‘America's premier joint-warfighting base…
uniquely capable of projecting air, land and sea power’ in support of the nation's defense
  Officially known as Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and colloquially as “the Megabase,” JB MDL is the only place in the country where bases of the Army, Air Force, and Navy occupy contiguous facilities.
  The Joint Base provides installation management to the Department of Defense's only tri-service base, generates more than $1 billion in local economic activity, and, as a result, is the winner of Southern New Jersey Business People’s Economic Impact Award for the first quarter of 2010.
  The facility employs more than 42,000 members of the military and independent contractors and is in the middle of half billion dollar expansion and construction program.
  “Together, we make-up America's premier joint-warfighting base - uniquely capable of projecting air, land and sea power in support of our nation's defense,” says base commander Colonel Gina M. Grosso.
  The base was in the news recently as Air Mobility Command's 621st Contingency Response Wing deployed Airmen and relief supplies to Haiti in the wake of the country's 7.0-magnitude earthquake. Members are deploying to facilitate humanitarian airlift operations and aid in providing ground support to the people of Haiti.
  Fort Dix, which is the largest military base installation in the Northeast, covers 55 square miles in Burlington County. On its western edge is McGuire Air Force Base, and on its eastern edge is Lakehurst Naval Air Engineering Station.
  McGuire has two active runways and is the only Air Force base in New Jersey. Navy Lakehurst, home of the Naval Air Academy, occupies 7,430 acres in the million acre Pinelands National Reserve.
  Located 18 miles southeast of Trenton, the 42,000-continguous acres are home to more than 80 mission partners and 40 mission commanders providing a wide range of combat capability. The base spans more than 20 miles east to west. It is bordered by two of the largest counties in New Jersey, Ocean and Burlington.
  JB MDL is home to many DOD missions to include: the 99th Regional Support Command, the 72nd Field Artillery Brigade, the 108th Air Refueling Wing, the 305th Air Mobility Wing, the 514th Air Mobility Wing, the 621st Contingency Response Wing, the Army Support Activity, the Naval Air Systems Command, the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, and the United States Air Force Expeditionary Center. Several federal, state and local agencies to include the United States Coast Guard Atlantic Strike Team, the New Jersey National Guard, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Agriculture also reside on JB MDL.
  In addition, the joint base provides installation management support for 3,933 facilities with an approximate value of $9.3 billion in physical infrastructure. More than 42,000 Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, civilians and their family members living and working on and around JB MDL contribute to the economic impact for the state of New Jersey.
  Active-duty, reservists and guardsmen ensure total force integration by training and supporting installation operations, and preserving our country's homeland defense, while sustaining global contingency operations.
  “JB MDL is committed to providing world-class installation management to support expeditionary operations in a time of persistent conflict,” says Colonel Grosso.
  As the Joint Base and 87th Air Base Wing commander at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, Colonel Grosso provides installation support to more than 40 mission commanders and is also responsible for providing mission ready expeditionary Airmen to combatant commanders in support of joint and combined operations.
  Colonel Grosso entered the Air Force in 1986 as a Reserve Officer Training Corps distinguished graduate from Carnegie-Mellon University. She has held several command and staff positions throughout her career.
  As a staff officer, she served as an operations analyst, personnel programs analyst, Air Staff and Office of the Secretary of Defense action officer, Major Command Director of Manpower and Personnel, and Director of the Air Force Colonel Management Office.
  Her command tours include a Headquarters Squadron Section, Military Personnel Flight, Mission Support Squadron, and command of the Air Force's sole Basic Military Training Group.
  She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Mathematics and Industrial Management in 1986 from Carnegie-Mellon and her Masters Degree in Business Administration from William and Mary. She also earned a Masters Degree in National Security and Strategic Studies, Naval Command and Staff College in Newport, R.I. and was a 2004 Fellow at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard.
  The recent Haitian relief effort is typical of JB MDL’s ability to provide a rapid response.
  More than 100 621st CRW Airmen deployed from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst to Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Haiti as part of the U.S. effort to help the people in Haiti. Upon arrival, the team joined with the Army to establish an Aerial Port that can efficiently distribute all the humanitarian aid that is coming into the country. Additionally, this operation will expedite the delivery of humanitarian relief supplies.
  The unit includes a variety of specialties such as aerial port specialists, maintainers, communications specialists, and command and control personnel.
  The 621st CRW is one of two specialized wings in the Air Force responsible for training and rapidly deploying personnel to quickly open airfields in remote locations.
  "Our focus is getting the right kind of aid, as quickly as possible, to help the people of Haiti," said Col. Brian O'Connor, 621st CRW commander. "This is what we do—rapid deployment into austere environments to push supplies to the people who need them. Nobody in the world is better prepared for this mission than the 621st Airmen. We are the only country with an aircraft fleet capable of providing this type of response."
  The team from JB MDL deployed into Haiti on the 305th Air Mobility Wing's, C-17 Globemaster III, flown by a crew from the 514th Air Mobility Wing.
  The CRW extends Air Mobility Command's ability to deploy people and equipment around the globe in support of military and humanitarian missions.
  In recent years, the unit has deployed to support relief efforts following earthquakes in Pakistan, the tsunami in Asia as well as hurricane relief in Florida, Louisiana and Texas.
*************************
Written By: Mike Willmann
Pictured: Colonel Gina M. Grosso