911Th Airlift Wing
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911_FINAL.qxp_REPORT_1 7/17/18 11:17 PM Page 1 PENNSYLVANIA MILITARY INSTALLATIONS // IMPACTS J 911 TH AIRLIFT WING 911_FINAL.qxp_REPORT_1 7/17/18 11:17 PM Page 2 This report was produced by the University of Pittsburgh Center for Social and Urban Research (UCSUR) and financed by a grant from the Pennsylvania Military Community Enhancement Commission, Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, with additional funding support from Team PA. June 2018 911_FINAL.qxp_REPORT_1 7/17/18 11:17 PM Page 3 911 TH AIRLIFT WING This report is part of the Pennsylvania Military Community Enhancement Commission-sponsored study of the economic impacts of Pennsylvania’s military and defense installations. The aim of the project is to aid the Commis- sion and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in understanding the economic and strategic value of its military installations regionally and nationally, as well as their ties to surrounding communities and Pennsylvania industry. he 911th Airlift Wing of the Air Force Re - In September 2016, Congress approved $85 mil - serve is located in the borough of Coraopo - lion to bring an Air Force squadron of eight C-17 lis, approximately 20 miles from the City of cargo planes to the 911th Airlift Wing. The C-17s will Pittsburgh in Allegheny County, and is co- replace the existing eight C-130 planes in the coming Tlocated with the Pittsburgh International Airport. The years, enabling the 911th to enhance and expand its 911th Airlift Wing is part of the U.S. Air Force Reserve capabilities and capacities into the future. Command, and the wing is the principal Air Force Re - The upgrade means many changes for the 911th. serve unit located within Pennsylvania. The Air Force The mission of the 911th will change as it converts to Reserve Command at the 911th includes military and the C-17s and adds 192 permanent military and civil - civilian employees, many traditional reservists, and air ian workers, 137 of which will be full-time. With a reserve technicians. The installation covers 115 acres project cost estimate of $110 million, the transition to and contains 379,851 square feet of office and work - C-17s also represents an important addition of re - space. sources and economic activity coming into Allegheny County. J 1 PA MILITARY INSTALLATIONS & IMPACTS 911 TH AIRLIFT WING 911_FINAL.qxp_REPORT_1 7/17/18 11:17 PM Page 4 he 911th Airlift Wing deploys as part of the In 2005, the DoD recommended closure of the Air Mobility Command. The 911th Airlift 911th and relocation of the eight C-130s to Fort Bragg, Wing contains the 911th Maintenance North Carolina. 4 Again, the BRAC Commission re - Group, 911th Mission Support Group, and jected the recommendation to close the base and rec - T 911th Airlift Wing Operations Group, ommended keeping the base open, with the installation among other support. The 911th recruits and trains Air forming the basis of a new Regional Joint Readiness Force Reserve personnel to provide airlift services, Center. Co-located with the Greater Pittsburgh Inter - along with intra-theatre aeromedical evacuation. The national Airport, the Regional Joint Readiness Center 911th participates in joint service training exercises and would provide military-civilian operations, homeland supports active duty forces with airborne training ini - security, and community-based medical support to the tiatives. DoD and the Department of Homeland Security Na - The 911th began in 1943 on a former farm field tional Incident Management Plan and the National Re - near today’s site of the Pittsburgh International Airport sponse Plan. 5 and served as a refueling stop for aircraft traveling During the 2005–06 period, the Military Affairs across the country. Later, it emerged as a post-war re - Council of Western Pennsylvania (MACWPA) spon - serve training center. Over the years, its mission has ex - sored the Joint Readiness Center Task Force, a public- panded, becoming a Military Airlift Group in 1967, private partnership that included a number of Western with C-124 aircraft, and a Tactical Airlift Group in Pennsylvania organizations, universities, and govern - 1972, with C-123K aircraft. During the 1980s, the unit ment agencies. The task force began to develop the converted to C-130 aircraft. In 1992, the unit was re - concept and identify the activities and functions of the named the 911th Airlift Group and, in 1994, became Joint Readiness Center for the DoD and Department the 911th Airlift Wing. of Homeland Security. Despite strength in organizing The 911th has been nominated for closure under and community support for the task force, the Joint previous rounds of Base Realignment and Closure Readiness Center was not funded. The Pittsburgh In - (BRAC), in 1995 and 2005. In 2012, it faced another ternational Airport continues to maintain land for the attempt at closure during Congressional budget cuts. 1 center. In 1995, the Department of Defense (DoD) rec - Though the 2005 BRAC was the most comprehen - ommended inactivating the 911th and transferring the sive round to date, the 911th survived and expanded C-130 aircraft to Air Force Reserve units at Dobbins in the following years. Despite the threat of closure, Air Force Base (AFB), Georgia, and Peterson AFB, Col - the strengths and capacity of the 911th and its military orado. 