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JBPHH provides temporary home to Navy aircraft

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Terri Paden
  • 15th Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii --  Navy and Marine Corps aircraft temporarily relocated to JBPHH due to airfield construction at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay commenced flying operations here Oct. 1.

The 18 aircraft from Kaneohe Bay, which include 12 Navy P-3 Orions, four C-20 Gulfstreams, two MK-58 Hawker Hunters and more than 175 maintainers and aircrew members, will perform their primary mission of anti-submarine, anti-surface warfare and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance from Hickam for the next two months. 

According to Glen Bailey, 15th Wing Plans and Programs support agreements chief, this is the fourth time K-Bay has deployed its fixed-wing aircraft to JBPHH in the past six years due to an ongoing runway construction project. The units are expected to return in 2015 and 2016 as well.

While at Hickam, the unit will continue to execute 24-hour operations--providing maintenance and aircrew support as normal. 

"We wouldn't have been able to do our mission if we had not relocated here," said Commander Katrina Hill, VP-9 commanding officer. "With the runway work going on at K-Bay we could not do what we do as an air wing without the help of the JBPHH team."

Hill said the move required support for ground equipment and personnel and training on local security and safety procedures.

"The relocation has gone great because we are continuing to work on relationships we built last time we were here," she said. "We could not have asked for more hospitality from the Air Force."

Navy Captain Lance Scott, Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing Two commander, said the temporary relocation has provided the two units an opportunity to strengthen the working relationship between services.

"We had no concerns coming into this based on the strong relationship we share with the wing," he said. "This is another opportunity for us to reinforce our joint relationship and interoperability which is critical to how we fight as a military."

Scott attributes the unit's seamless transition from K-Bay to Hickam to the strong partnership between the units.

It took a combined effort between the 15th Wing, Joint Base and 735th Air Mobility Squadron personnel to make the bed-down a success.

"We're happy to help out our Navy counterparts during their airfield construction," said Col. Randy Huiss, 15th WG commander. "This is what being a mission partner means ... that we're all part of one big defense team."