with the establishment of the USAF/ADF Joint Defence Communications Facility in 1969 at the nearby Nurrungar site, approximately south of Woomera, along with its 1100 permanent staff, the village population stabilized at around 4,500 people (including around 800 children). In the late 1990s, as the Nurrungar program was winding down, the ADF reassessed the role of Woomera in its future force structure. What became apparent to the ADF at that time was that the Woomera Test Range was the only land-based test range left in the Western world capable of testing the next (or what is now termed '5th') generation of weapons systems within a fully instrumented, land-based, specialized [test and evaluation] range. This assessment was to result, positively, in redefining the future role and strategic importance of the Woomera Range Complex within Australia's long-term Defence requirements. Defence facilities Woomera Village is a Department of Defence-owned and operated facility. RAAF Base Woomera, when it was established in January 2015, also included the RAAF Woomera Airfield, which is approximately north of Woomera Village. The aerodrome lies within the 'Red Zone' of the Woomera Prohibited Area (WPA) and public access to this part of the base is not permitted. Woomera Village, however, is within a "Green Zone" of the WPA and thus public access to the facilities and services of Woomera, including the several museums located in this historic site, is permitted year round. Visitors may also stay in the Defence operated Eldo Hotel, and there is a privately operated public caravan park at the entrance to Woomera Village. While the WRC operates under the higher management of Woomera Range Headquarters (WRHQ), located at RAAF Base Edinburgh, the operation of the Base itself is co-managed by the RAAF's Combat Support Group (CSG) and Defence Estate & Infrastructure Group (DEIG). CSG focus on the operational aspects of the base's role, while DEIG focuses on ensuring the base's (and the Range's) facilities and general infrastructure remains fit for the purpose it is needed to support the Range's activities. Woomera Village has always been and continues to be the domestic support facility for the Woomera Range Complex. , the WPA covers an area of approximately and forms the essential ground area of the whole Range Complex. The Nurrungar Test Area (NTA) is south of Woomera, and although not within the WPA, it is under the operational control of Woomera Range Headquarters in Adelaide. The WPA