A community meeting in Tullahoma last night brought out school board members, county mayors, and state legislators – all praising the prospect of the possibility of a new mission at Arnold Air Force Base.

Not one person spoke against a new mission called ‘C-BAT,’ which stands for Common Battlefield Airmen Training. It’s a five-week combat crash-course to prepare airmen for expanded roles in the Middle East. The hosting base would house 800 full-time staff and eventually train 14,000 airmen each year.

The 40,000 acre base is in the running with two other installations in Louisiana and Georgia. According to an extensive environmental impact study of all three sites, Arnold is the sole alternative that already has enough land and doesn’t endanger any wetlands.

Arnold supporters told Air Force representatives that the area could handle the increased need for housing and schools. Joann Bobo, who lives near the base, said the mission is more important than economic development.

“Anything providing my children – one of them being in the Air Force, the other in the Army – with better training that might save his life or his brother in arms, we need it. I’m for it. We want it. Y’all need to come.”

The Air Force will hold a community hearing in Valdosta, Georgia, near Moody Air Force Base tomorrow night. A final report will be complete by the end of the month. A decision on where the new mission will land is expected by January.