Our mission is to stop the harm that the basing of F-35 fighter jets at Truax Field, Madison will inflict. In addition, we work to stop the negligent pollution of our waters and force the clean-up of existing contamination of the water supply emanating from the base.  

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Upcoming Events (check back for more)

  • March 24-27 Catholic Worker Faith & Resistance Gathering – No F-35s!
    Madison, Wisconsin is hosting the 20th Catholic Worker Midwest Faith and Resistance Gathering, March 24 – 27, 2023.  It will be a weekend of relationship-building, reflection, music, art, meals and direct action opposing F-35 fighter jets, militarism and war. All are welcome at the film on Friday evening, the public talks…
Ground the F35 CODEPINK Roger Waters image
Ben Cohen, Roger Waters join organizations from Europe to South America in calling for President Biden and the U.S. Congress to cancel the manufacturing and training of the F-35 fighter jet.

Listen to WORT-FM’s coverage of the story (7-1/2 minutes)

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Why we’re opposed

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The F-35s are expected to be four times louder than the current F-16s. There would be an initial 47% increase in military operations and 27% long-term. The level of noise can have a detrimental effect on a variety of people including those with PTSD, autism, mental illness and other neurological and sensory vulnerabilities. Children will especially be affected.

The number of households within the 65 dB contour zone would increase by 1,019 and the number of people exposed would increase by 2,215. One hundred and thirty-two households and 292 people would be located in the 75dB contour zone where housing is “incompatible.”

Some noise abatement funds may be available through the FAA after a lengthy review process which would not begin until about two years after “beddown” begins and flights are stabilized. The initial increase in flights is due to having both F-16s and F-35s at the base.

There will be a significant disproportionate impact to low-income and minority populations as well as children, according to the Environmental Impact Statement produced by the Air Force.

Medical studies have shown that noise has a far reaching impact that can lead to stress, sleep disturbance, high blood pressure, heart disease and strokes. Children will be particularly impacted by increased noise levels, producing cognitive impairment, negative effects on reading and memory, and post-traumatic stress. Children in the Truax area are already struggling prior to starting school, according to a 2018 Madison neighborhood study, with less than half considered “kindergarten ready.” In a city struggling to overcome persistent racial disparities, flying an outrageously noisy fighter jet over elementary schools is likely to intensify the equity injustice.

The U.S. Department of Defense is the world’s largest institutional user of petroleum, and therefore the single largest producer of greenhouse gases in the world, with the largest portion of Pentagon fuel consumption being for military jets. (Brown University study) And in 1997 the US negotiating team won a blanket military exemption under the Kyoto climate accord; thus military emissions do not need to be reported to the United Nations. Learn more

Negative impacts of noise on children Include cognitive impairment, reading, memory and post-traumatic stress. Each jet will emit seven tons of CO2 for every hour in flight. The F-35s will also emit other harmful chemicals and fine and large particulates, making breathing difficult for everyone, but particularly children. Learn more

Because of the nature of the plane’s composition and its stealth coating, a crash of the F-35 in or near Madison would emit toxic fumes for miles, and putting out an F-35 fire would require many times more PFAS-containing fire-fighting foam.

Pilots at Truax will be training to fly the F-35A fighter jet, a plane designated as a key part of the US strategic nuclear force in the Pentagon’s 2018 Nuclear Posture Review.

All F-35s will eventually be capable of carrying two B61-12 variable capacity nuclear warheads, up to four times more powerful than the bombs that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Truax would not initially have nuclear weapons onsite but, if the planes were given a nuclear mission, the military is not required to disclose this to the public.

The F-35 is the most expensive weapons system in history and will cost US taxpayers $1.7 trillion over the life of the project. The cost of each F-35A to taxpayers is $110.3 million, according to the Center for Defense Information, and and the cost to taxpayers of the Truax squadron will be $2,206,000,000. Each hour of flight is about $40,000 per plane.

A portion of the cost for Truax to accommodate the F-35s will be borne by state and local taxpayers. This includes the clean-up of existing contaminants at the base and noise mitigation and housing for residents who need to be relocated. Dane County is responsible for all noise abatement, not the military. Costs could reach tens of millions to relocate people and to soundproof homes in the impacted areas. There will be no funding for abatement of the homes of the 60,000 people immediately outside of the 75 dB zone. And there is no way to mitigate noise outdoors.

Many military experts contend that fighter jets would be useless in a nuclear war and other jets are better suited for conventional warfare.

Our current security threats come from pandemics, cyber attacks and terrorism, none of which the F-35 can counter. The Air Force states the F-35 project will bring “no significant impacts to socioeconomics” and only provide “up to” 64 jobs for Lockheed Martin and regular Air Force personnel. The F-35 is a “job killer” when compared to jobs that can be created in education, clean energy, health care and infrastructure for the same investment. Trading in fighter jets for a new Air National Guard mission, such as medical and disaster relief, will provide more jobs and align more closely with Madison’s progressive values.

