Retired general says Georgia could lose Marietta reserve jet fighter squadron

WARNER ROBINS - Although the next round of military base closings aren&#39;t scheduled until 2005, one Georgia official said Naval Air Station Atlanta could lose a reserve fighter jet squadron in the next fiscal year. <br> <br> Funding for Fighter Attack Squadron 203, based at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta, does not appear to be included in the Navy&#39;s budget for the next fiscal year, which starts October first, according to retired Army Brigadier General Phil Browning, executive director of the Georgia Military Affairs Coordinating Committee. <br> <br> The squadron flies F/A-18 Hornet jets and is one of two units on the base with those aircraft. The other is a Marine Corps Reserve squadron. <br> <br> A squadron typically has ten to 12 planes and 250-300 troops assigned to it, according to Jack Liles of Atlanta, a former Navy aviator. <br> <br> Browning said the future of the squadron or the aircraft is unclear. <br> <br> NAS Atlanta has about 1,350 military and civilian personnel and an economic impact of about $98.5 million a year. <br> <br> The Department of Defense is seeking to reduce the military&#39;s infrastructure by 25 percent by 2005.

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