jan 2015 14:41:40 +0000
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