Navy Wants to Set Up West Coast Spy Drone Base Near Oxnard

Act normally! The US Navy would like to set up a West Coast spy drone base on Point Mugu near Oxnard--the base would house unmanned aircraft called Triton Unmanned Aircraft Systems, which are unarmed but would provide "a persistent maritime intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance data collection and dissemination capability to the serviced Fleet Commander (up to 24 hours per day)," according to an environmental assessment (pdf) of the plan. Four 48-foot-long Tritons would be based at the site, along with a maintenance center (with up to four additional drones), and the plan would bring about 700 new personnel and their families, according to the Ventura County Star; City News Service adds that other drones from around the world would also land and takeoff from the base. Overall, there would be an average of five daily flights. The plan would necessitate about 281,000 square feet of new construction (a new taxiway and hangar) and 96,000 square feet of renovations (to a fire station).
· Navy proposes establishing a drone center at Point Mugu [VC Star]