Laughlin Airmen renew energy with first DOD architectural wind turbines

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Olufemi Owolabi
  • 47th Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
LAUGHLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  In the midst of budget cuts, some environmentally conscious Airmen here have found a way of saving the taxpayers dollars by conserving energy.

With the goal of creating energy through other means, Laughlin installed the first Department of Defense architectural wind-energy system, consisting of six turbines.

Each turbine is approximately four by six feet and is mounted on the roof of the Laughlin flight simulator building. The blades of the turbine can be positioned at the optimal angle to capture the wind rolling over the building.

According to officials, the innovative idea is capable of producing 1000 watts per hour of power, but after the strategic placement of multiple systems throughout the base, the impact will be more noticeable and invaluable to our power saving efforts.

"The system is plugged directly into the main grid to increase the power and lower overall utility bills for the entire base," said Lt. Col. Stephen Browning, 47th Mission Support Group deputy commander.

Furthermore, 2nd Lt. Annette Collins, project manager, 47th Civil Engineer Squadron, explained that the initial project, which costs more that $39,000, is now completed. It shows that Laughlin is concerned about its resources and is willing to take the lead in energy conservation.

"The installation of Architectural Wind at Laughlin is the first in Air Education and Training Command, the Air Force, and the first in DoD. This is a big deal for Laughlin AFB and the people who work here," Lieutenant Collins said. "This was just a demo project to see how the turbines would do at Laughlin AFB. Now that we know they will work, we want to pursue more systems for the base."

The project, which started in the summer of 2006, was driven by the Energy Policy Act and Executive Order 2007-01-24, which requires all bases to strive to have 7.5 percent of renewable energy sources by the year 2013.

"Knowing how windy it is here at Laughlin, I challenged the members of the Energy Management Steering Group to find a way to take advantage of this renewable energy source," said Col. Roger Thrasher, 47th Mission Support Group commander. "Knowing that large wind turbines might interfere with flying, or our air surveillance radar, they found a smaller and cheaper approach that doesn't impact our flying training mission. I'm very proud of the team for coming up with a solution that begins to reduce our dependence on foreign oil."