Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Airport Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Military contractor proposes testing .50-caliber Gatling gun at regional airport; council requests formal presentation
Summary
Fulcrum Concepts has asked to use a range at the Middle Peninsula Regional Airport to test a .50-caliber Gatling gun that fires about 1,100 rounds per minute; Town staff requested a formal presentation to the council's committee in March and plan to pursue a use agreement or license that preserves police access to the range.
Town Manager John B. Edwards Jr. told the council Feb. 24 that Fulcrum Concepts, a military contractor that outfits aircraft, has expressed interest in a use agreement to test a .50-caliber Gatling gun at the Middle Peninsula Regional Airport.
Edwards said the company manufactures a .50-caliber Gatling gun that fires at about 1,100 rounds per minute and indicated testing could occur 20 to 30 times per year. As part of the proposal, Fulcrum Concepts offered to refurbish the former ITI range, including installing a concrete base to secure the weapon during testing.
Staff asked the company to prepare a formal presentation for the council's first committee meeting in March and have contacted King and Queen County, which expressed receptiveness to the proposal. Edwards said staff anticipate pursuing either a use agreement or a license rather than a lease so the police department may continue to use the range.
Council members did not vote on the proposal at the Feb. 24 meeting; the item is scheduled for committee review. The presentation to the committee will provide technical details and allow council members and staff to assess public-safety, noise, liability and scheduling implications before any agreement is drafted.
