TRUST PLATINUM BLOG - L-3 Crestview Aerospace Announce Expansion - 340 Jobs Created with Help of Government/Private Money

As I promised,   More jobs on the way to Crestview, and don’t think it will stop here.  This was a great effort by a group of folks, which consisted of government and private sector coming together for the greater good.

Gov. Scott and L-3 Crestview Aerospace Announce Expansion of Aircraft Manufacturing Operations

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Today, Governor Rick Scott and L-3 Crestview Aerospace (L-3 CA http://www.L-3crestview.com ) announced that the company will create 340 jobs within two years through the expansion of their aircraft manufacturing operations in Okaloosa County. The project also marks an investment of more than $13.7 million, which will include $7 million in facilities upgrades and the retrofit of hangar space at Bob Sikes Airport<http://flycew.com/> in 2013 and 2014. Governor Scott said, "After visiting L-3's facility in October, I am proud they are continuing to help Florida's families with the creation of 340 more jobs. Florida is an aviation and aerospace leader because of the growth and innovation of businesses like L-3 CA. These are hundreds of jobs that will positively impact Florida's communities - and is a great sign of Florida's growing economy. Since taking office, the private sector has created nearly 175,000 jobs, Florida has experienced the largest drop in unemployment in the nation - and as families get more jobs, residential real estate is projected to rise for 2013, which is great news for Florida communities." L-3 CA, a division of L-3's Integrated Systems Group, is a world-leading provider of aero structure fabrication and assembly and aircraft modification. Since June 2011,158 of these jobs have already been added. "We're a vertically integrated, one-stop shop for detail parts fabrication and machining through end-item aero structure assemblies and fixed- and rotary-wing modifications," said Jeff Barger, L-3 CA's vice president and general manager. "The continued growth of our facility and workforce increases our capacity to provide high-quality aerostructure fabrication and aircraft modification services to our existing and new customers." Organizations that partnered to support L-3 CA's expansion included the Bob Sikes Airport, City of Crestview, Crestview-Okaloosa Industrial Air Park, Economic Development Council for Okaloosa County, Enterprise Florida Inc., Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners and Workforce Development Board of Okaloosa County. "As one of Okaloosa County's top employers, the Economic Development Council has been honored to assist L-3 Crestview Aerospace on their business expansion needs," said Kay Rasmussen, interim president for the Economic Development Council of Okaloosa County. "Larry Sassano, the EDC's previous president, started working with L-3 over a year ago as a targeted industry for high growth and high wage job potential. This is a wonderful success story of utilizing multiple partners to bring a project to fruition." Headquartered in New York City, L-3 employs approximately 51,000 people worldwide and is a prime contractor in C3ISR (Command, Control, Communications, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance) systems, aircraft modernization and maintenance, and national security solutions. L-3 is also a leading provider of a broad range of electronic systems used on military and commercial platforms. DON’T FORGET TO VISIT WWW.PLATINUMREALESTATEASSOCIATES.COM AND SEE SOME OF THE GREAT REAL ESTATE OPPORTUNITIES IN OUR AREA.  IF YOU HAVE ANY SPECIFIC NEEDS/WANTS, JUST GIVE ME A CALL.  THE PLATINUM REAL ESTATE ASSOCIATES ARE READY TO SERVE.  DON’T MISS THE BOAT (IT’S A NAUTICAL THING).  FOR THE LATEST NEWS OF ECONOMIC DATA OF OUR LOCAL AREA, VISIT HTTP://TRUSTPLATINUM.BLOGSPOT.COM/.  NEWS YOU NEED TO ASSIST YOU IN YOUR REAL ESTATE INVESTMENTS.

TRUST PLATINUM BLOG: AIR FORCE MAKES IT CLEAR - EGLIN AFB IS WHERE WE WILL TRAIN F-35 PILOTS

Just another vote of confidence by the Air Force that Eglin AFB is where they will train pilots and maintainers for the new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. 

Air Force OKs F-35 training school at Eglin

By LAUREN SAGE REINLIE / Daily News

Published: Monday, December 17, 2012 at 17:33 PM.

EGLIN AFB — The Air Force on Monday gave their F-35 training school the go-ahead to officially open its doors to teach pilots how to fly the military’s newest stealth fighter jet.

