VIPs to help dedicate
new Grand Junction interagency air center

GRAND JUNCTION, CO—About 30 years ago a local interagency firefighting facility, consisting of one outbuilding, was established at the western end of Walker Field Airport in Grand Junction, Colorado. On Tuesday, April 11, the new 9,200-sq. ft. Grand Junction Interagency Air Center, located west of the existing facility, will be dedicated at 9:30 a.m. Sen. Wayne Allard, U.S. Forest Service Regional Forester Rick Cables and BLM Colorado State Director Sally Wisely are among those scheduled to speak at the dedication. Construction of the new facility began in November 2004 and was completed in December 2005.

"The threat of fire continues to loom over much of Colorado—and the West. This new air facility will give the BLM and the Forest Service a head start on fighting these dangerous and destructive outbreaks," Senator Allard said.

“We’re excited to have this new state-of-the-art facility online to support the National Fire Plan,” Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Officer Bill Hahnenberg said. “The new building will serve as headquarters for smoke jumpers, pilots, dispatch, base administration and the Unaweep Fire Use Module.”

The Grand Junction Interagency Air Center is one of the nation’s busiest fire aviation centers, with capabilities to cover parts of Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, South Dakota, New Mexico and Arizona with heavy air tankers, training opportunities and firefighters. Air Center staff can also be called upon to assist in hurricane and all-risk efforts around the country. Interagency collaboration among local, state and federal agencies is a key component of the Air Center operations. Supported by the BLM, U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service and Colorado State Forest, the Air Center employs six full-time employees and 30 seasonal positions. An estimated $2 million dollars in support expenditures is generated into the local economy by Air Center activities.

The air tanker base is the only "green" base in existence, with all water run-off from the base fully contained. Any water leaving this base is free of contaminants. The apron was upgraded and the tank farm added in 2000, facilitating a 5-year average of 483 air tanker missions with an average 463,000 gallons of retardant used in that 5-year period. A total of 2,000 dispatch resource orders were filled in 2005. Since 1994, the number of air tanker missions alone increased seven-fold, and the need for other fire support activities, such as smoke jumpers and helitack, has grown steadily as well.

For further information, contact Bill Hahnenberg, Fire Management Officer for the Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit, at (970) 244-3103.

-BLM-

Editor’s Note: There will be firefighting equipment on display. Good photo opportunities. Please call Mel Lloyd by April 10 for details & directions to the Air Center.