in the Middle East. NAS Brunswick-based crews flew homeland defense maritime patrols off the Atlantic coast as part of Operation Noble Eagle and additional assets were surged in support of OEF operations. Fleet Air Wing Five squadrons were present during the commencement of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, and continue to fly in support of ongoing operations. On October 21, 2008, P-3 Orion from Patrol Wing Five overshot the runway at Bagram Air Base while landing. The aircraft caught fire and was destroyed but the only injury to the crew was one broken ankle. The aircraft was assigned to CTF-57 in Afghanistan. Closure After being listed on the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure list, NAS Brunswick began preparing itself for shut down with a mandated September 2011 closure date. In May 2008, Captain Will Fitzgerald relieved Captain George Womack, becoming NAS Brunswick’s 36th and final Commanding Officer, and was tasked with the responsibility of closing the base. In September 2008, NAS Brunswick hosted the 33rd Great State of Maine Air Show for the last time, which boasted an attendance of more than 150,000 people from the local area and out of state. The air show will be held again in August 2017, without the support of a military base. In November 2008, the Patrol Squadron 8 Tigers were the first Fleet Air Wing Five squadron to permanently leave NAS Brunswick on deployment, scheduled to return to their new home port of NAS Jacksonville, Florida. May 2009 saw the last squadron Changes of Command held on base when the reins of the Patrol Squadron 26 Tridents and the Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 62 Nor’Easters (having since been renamed the Nomads) were handed over to new Commanding Officers. In June 2009, the Patrol Squadron 10 Red Lancers departed Brunswick for their new home port of NAS Jacksonville, followed by Special Projects Patrol Squadron 1 and Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 62 in July. The last squadron to leave NAS Brunswick was Patrol Squadron 26, which made their final departures late November 2009. After that, no other aircraft were based at NAS Brunswick.The closure of the NAS Brunswick air field was scheduled for just after the departure of VP-26, which lead directly to the disestablishment of Fleet Air Wing Five in March of the same year. NAS Brunswick no longer supports any home based squadrons. There are still approximately 1681 officers, sailors, and civilian