Officials recently broke ground on a new $16.5 million control tower and operations building to replace the current air traffic control facility at March ARB, Calif. The planned 16,000-square-foot combined-use facility will replace the current building that dates to 1958, according to a Jan. 5 base release. “Over the last 20 years or so, we’ve invested several hundred million . . . to make this the premiere Air Reserve base,” said Rep. Ken Calvert (R- Calif.) at the Dec. 8 ground-breaking ceremony. The Air Force is constructing the building to meet the federal government’s “silver” environmentally friendly and energy-efficient design criteria. “What this design is doing is providing something that is sustainable and ensures the future success of the base,” noted David Van Dorpe, the Army Corps of Engineers’ Los Angeles district deputy program engineer, who is overseeing the project. (Includes March report by Dave Palmer)
Airmen and Guardians in the Active and Reserve component, as well as civilian employees, in “mission critical and high-risk populations” are now required to receive influenza vaccinations annually to “preserve force readiness,” according to a recent Department of the Air Force memo.