Thursday, August 16, 2012

UPDATE: Skydiving on Kings Bay Sub Base

Background details available found here.

UPDATE:
(August 28, 2012- 7:42AM EST) ST. MARYS, Ga. — Navy calls for relocation of St. Marys Airport “Repeated exposure to these security threats in this era of terrorism creates significant disruption for the [submarine base’s] mission, and raises the specter of needlessly dangerous reactive responses. We can no longer accept this state of affairs,’’ said Rear Adm. John C. Scorby Jr., commander of the Navy’s Southeast Region.

UPDATE: (August 26, 2012 - 11:23 AM EST) Jacksonville.com By Terry Dickson ST. MARYS — St. Marys skydivers defy trespass warnings and jump
Skydivers from The Jumping Place parachuted onto the city airport Saturday, even though the business’ operating permit had been revoked and trespass warnings had been posted.

The consequences over what St. Marys Airport Authority lawyer Jim Stein called “a deliberate and absolute act of civil disobedience’’ were mild.

“The St. Marys Police Department officers, who are under the direction of St. Marys, took the position that the statutory trespass warnings and posted notice of trespass did not prohibit The Jumping Place from continuing operations,’’ Stein wrote.

“This is crazy,’’ said Jumping Place owner Cathy Kloess as she got her plane ready. “There’s due process. You’re supposed to get injunctions. You’re supposed to get days in court.”



UPDATE: (August 24, 2012 07:56 AM EST) | AP ST. MARYS, Ga. — License pulled after skydivers land on sub base

Airport officials in southeast Georgia have decided to revoke the license of a skydiving business operating there after two skydivers missed the airfield and landed on a high-security submarine base less than three miles away. Before the airport board's vote Wednesday, Navy Cmdr. Jeff Pafford told the authority, "This cannot happen again."

UPDATE: Jacksonville.com News (August 14, 2012 - 7:27pm) Navy: Skydivers lucky to have not landed in highly restricted areas on Kings Bay - Public Affairs officer Scott Bassett:

Our security is very robust. The Marines are highly trained to do their jobs. ...We’ve had seven skydivers to land on this installation in three years.

Jumping Place owner Kloess had told the Times-Union she wants to expand the business. Kloess said Monday the jumpers believed they were landing on softball fields in St. Marys possibly because the latest photos she had of the base showed trees where the recreation complex is now located. Bassett said he doubts that explanation:

A base executive officer hand-carried maps and aerial photos of the base to Kloess more than two years ago that clearly showed the softball fields, he said. Recent photos are also available online at Google maps, he said. There is no way anyone can look at Kings Bay from the air and take it for anything but a military base, Bassett said.

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Analysis of above
+ Kings Bay Sub Base's P.A. Officer Bassett obviously contradicts with strong evidence Kloess's (The Jumping Place) explanation of need to update aerial photos.

+ Kloess stated a desire to to grow her local skydiving business at St. Mary's Airport, which fits our suspicion that the latest landing may have been a contrived publicity stunt.

+ The base has already been conditioned to illegal skydiver landings by the 7 intrusions in three years.

+ The interview Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay indicates that the Strategic Weapons Facility, Atlantic has probably received guidance (from Homeland Security?) to make its security environment appear more robust to the general public. Was the interview initiated by the PA officer, or the news organization?

Submarines are always silent and strange.

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