Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Nellis Air Force Base remains on high alert

Nellis Air Force Base today remains on the highest level of alert.

Maj.Gen. L.D. Johnston, a Nellis spokesman, talked to reporters Tuesday at the gate of the base hours after the terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C.

"We are at a heightened state of readiness and security...we're prepared," Johnston said, adding that the mood on the base was "very somber."

Although commercial flights have been shut down across the country, limited flying is being conducted by Nellis pilots.

In the wake of the attacks, entrance to Nellis was limited to essential personnel until further notice.

Lines of traffic leading into the main entrance of the base -- the only permitted access point -- remained heavy for a second straight day as guards checked each ID and used special mirror devices to check under the cars for bombs.

Johnston and other Nellis officials declined to discuss any potential deployments from the base that has in the past contributed to combat efforts in Bosnia, Kosovo, Haiti, the Persian Gulf and other regions.

Nellis is the home of the Air Warfare Center, which just last week completed Red Flag training operations, and the United States Air Force Weapons Fighter School.

The local base also is home to the Air Force's demonstration squadron, the Thunderbirds, which have canceled an air show planned for this weekend in Salinas, Calif. Information on the squadron's remaining show schedule is pending.

The mission of the base's Air Warfare Center is to manage advanced aircrew training and conduct most of the Air Force's fighter/bomber operational test and evaluation requirements. The center also manages and is the primary user of the Nellis Air Force Range -- the largest of its kind in the United States.

Operating under the Air Warfare Center are the 57th Wing, 99th Air Base Wing, both at Nellis, and the 53rd Wing at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.

The military awareness status that Nellis and all other bases are on is called "Forced Protection Level Delta," meaning that normal operations are to continue at the base, but further restrictions of movement off the base and tighter security checks of people entering are required, Air Force officials said.

On Tuesday, that meant closing the base to everyone except military personnel, their families and civil service employees. The commissary and base exchange were closed as were recreational facilities.

Such security measures were to continue today, including closure of the elementary school. However, the base day care center was to remain open until 7 p.m., officials said.

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