Blount Island Command

Blount Island Command is among the latest US bases built. As a matter of fact, its purpose is not particularly to act like a base. Instead, this place was built for maintenance operations to the maritime ships. It is, therefore, a logistics base. It is not as powerful and active from a military point of view.

History

The initial idea of this base appeared in the ’70s. It was a new concept defined as MPF – Maritime Prepositioning Force. The program was finally established in 1979 and hosted in various parts of the world. The most important base was in Okinawa, Japan. By 1983, the program was upgraded and included three different squadrons. Two of them were loaded in North Carolina, while the third one headed to Florida. All the ammunition was kept in North Carolina too. By 1986, the Marine Corps decided to lease 262 acres to build a new command center. The area was purchased a few years before the contract was supposed to end, in 2000. In 2004, 1100 more acres were purchased.

The final construction began long ago, in 1989. The base was built around a previous camp that was founded in 1942. It entirely incorporated the small camp. The bureaucratic conflicts didn’t influence the good going of the base, even if the justice actually forced the government to pay $160M for the lot in 2005. This event didn’t stop the continuous improvements. The beginning of 2010 came with $55M more for the development of new facilities and upgrades.

These days, Blount Island Command is operated by the logistics base of the Marine Corps located in Albany, Georgia. It includes unique facilities that no other base in the world has. Among them, you can count a 33 acres lot for storage, 300 m for maintenance operations, a unique slipway with five vessel berths and the access to one of the largest industrial bases in the world.

Objectives

The base is responsible for the planning, coordination and execution of logistics procedures of the MPF. The ships are used in various operations. They are loaded and sent to the ocean, where they wait for their destination. Each operation may have a military or a humanitarian purpose. All this work is handled by over 1000 civilians, led by 250 military troops. Once an operation is complete, the ship gets back to the base, is loaded again and heads back to the ocean for new orders. It is a continuous cycle.

Housing

The housing system depends on the duration of your visit. If you are dispatched at Blount Island Command for a short time, you will be hosted at one of the three temporary lodging facilities. The longterm workers are housed in two different places, depending on the available spots. Before getting there, you should just get in touch with the local housing service. The process might take longer than you expect. As a final option, you can also rely on the off site housing system, whether you want to rent or buy a home.