Boise on the short list for F-35
By Sven Berg
December 7, 2016
Boise’s Gowen Field is one of five locations the U.S. Air Force is considering as a base for about 18 F-35 fighter jets, the Idaho National Guard announced Wednesday.
If Gowen is selected, the F-35s would replace 21 A-10 warplanes now based here. A lot work has to be done before such a decision could be made, including an Environmental Impact Study and a facility validation inspection, according to the Idaho Guard.
The Air Force and Guard will face intense public dissent if they decide to base F-35s here. Hundreds of people who live near the Boise Airport — which allows the Guard to use its runways — say the F-35 and F-15, another loud Air Force Fighter jet that’s been discussed as a replacement for Boise’s A-10s, are too noisy to be taking off and landing in Idaho’s most densely populated area.
Airport officials and City Hall have spent the last year responding to angry residents who think the city and Federal Aviation Administration are manipulating information about the F-35 and F-15 to downplay the noise those aircraft produce with the goal of convincing the public to go along with basing a wing of those jets here.
Boise blogger David Frazier, one of hundreds of outspoken opponents of basing F-35s in Boise, challenged decision makers Wednesday to bring the aircraft to Boise and follow standard takeoff and landing procedures, demonstrating exactly how loud next-generation fighter is.