When it comes to a list of the most important pillars of the Harrison County economy, it’s hard to top the military. The numbers tell the tale.
In a competitive, global economy where so many places tout their high-tech capabilities, few can say they host a technology school that draws students from across the nation.
It’s well known that Keesler Air Force Base is home to one of the largest medical centers in the Air Force and provides care for thousands of Defense Department patients.
It’s the largest flying organization at Keesler Air Force Base, and the only Air Force Reserve command wing in the state of Mississippi. And they keep busy, deploying when needed to perform airlift mission and providing critical weather reconnaissance whenever hurricanes threaten.
It was a weekday at the Air National Guard Combat Readiness Training Center, and not an unusual one. Every few minutes the air was punctuated by the sound of jets coming and going. Some were airliners taking off or landing at Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport, but most were warplanes.
With 192 full-time and 205 part-time workers and a 140,000 square-foot facility, the Army Nation Guard’s aviation depot is already a big operation in Gulfport. But plans are in the works to make it larger – doubling the size of the facility in anticipation of expected growth.
There’s something about the line of work of Seabees that seems a good fit for Gulfport. Seabees are blue collar workers who use their hands, muscle and sweat, and have a “can do” attitude to build whatever needs to be built. And they’ll fight, too.
It may be one of the more unusual jobs at John C. Stennis Space Center.
It was after midnight when the Coast Guard Station in Gulfport got a call from a woman who said her husband hadn’t returned from a fishing trip, and she was worried.
Salute to the Military 2011 |
Community Profile 2009 |
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