Gen. Edward Rice, who heads the Air Force’s Air Education and Training Command, visited Eglin Monday to give his formal approval.

“It’s a great day for us,” said Col. Andrew Toth, commander of the 33rd Fighter Wing, which oversees the training program. “It really solidifies the teamwork and dedication that all the men and women have put into making this happen here.”

The training program at Eglin is the only one of its kind in the country. It serves as a schoolhouse for pilots in the Air Force, Marines and foreign services to learn to fly the new jets, which cost about $70 million each. The Navy is set to begin training on its own variant of the jet next year.

The program situates Eglin at the forefront of development of new combat aviation technology, which will likely be used for the next 40 to 50 years, said Lt. Col. Eric Smith, director of operations for the 33rd Fighter Wing.

Monday’s announcement comes just days after the Department of Defense said that it has signed a $3.8 billion contract with Lockheed Martin to purchase a fifth batch of F-35s after months of contention regarding cost-overruns. The deal could eventually bring 14 new jets to Eglin, including eight for the Air Force, according to preliminary numbers.

The Air Force currently has nine F-35s at Eglin. That is expected to ramp up to 20 by the end of next year, Smith said.

The Air Force now has the go-ahead to take on their first official class of six pilots who will start training Jan. 7. They plan to put 36 through the program next year.

This year they graduated 12 pilots who trained while the school awaited official approval.

While some of the graduates will stay at Eglin, others will be stationed with their own wings at Edwards Air Force Base in California or Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.

The course includes about six weeks of academic training and six weeks of flight training. It uses state-of-the-art flight simulators, at a cost of $25 million apiece, that allow instructors to recreate almost any scenario that could arise in the air, said Maj. Greg Frana, who oversees the simulation program at the academic training center.

The program also relies heavily on about 130 aircraft maintainers who work to keep the Air Force’s F-35s ready for safe flight.

The maintainers are highly qualified but had to learn to care for a brand new aircraft in a relatively short time period, said Master Sgt. Shannon Wood, who oversees maintenance on the flight line for the 33rd Fighter Wing.

“This is an awesome milestone,” Shannon said. “It’s been extremely challenging, but (the maintainers) took it head on and they surpassed expectations with what they’ve done with this jet.”

Toth said that the visiting general did not report finding any major changes the program needs to make as far as execution or safety.

“He’s excited for us, excited for the Air Force,” Toth said of Rice. “He’s very proud of what we have done and accomplished in the last year and getting us to where we are.

“He said, ‘Keep up the great work,’ ” Toth said.

In a news release issued Monday, Rice said the program was robust enough to conduct the planned instruction at Eglin.

“The (evaluation) showed the men and women at Eglin are ready,” he said in the news release. “I'm very proud of both those in uniform and the contracted support who put in years of hard work.”
 

Contact Daily News Staff Writer Lauren Sage Reinlie at 850-315-4443 orlreinlie@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @LaurenRnwfdn.

TRUST PLATINUM BLOG - 2013 BASIC ALLOWANCE FOR HOUSING FOR MILITARY PERSONNEL IN THE OKALOOSA/WALTON COUNT\IES RELEASED

The following is the 2013 Military Housing Allowance for Eglin AFB area for military members with dependents. This allowance is a tax-free entitlement paid to service members, who reside in off-base housing. If you have any questions about this entitlement, please don't hesitate to give me a call.   As a former, Military Housing Director, I am quite familiar with this entitlement and the process surrounding it.

PAYGRADE                  HOUSING ENTITLEMENT
E-1 - E-4                       $1194.00
E-5                               $1215.00
E-6                               $1353.00
E-7                               $1491.00
E-8                               $1638.00
E-9                               $1800.00
W-1                              $1356.00
W-2                              $1551.00
W-3                              $1734.00
W-4                              $1824.00
W-5                              $1932.00
O1E                              $1521.00
O2E                              $1707.00
O3E                              $1842.00
O-1                               $1230.00
O-2                               $1350.00
O-3                               $1725.00
O-4                               $1974.00
O-5                               $2148.00
O-6                               $2169.00
O-7                               $2193.00