Fort Knox is about to take its training up a notch by reopening one of its ranges, and that means people around the area may hear some booms.
Yano Range, which has been at the post since 1948, closed in 2018. But after a $56 million dollar upgrade, which built a new range tower, added technology and expanded the range to 3,600 acres, the range will reopen later this spring.
The 400-target range now has six cameras and active sensors. Target systems are now directly connected with computers in the two-floor tower, allowing integrated air and ground unit training and more advanced performance feedback.
Fort Knox covers more than 108,000 acres. Of that, 101,000 acres make up the training area. Fort Knox Garrison Commander Col. Christopher Ricci called the new “Digital Air Grounds Integration Range” a game-changer.
The upgrade makes Fort Knox home to one of two digital air ground integration ranges for the U.S. Army. The other one is at Fort Bliss, Texas.
Depending on the weather, the noise from training could travel about 4-5 miles, so when there is a planned uptick in training that will be louder than normal, notices are sent out to the surrounding area elected officials and law enforcement agencies.
The range is set to open in May, and there are already four units scheduled for active training.
Source: WDRB
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