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Free Tour Offered for The Joint Forces Training Base

The Regional Military Affairs Committee(RMAC) of the Los Alamitos Area Chamber of Commerce will hold it's free quarterly tour of the Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos on Thursday, February 18th.

Reservations are required and there is limited participation space available.

The tour is an opportunity for area residents and businesses to get an overview of the basic operations at the JFTB and then a bus tour of many of the facilities and operations which occur at the only remaining active military air field in Los Angeles and Orange counties. The two hour tour begins promptly at 1:00 p.m.

More than 30 different tenants are housed at the Base including every military branch. In addition, a number of contract and governmental agencies have operations at the base. More than 800 people work at the JFTB on a daily basis along with weekend training sessions for the California National Guard, Army Reserves,US Marine Corps and Civil Air Patrol.

The tour will originate at the the new Veteran's Support Center, a one-stop location for today's veterans to get assistance from medical to psychological and employment assistance.

A driving tour will also include the Med-Fly Eradication Program, where millions of sterile med flies are bred and then transported and released throughout California; the Governor's Office of Emergency Services(now named the California Emergency Services Agency) serving any state emergency or incident that could occur from San Luis Obispo south to the Mexican Border.

A visit to the Los Alamitos Army Airfield aviation operations, view the remediation and clean-up of toxic pollutants left over from when the base was a major airfield for the Navy and learn about the Sunburst Youth Academy, a resident charter high school for at risk youth.

Participants also have an opportunity to meet soldiers and experience hands-on with weapons simulators that help train military personnel in preparation for combat operations and the war on terrorism.

To make reservations, contact the Chamber of Commerce at (562)598-6659.