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ELKO, Nev. (AP) -- Officials at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho say Nevadans have nothing to fear about a plan to expand the base's airspace deeper into their state.
Bryon Schmidt, chief for airspace management at the base, told Elko County commissioners last week that the plan would not have much of an effect on their county or Humboldt County.
The proposal follows a request by Hill Air Force Base in Utah to extend a supersonic operations area by 1.6 million acres north of Ely in eastern Nevada.
That earlier plan has been criticized by environmentalists, who say it would increase the frequency of sonic booms and litter from training operations.
Schmidt said the latest proposal involves pilots who fly at supersonic speeds above 30,000 feet and the chances of hearing a sonic boom will be slim to none.
Pilots can fly on lower routes, but can't go below certain altitudes unless they have completed special requirements.
Schmidt said the Air Force already uses aerial training routes over Elko and Humboldt counties, including the towns of Midas, Tuscarora and Mountain City.
"We are asking to operate in the same way, but move a little more east and south," Schmidt said.
"We don't know what kind of noise complaint could arise," he said, adding the base will address issues on a case-by-case basis.
If approved by the Federal Aviation Administration, the expansion would increase the airspace by nearly 30 percent.
Base officials have said the expansion is necessary to provide better training to pilots as they prepare for deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan.
Commissioner Charlie Myers said most commission members are veterans who are supportive of the U.S. military.
Commissioner Warren Russell said he wanted the base to commit to making an update to the county at least once a year.
Environmentalists and others scuttled a similar proposal by the Idaho base in the 1990s. That prompted the Air Force to retool and scale back that request, and it was later approved.
Base officials say the current proposal would double the effectiveness of the airspace and the training offered in Idaho, making the base comparable to Nevada's Nellis Air Force Base.
The Mountain Home range complex covers more than 187 square miles in Idaho, Oregon and Nevada.
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Information from: Elko Daily Free Press,
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