War spending created fewer jobs than similar spending investment in clean energy, public education, and health care. Learn more

Legal Actions

Air Force & Truax Information

Air Force Record of Decision
Final Environmental Impact Statement
Truax Construction Timeline

Take the F-16 Noise Survey (See results) …

Decorate your home for the winter with these beautiful 2-sided yard signs, now back in stock!

Please continue to contact public officials, write letters to the editor, call in to radio shows and share your views with others!

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  • National day of action to say NO to the endless war machine! March 19
    NO F35s – Madison is not a sacrifice zone! Peace in Ukraine – negotiations, not escalation! Say no to endless US war and sanctions – abolish the NATO war machine! We will gather Sunday 3/19 at 3:00 pm at the State Street steps of the Capitol for a short antiwar rally, then we will cross…
  • PFAS in Wisconsin’s Surface Water and Fish – Arboretum March 9
    FULL- REGISTRATION CLOSED What Do We Know about PFAS in Wisconsin’s Surface Water and Fish? View online Arboretum Winter Enrichment Lecture (in person) Date: Thursday, March 9 Time: 9 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Location: Meet at Visitor Center, UW–Madison Arboretum Description: Meghan Williams (she/her), Environmental Toxicologist, and Patrick Gorski, PhD (he/him), Emerging Contaminants Research Scientist, Wisconsin Department…
  • Senator Baldwin Announces Funding for Community Outreach and Noise Mitigation Planning for F35 Arrival at Truax Field
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin announced that the Wisconsin Department of Military Affairs (WDMA) is receiving a $798,000 grant from the Department of Defense to conduct community outreach, noise mitigation planning, and prepare for the F-35s arrival at Truax Field. Read Sen. Baldwin’s 3/3/2023 Press Release online “I am proud to help deliver…
  • Defuse Nuclear War – War Abolition Walk Feb 24 at 2:30 – Madison
    To mark the anniversary of the Russia – NATO war in Ukraine, we will do a War Abolition Walk in Madison this Friday, February 24. Defuse Nuclear War and the Peace in Ukraine Coalition are calling for actions at congressional offices that day, so we will be acting along with people in dozens of cities. Join us for part…
  • March 24-27 Catholic Worker Faith & Resistance Gathering – No F-35s!
    Madison, Wisconsin is hosting the 20th Catholic Worker Midwest Faith and Resistance Gathering, March 24 – 27, 2023.  It will be a weekend of relationship-building, reflection, music, art, meals and direct action opposing F-35 fighter jets, militarism and war. All are welcome at the film on Friday evening, the public talks on Saturday and Sunday…
  • World Beyond War.org logo
    War Abolition Walk – Jan 21, 10:00 am in Madison
    24th MADISON WAR ABOLITION WALK 51st Week of the Russian invasion of Ukraine Join us for any part of this walk. As of 1/9/23 the UNHCR reports 6,952 deaths and 11,144 injuries of Ukrainian civilians, and millions of refugees. As in any war, there is evidence of widespread atrocities, including gender atrocities, destruction of means…
  • Across Canada, hundreds took action to reject Canada’s plans to buy 88 new bomber jets
    The weekend of action received widespread press coverage: Peace group plans protest against fighter jet purchase Protest held in Montreal against purchase of F-35 fighter jets Peace group plans protest against fighter jet purchase No Fighter Jets Coalition protests Canada’s planned F-35 purchase Government to announce F-35 deal Monday — Trudeau had said stealth fighter…
  • final Dane Co Airport noise map with decibels
    County Airport Finalizes Noise Exposure Map
    In anticipation of the F-35 fighter jets scheduled to arrive this year, the county airport has finished responding to public comments and finalized its Noise Exposure Map (NEM). This has been submitted to the FAA for approval. The next step is development of noise abatement measures for people living within the predicted 65-decibel noise contour….
  • Safe Skies Clean Water Files Final Argument Against F-35s
    JANUARY 5, 2023 BY NATE WEGEHAUPT AND WORT NEWS DEPARTMENT Read or listen online WORT 89.9FM Madison · Safe Skies Clean Water Files Final Argument Against F-35s Anti-F-35 activists have filed their final legal documents to try and keep the jets out of Dane County before they touch down at Truax airfield later this year….
  • Israel grounds flagship US fighter jets
    RT, 25 Dec, 2022 Read full article The planes appear to have similar deficiencies to the one that crashed in Texas last week. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has decided to ground 11 of its F-35A fighter jets on Sunday, following an incident in Texas last week that saw a US Air Force F-35B Lightning…
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  • Hundreds of thousands more U.S. service members exposed to toxic forever chemicals than DOD acknowledges, report finds
    By Olivia Rosane, EcoWatch | December 23, 2022 The Department of Defense (DOD) has underestimated how many U.S. service members were exposed to potentially unsafe levels of forever chemicals in the drinking water served on military installations, a new report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) has found. While the DOD put the number of exposed service members at…