MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- The Fish Tales Marina, the port-access road and the section of the south side seawall turning toward the port and harbor area here are slated to be permanently closed to pedestrians, bicyclists and through traffic May 10.
The new flight line is scheduled to be used for preliminary flight operations at that time, which could endanger station members who visit the aforementioned recreational areas.
Provost Marshal’s Office officials will be posted at the access points there to provide security.
The Lighthouse Café will remain open to serve all who have access to the area.
Station officials are working on a process to determine who will have access to the port and harbor area.
“We have everybody’s safety and the base’s security in mind in doing this,” said Maj. Giuseppe Stavale, station provost marshal. The goal is to keep everyone safe and to maintain flight operations at the same time, he added.
According to Marine Corps Order 11010.16, any area around a flight line with a day night average sound level over 80DNLs is harmful to hearing and should not be used for recreational purposes.
The port and harbor area, including where the Fish Tales Marina is located, has been estimated to have an average of 85DNLs once the new flight line becomes operational.
Stavale said other options are being reviewed to see if the Fish Tales Marina could be used at certain times, but until those options are decided upon, the Fish Tales Marina will remain closed and only authorized personnel will have access to the port and harbor area.
“Those people that are allowed (access) won’t be able to ride a bike, they won’t be able to be on a motorcycle, they won’t be able to walk in,” said Stavale. “They still have to be in a vehicle for safety reasons.”
“We have the safety of the personnel on the ground to be concerned with and the safety of the personnel in the aircraft to be concerned with,” added Richard Perry, station safety director. “That zone (on the port-access road) has to stay clear.”
Pilots aboard an aircraft use an instrument landing system, which communicates with a system on the ground via a signal and helps guide them safely to the flight line.
If a vehicle or pedestrian crosses in between the approaching aircraft and the system on the ground sending the signal, the aircraft’s instrument landing system could receive the wrong information, which could lead to a disaster.
“We have to take measures to mitigate the risks,” said Perry. “We have to reduce the amount of traffic (going through the portaccess road) because it reduces the amount of incidents that could happen. (Restricting the area) has to be done for the safety of the families, the individual and the aircraft.”
The operational security of the flight line was also listed as a concern for limiting access to the port and harbor area.
“If we keep (the port-access road) open to the public, people can just walk right on out (on the flight line),” said Edward Cutshall, station defense policy review initiative deputy program manager. “They can be on that road, and what’s to prevent them to go (onto the flight line) and ‘Oh let me go take a photo’?”
The overall mission of the station was taken into account when the issue of closing the port-access road and the Fish Tales Marina was raised.
“First and foremost, we are an air station,” said Cutshall. “Our mission is to launch and recover aircraft at Iwakuni. I know this is going to be an inconvenience to people, but that is our primary function. Flight safety is of the highest priority here. Mission first.”