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Jim LeFebvre at Denali
Park, Alaska |
Making the Trek to Alaska
Jim LeFebvre
December 2004
Not many people relish spending a month working over 3,000 miles
from home, but MITRE's Jim LeFebvre didn't mind. This past summer
LeFebvre spent a month in Delta Junction, Alaska, working as a member
of the communications team for the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense
(GMD) element. As the user community representative for the GMD
Fire Control/Communications Program Management Office, he had the
opportunity to help another team with the final installation of
the communication products while spending time with the user community
he represents.
LeFebvre, who works at MITRE's Colorado Springs site, functions
as the eyes and ears for the GMD Fire Control Products Division,
which is based in Huntsville, Alabama. "As the user community representative,
it's my job to talk with and monitor all the crews, find out what
additional equipment they need, and if they need any changes to
the system. Then when changes are made, I brief them on the new
variations," he explains. "Earlier this summer GMD certified 10
crews, five for Colorado and five for Alaska. Once they had been
certified, these troops were physically moving from Colorado—where
they have been training for the last year or so—to Fort Greely,
Alaska. So I was able to go up and help the communication team,
and at the same time I got some on-site time with the Fire Direction
Center up there."
The goal of the GMD program, which is managed by the U.S. Defense
Department's Missile Defense Agency, is to intercept long-range
enemy missiles in mid-flight and destroy them using only the force
of impact. GMD has many components, including interceptors, radars,
satellite sensors, as well as a large complex fire control and communications
network. Actual construction and installation of the GMD in Fort
Greely has been ongoing for the past two years.
"One of the things I like most about my work is the challenges,"
says LeFebvre. "This type of missile program has never been done
before and we are continually learning things as we go. It is exciting
work with an important purpose and I really enjoy pulling it all
together. Having been part of the project for the past three years,
it is nice to be around when it becomes operational. While it's
interesting and important to do the theorizing and planning, getting
the troops trained and certified and getting GMD up and running
gives me a real sense of accomplishment."
LeFebvre enjoyed many aspects of his month in Alaska but is particularly
animated when he describes seeing the first live interceptor being
put into a silo. "We had just finished installing the MILSTAR antenna
when about a half mile away we saw a 55-foot missile being lowered
into an eight-foot-wide silo below ground," he says. "So here we
were doing our job while watching the first live interceptor being
placed in the facility there. We got to see history happen." Not
many people can say that about their summer travels.
—by Kay M. Upham
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Colorado Springs Site |
Colorado Springs, Colorado, is one of MITRE's oldest and largest
sites with 145 staff. Originally established to support NORAD, the
site now supports a number of different customers and research initiatives,
including the U.S. Northern Command, Air Force Space Command, U.S.
Strategic Command, and the Transportation Security Agency.
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