2 Later that year, the BRAC Commission recom - and civilian forces have prevailed over these efforts. J mended keeping the 911th and reserve base open, reporting that “the base could accommodate all types of aircraft,” as well as provide low operating costs and expansion opportunities. 3 2 911_FINAL.qxp_REPORT_1 7/17/18 11:17 PM Page 5 The 911th Airlift Wing has successfully moved to build the platform of the future with the emergence of the next generation C-17 air transport jets he 911th produces an important economic count for employment and commuting patterns of both impact in Southwestern Pennsylvania and full-time staff in Coraopolis and assigned drilling re - the state’s overall economy. The IMPLAN servists. model was used to estimate the total eco - This economic impact analysis quantifies the cu - T nomic impact of the 911th Airlift Wing mulative impact on employment and economic output within Pennsylvania. The model estimates the direct, of the 911th. These results can be interpreted as the re - indirect, and induced impacts that accrue within Penn - sulting economic impact if the 911th were to be either sylvania because of activity generated by the 911th. Di - closed or relocated outside of Pennsylvania. Staff of the rect impacts are the employment and spending 911th provided economic data for the 2015–16 federal associated with the 911th itself, while indirect impacts, fiscal year; results reflect economic impact over that sometimes called intermediate impacts, are generated period. Personnel and employment data reflects Sep - by the supply chain requirements and industry linkages tember 30, 2016. of the activity being analyzed. Induced economic im - The 911th is an Air Force Reserve unit served by pacts derive from the spending patterns of employees a mix of civilians, active duty service members, and tra - and service members. Adjustments were made to ac - ditional reservists who serve part-time throughout the >> U.S. Air Force C-130 Hercules from the 911th Airlift Wing flies over Pittsburgh Photo courtesy of 911th Airlift Wing >> 911_FINAL.qxp_REPORT_1 7/17/18 11:17 PM Page 6 > > year and full-time during periods of mobilization or • These jobs account for over $76 million in labor other extended orders to active duty. In 2016, the income in Pennsylvania. 911th had 375 civilian employees, including air reserve • An estimated $155 million in Gross Regional Product technicians, 54 active duty service members, and 1,197 (GRP), or value added production, is generated by the currently serving reservists. 6 Reservists include both 911th in Pennsylvania. traditional reservists, who serve on a part-time basis throughout the year or longer periods of mobilization, and air reserve technicians, who serve in a dual status The direct economic impacts of the 911th occur as both reservists and full-time civilian employees. Ap - where operations are co-located at the Pittsburgh In - proximately 80% of all personnel reside within Penn - ternational Airport in Allegheny County, part of the sylvania. Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area. Indirect eco - nomic impacts are also concentrated within Allegheny The economic impacts for Allegheny County and County due to the joint use of airport facilities. Along Pennsylvania are summarized in Table 1. with induced impacts resulting from the spending pat - terns of workers, the economic impacts of 911th oper - • Overall, the 911th Airlift Wing generated 1,024 ations are concentrated within the Pittsburgh region, full-time equivalent jobs and $217 million in economic mostly within Allegheny County. These regional im - output in Pennsylvania. pacts include: * * *Represents full-time equivalent employment including civilian employees and active duty service members, and an adjustment for the part-time service of traditional reservists/Guard members. Source: University of Pittsburgh Center for Social and Urban Research, 2018 911_FINAL.qxp_REPORT_1 7/17/18 11:17 PM Page 7 >> Sector reflects IMPLAN industry category; Source: University of Pittsburgh Center for Social and Urban Research, 2018 • 525 direct (full-time equivalent) jobs within model. The largest impacts were on federal govern - Allegheny County. Along with indirect and induced ment (military and non-military) sectors, as well as air effects, the 911th supports a total of nearly 1,000 jobs transportation. Most of the remaining industries af - in Allegheny County. These jobs generate a total of fected by the 911th are locally serving industries, such $74.5 million in labor income annually within the as hospitals, restaurants, and real estate. county. Additional impact due to the mobilization of tra - ditional guard members is not directly included in this • $210 million in total economic output and $152 analysis.