The communication below is from the United States Navy. The Department of Airports wishes to help educate the public while also notifying Ventura County residents that there may be a noticeable increase in boat and drone/aircraft activity off the shores of Port Hueneme beginning this week and continuing through the end of the year. Please read the message below to learn more:
The United States Navy is conducting a training and evaluation exercise in the Point Mugu Sea Range, off the coast of Port Hueneme, which will continue for several months. The purpose of the exercise is to test and evaluate the use of unmanned surface and aerial vehicles.
The exercise will take place several miles offshore in the Sea Range, an area designated for military testing activities. It will involve the use of dozens of small boats, in the 16’- 24’ size range, which will be launched from Naval Base Ventura County and adjacent harbors. They will be launched and steered to the Sea Range for maneuvers, and usually returned to their landside storage areas at night. The level of activity will be small initially and will gradually scale up to larger numbers later in the year. The launch-and-recovery cycle will occur on only a handful of days each month, most likely mid-week. Concurrent with the small boat activity, a smaller number of unmanned aerial vehicles or drones will be launched from the Base and steered to the Sea Range.
All activity associated with the project will be safe for the public and for all forms of sea life. There will be no use of live ammunition at any time, nor will there be any use of sound devices underwater or nets which could endanger sea birds, mammals, or fish. At the same time, there will be significant economic benefit to the local Ventura County community from activities that support the project. Contracting companies associated with this project will have first-hand exposure to Ventura County as a potential location for their companies, potentially bringing jobs in the future.
Presentations covering the public-facing aspects of the project are being scheduled in the coming weeks, both for elected officials in the county and for community organizations that have interest in learning more about the project. Groups wishing to schedule a presentation should contact the project’s Community Liaison, Steve Kinney, at slkinney@me.com.