December 13 is a milestone date.
United States Air Force General Mark Bradley, Jr. was the keynote speaker for the December 13, 1962 Dedication Ceremony for the Newark Air Force Station. It was the Day One event for the unique place now owned by the Port Authority and named the Central Ohio Aerospace & Technology Center.
We have three minutes of silent video and an excerpt from his remarks that are being made into a YouTube video to show off at our December 13, 2012 Open House event.
Amazingly, his words match up to today quite well.
"It was not by accident that this location was chosen. . .We needed an environment almost completely free from seismic disturbance." That is the primary reason that this work remains here today. There are only a very few places in the nation where this ground stability is achievable.
"At this facility are located the most sensitive calibration laboratories in the Western World." Still true today. The Air Force Primary Standards Laboratory run by Bionetics and the Type II primary standards lab maintained by Boeing combine to be the largest aerospace metrology operation in the World.
"The facility is much more than concrete and steel. . .It's most important element is people." The watchmaker-like skills of the workforce and the unique ability to find both engineers and technicians among the workforce here have been the sustaining force for five decades.
"Thought it was incidential in the selection process, the economic significance of the installation to this area is obvious." The economic impact, over 50 years, is astonishing. Yet, it wouldn't be here if this place didn't continue to be important to the national defense.
Here's to the next 50 years!
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TAKE ACTION: The Port Authority's Annual Holiday Open House is set for December 13, 2012 at 11-1. No need to RSVP. It's an Open House. See Facebook event page.
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