News

Town of Erwin Joins RLUAC

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Published: 04 April 2014 04 April 2014

The Town of Erwin is RLUAC's newest member.  In a unanimous decision, the Erwin Board of Commissioners voted to join RLUAC at its monthly meeting held on Thursday, April 3rd.  It named Mayor Patsy Carson to serve as its Voting Member and its Town Manager, Richard Douglas, as its Non-Voting Member.

With Erwin's admission, RLUAC membership now includes Fort Bragg, the post's eight surrounding counties and twelve municipalities.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles at Fort Bragg

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Published: 22 November 2013 22 November 2013

uavAt the RLUAC quarterly meeting conducted on February 20th, Fort Bragg’s David Yow (DPTMS Air Operations and Plans Officer) and Camille Cole (Head of the Master Planning Branch) described the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV’s) currently deployed at and coming to the post.  


They began by defining the difference between “drones” and “UAV’s”.  Although the media routinely refers to all unmanned aerial vehicles as “drones”, there is a significant difference.  Drones fly without any control inputs from an operator after being launched, while UAV’s are under continuous control during flight via radio, or satellite – either directly or via computer.

 
UAV’s already operating at Fort Bragg include the “Raven”, the “Puma” and the “Shadow”.  All three of these UAV’s are relatively small and are used by the military for surveillance and recognizance purposes.  

  • RQ – 11 “Raven” - Hand launched - Manufacturer:  AeroVironment; Weight:  ~1.9kg (4.2lb); Powerplant: Elec. Motor; Flight Endurance: ~80 minutes; Effective Operational Radius:  ~ 10km (6.2 SM); Cruise: 32km/h to 81km/h (16.5 kts to 44 kts);  Operational Altitude: 30m to 152m (100 ft to 500 ft)
  • FQM M-151 “Puma” (USMC UAS) – Hand launched - Manufacturer:  AeroVironment; Weight:  ~ 13 lbs (5.9 kg); Powerplant: Elec. Motor; Flight Endurance: ~ 2 hours; Effective operational radius:  ~ 15 km (9 miles); Cruise: 37-83 km/h, 20 to 45 knots; Operational Altitude: 500 ft (152 m) AGL
  • RQ-7B “Shadow” – Released from a mobile launcher - Manufacturer:  AAI Corporation; Weight: 170kg (375 lbs); Powerplant: 38 hp Wankel Eng. (100LL/87); Flight Endurance: 5.5 Hrs; Effective operational radius: 109 km (68 SM); Cruise: 148km/h to 250km/h (80kt to 135kt); Operational Altitude: 8,000ft

The Army has finalized plans to station its largest and most sophisticated UAV, the “Gray Eagle” at Camp Mackall.  The Gray Eagle is about the size of a Cessna manned aircraft and is capable of being armed with missiles and bombs.  However, at this time the military has no plans to arm the Gray Eagles based at Camp Mackall.

  • MQ-1C “Gray Eagle” – Take-off and landing requiring a 5,000’ runway - Manufacturer:  General Atomics; Weight: 3,600 lbs (1,633 kg); Powerplant: 165 HP Turboprop (JP-8); Flight Endurance: 30 hours; Effective operational radius: 109 km (68 SM); Cruise: 115 knots; Operational Altitude: 15,000 to 18,000ft; Armament: Missiles: 4 × AGM-114 Hellfire; 8 × AIM-92 Stinger; Bombs:  4 × GBU-44/B Viper Strike

Construction is due to begin in the near future on the hanger, barracks, and runway improvements necessary to house and maintain the new UAV’s.  Work is expected to be completed at Camp Mackall and the “Gray Eagles” operational by March of 2016.

HB 254 Signed Into Law

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Published: 25 November 2013 25 November 2013

HB 254 SIGNED INTO LAW BY GOVERNOR ON MAY 30, 2013.

After passing both the North Carolina House of Representatives and Senate (on unanimous votes), HB 254 – “Zoning Changes / Notice to Military Bases” was signed into law by the Govenor on May 30th  (Ch. SL 2013-59). It will take effect immediately upon adoption. The bill, cosponsored by Representatives Glazier, Lewis, Lucas, and Szoka, corrects and expands several requirements contained in Session Law 2004-75.
 
For the past several years, RLUAC, its twenty local government members, and Fort Bragg have been faithfully implementing the provisions of Session Law 2004-75. However, over that time several issues have arisen that hinder the law’s effectiveness within the Fort Bragg region – the “certified mail” notification requirement and the law’s failure to include proposed subdivisions, telecom towers, and windmills in the military notification requirement.
 
HB 254, as adopted by the North Carolina General Assembly, addresses these issues. It now allows the local governments to notify the military of proposed land use changes by “certified mail or by any other written means reasonably designed to provide actual notice to the commander of the military base or the commander’s designee.” It also expands the notification requirement to include (in addition to zoning changes) “changes relating to telecommunications towers or windmills” and “changes to proposed new major subdivision preliminary plats.”
 
To view the complete text of HB 254 and to follow its chronology through the NC General Assembly, you can visit the NC legislative website at  www.ncleg.net and look up HB 254 or click here.

Upcoming Events

RLUAC Quarterly Meeting
 

Date: Thursday February 16, 2023

Time: 10:30 am

Location: Cumberlnad County Main Library - Pate Room  (300 Maiden Lane, Fayetteville, NC 28301)