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Arkansas lobbying for Air Force Cyber Command headquarters Tuesday, May 20, 2008 By Jason Wiest Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - Arkansas is one of 18 states vying to become the home of the headquarters for the Air Force Cyber Command, charged with protecting information systems for critical American infrastructures. Matt DeCample, spokesman for Gov. Mike Beebe, confirmed Monday that Little Rock Air Force Base in Jacksonville is under consideration but declined comment. Officials at the base said they have not yet been involved in the process. The Jacksonville facility is home to the 314th Airlift Wing and is the only C-130 training base for the Department of Defense. Cyber Command headquarters would house 550 active-duty military personnel with another 275 people working as part of the command's designated Numbered Air Force, officials said. The Command also could create hundreds of ancillary jobs, many of them high-paying technology jobs. The Air Force sent Beebe and governors in other interested states the second in a series of letters dated May 16 that explains the base selection process and requests more detailed information about the locations to be evaluated, the Air Force Cyber Command announced Monday. The Air Force is asking for information on similar cyber activities such as intelligence and space or satellite operations already taking place at the base, the high-speed network capabilities and capacity for growth there, the level of security available and the threat of recurring natural disasters. The letter also inquires about the base's proximity to existing high-technology processes or centers, accessibility to multiple modes of transportation, existing office space to accommodate the headquarters and Numbered Air Force staff and whether local universities or businesses support an existing cyber-related work force. Arkansas can accommodate many of the command's needs, officials said. In an April 24 meeting with Gen. William Lord, commander of the Cyber Command, Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., touted Little Rock Air Force Base's undeveloped land, which could house the headquarters, as well as the lack of encroachment issues there, Pryor spokeswoman Lisa Ackerman said Monday. Pryor also pointed out that the base is only one of two in the U.S. that have intelligence equipment that tracks unmanned aerial vehicles and provides real-time data and analysis of happenings in Iraq and other locations, Ackerman said. University of Arkansas at Little Rock officials said Monday the university is one of only two institutions in the world that offers master's and doctorate degree programs in information quality and could support the command's need for a cyber-related work force. Bill Anderson, assistant secretary of the Air Force for installations, environment and logistics, previously discouraged state and local governments from investment in the infrastructure targeted to attract the mission. The Arkansas Economic Development Commission is involved in the process, spokesman Joe Holmes said. Air Force officials plan to visit each prospective site this summer to discuss and verify collected data with community and installation officials, but the command will officially start up Oct. 1 with Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana as the interim location. A short list of possible final locations should be announced by the end of the year, with a final location announced by September 2009, according to the Air Force. The other states with sites being considered are Alabama, California, Colorado, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah and Virginia. |
