Interested in learning more about the North Carolina Military Foundation? The Foundation actively works with organizations and companies intent on growing the state's defense and homeland security economy.  Call Foundation Executive Director Will Austin at 919.828.1322 to learn more.

• BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
  Ranked as having the nation's top business climate for six of the past seven years by Site Selection magazine, North Carolina is, quite simply, a great place to do business.
  
  With a highly skilled and educated workforce, close proximity to major markets, competitive operating structure, strong transportation infrastructure, and outstanding quality of life, our state has what it takes for companies to succeed here.
  
  
  
  
• MILITARY INSTALLATIONS
  

The Department of Defense and U.S. Coast Guard currently employ over 150,000 active duty and civilian personnel in North Carolina. In total, more than 416,000 jobs, or eight percent of North Carolina's total employment, are directly or indirectly supported by North Carolina's defense industry and military installations.

Presently a $23 billion impact on our statewide economy - seven percent of gross state product - the economic impact of the military in North Carolina will grow strongly over the next three years:  U.S. Army Forces Command and U.S. Army Reserve Command will move to Fort Bragg in 2011; and beginning in 2008, the Marine Corps' Grow the Force initiative will add an estimated 11,500 active duty personnel to North Carolina's three Marine Corps installations.

This defense growth is expected to create an additional 49,000 new jobs statewide by 2013, and add an additional $2.9 billion to our statewide economy above the military's current economic impact.

Below is additional information on military installations in North Carolina.

Air Force
Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, in the city of Goldsboro in Wayne County, is home to the 4th Fighter Wing and the multi-role, all-weather F-15E Strike Eagle; and provides worldwide deployable aircraft and personnel capable of executing combat missions in support of the Aerospace Expeditionary Force. 

Army
During 2011, U.S. Army Forces Command and U.S. Army Reserve Command will be moved to Fort Bragg in Hoke and Cumberland Counties -- a decision made during the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission's assessment of U.S. military installations -- giving the base more general officers than any other installation outside the Pentagon.  Known as the "Home of the Airborne and Special Operations Forces," already situated at Fort Bragg are the XVIII Airborne Corps and the 82nd Airborne Division, U.S. Army Special Operations Command, U.S. Joint Special Operations Command, and the JFK Special Warfare School.

Coast Guard
The U.S. Coast Guard Air Station in Elizabeth City executes homeland security and maritime safety missions throughout the Eastern Atlantic region and averages more than 360 search and rescue missions each year. The station includes C-130 Hercules and H-60 Jayhawk aircrews, the only Coast Guard Aircraft Repair and Supply Center in the nation, and the Coast Guard's Aviation Technical Training Center.

Marine Corps
Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, located in Onslow County, is the home of the II Marine Expeditionary Force and the newly created U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, making the base one of the Marine Corps' most important strategic assets. Marine Corps Installations East -- which implements policy, develops strategy and allocates resources across Marine Corps installations throughout the East Coast -- also is located at Camp Lejeune.

Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point in Havelock is home to the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, the Navy's Fleet Readiness Center East and the nation's only Vertical Lift Center of Excellence.

Marine Corps Air Station New River, just outside of Camp Lejeune, supports and enhances the Marine Corps Aviation Combat Element, including serving as the Marine Corps' training center for the MV-22 "Osprey" aircraft.

Navy

The U.S. Navy's Fleet Readiness Center East (FRC East)--located at MCAS Cherry Point, NC-- provides extensive maintenance and engineering support to Navy and Marine Corps aviation, as well as other armed services, federal agencies and foreign governments.  The largest single industrial employer in North Carolina east of Interstate 95, FRC East employs over 4,000 civilian, military and contractor personnel who work in a wide variety of skilled technical and professional positions. The Center’s customers include: 202 different Navy and Marine Corps activities, 24 foreign nations, five U. S. Air Force activities, three U.S. Army activities, and two other federal agencies. As a service provider specializing in support of Marine Corps aircraft, engines, and components, FRC is the only source of repair within the continental United States for many jet engines and rotary wing engines, as well as turbofan vectored thrust engines.

 

Reserve Personnel
North Carolina is home to more than 100,000 reserve personnel representing all branches of the military and the National Guard.