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The U.S. Senate last week approved the Department of
Defense
spending bill for the next fiscal year, which includes funding for
several key programs that Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) requested for Utah
military installations, including $10 million for Hill Air Force Base
(HAFB) , $2 million for Dugway Proving Ground and $2 million for Tooele
Army Depot.
"Supporting our bases & and especially Hill Air
Force Base &
is among my top priorities," Hatch said. "With these appropriations,
the military is meeting its needs with Utahns' expertise. Military
officials know that when they want the job done right, they need to
come to Utah."
The following are the top four Utah projects Hatch
requested, all of which were included in the DOD spending bill:
1. Automated Composite Technologies Initiative -
Hill Air Force Base, $10 million
Today's military strives to increase the affordability and domestic
access to equipment vital for national defense. With this project, Hill
Air Force Base personnel will improve current production standards for
fiber-placed composite products, such as those needed for the F-35
Joint Strike Fighter, where demand far exceeds domestic supply. HAFB is
a world leader in composite technologies.
2. Senior Scout & Special Signal Processing Threads
& Utah National Guard, $2 million
Senior Scout is an Intelligence, Surveillance and
Reconnaissance
(ISR) suite of aircraft equipment that has received universal praise
for its performance in foreign operations in support of the War on
Drugs and the War on Terrorism. With this appropriation, Utah National
Guard personnel will replace components of the Senior Scout systems
which have become obsolete.
3. Dugway Testing and Infrastructure Upgrade &
Dugway Proving Ground, $2 million
Dugway Proving Ground tests a broad range of chemical
and biological
sensor technologies across a variety of scenarios and conditions,
including those encountered in urban operations. As part of this
effort, Dugway is developing a modular version of an eye-safe Light
Detection and Ranging System (LIDAR) capable of detecting aerosols,
such as those used in chemical and biological warfare, at 10 kilometers
or farther. With this appropriation, Dugway personnel will also use
LIDAR data to enhance Dugway's virtual testing capability.
4. Hydrolysis Demilitarization Demonstration Program
& Tooele Army SCWO/Depot, $2 million
This project will fund an environmentally friendly,
economically
viable method to render chemical agents into inert organics that can be
safely processed. These funds provide for a system to reduce pollution
and remove heavy metals from the agents. The hydrolysis process will
significantly reduce Tooele Army Depot's existing backlogs.
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