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In an unexpected reversal from the late-1990s divestiture of government property, the Dept. of the Navy has announced its intention to purchase Waukegan National Airport for the purpose of creating an inland Navy\/Marine Corps pilot training facility. Civilian housing in the area will be purchased and demolished for safety reasons, and two schools close to the airport, H. R. McCall Elementary and Prairie Trail School will become NATTU (Naval Air Technical Training Unit) schools. The Domino\u2019s Pizza at the end of the northeast runway will be preserved and expanded to provide a full 24-hour kitchen for Navy, Marine Corps, and\u00a0 Coast Guard personnel.<\/p>\n
The purpose of this move is to provide training facilities lost with the closing of NASGlenview, a pre-World War II Naval Air Station used for training Navy pilots prior to their deployment.\u00a0 Due to an unfortunate lack of foresight, NASGlenview was sold and converted to civilian housing developments during the BRAC. The current residents have angrily refused to even consider giving up their expensive, comfortable homes, regardless of prime offers by the Navy.<\/p>\n
In a search for an aviation facility currently in operation, the choice was between Waukegan National Airport at Waukegan, IL, and Kenosha Regional Airport at Kenosha, WI, 30 miles to the north of NSGreat Lakes. Both airports have a 30-foot high elevated embankment at the end of their main runways, meant to avoid impacts with civilian vehicle traffic. According to one enthusiastic light sport pilot who uses the Waukegan airport regularly, it\u2019s \u201calmost \u00a0like taking off from an aircraft carrier deck.\u201d\u00a0 The Navy settled on Waukegan National because of its 6 mile distance from NSGreat Lakes.<\/p>\n
The basic aviation training program for NAVAIRCADs and MARAIRCADs will be held at McCall Elementary and Prairie Trail schools, which will also offer daycare as well as standard K-12 classes for the children of Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard families. The aviation program will include pilot qualifications in rotor and fixed wing aircraft, as well as aviation equipment handling, maintenance, fuels, and aviation engineering classes in \u201cA\u201d, \u201cB\u201d and \u201cC\u201d schools.\u00a0 The US Coast Guard unit currently operating from its Waukegan National Airport and Waukegan Harbor facilities will be expanded, with NASGreat Lakes as its base of operations on the western shores of Lake Michigan.<\/p>\n
Expansion of runways and facilities includes future plans to accommodate heavy gunships such as RATO C-130 Hercs, as well as lighter warplanes like the A-10 (Warthog). In addition, plans are on the table for a Lexington-class carrier strike force consisting of an aircraft carrier, two diesel-powered destroyer escorts, one guided missile frigate and a destroyer, to ply the waters of Lake Michigan, as well as installing a SEAL training facility at the former nuclear power generating station at Beach Park, IL. There is also a discussion underway regarding\u00a0reviving a diesel-powered submarine now in mothballs as a training ship for future submariners.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"