But the fort seems well positioned to dodge the cutback bullet. It can tout its record of processing more Reserve and National Guard troops than any other base in the nation since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

It can also point to its strategic location close to nearly one-quarter of those troops at a time when the military is depending on them heavily.

The commanders of Fort Dix and the adjoining McGuire Air Force Base and Lakehurst Naval Air Engineering Station will make the fort's case Thursday before the Army Basing Study Group in Rosslyn, Va., near the Pentagon.

The group is collecting information that will be used by the defense secretary to make recommendations about basing changes to the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission.

The Naval Air Station - Joint Reserve Base at Willow Grove and other installations across the country also are expected to provide data on their operations in the coming months.

The commission's decisions will be sent to the President, who will accept or reject them by Sept. 23, 2005. Congress then has 45 legislative days to consider the plan, which becomes law if no action is taken.

U.S. Rep. Jim Saxton (R., N.J.) described the combination of Dix, McGuire and Lakehurst as "a one-of-a-kind joint-service installation that serves national security very well. In fact, it's a model for future military bases. It's the only example of an installation with adjoining Army-Navy-Air Force bases."

Four previous BRAC rounds closed 97 bases, Saxton said. The Defense Department had wanted two more rounds, but is expected to accept one, resulting in the largest base realignment ever.

"Nobody is BRAC-proof," said Army Col. David Lowry, commander of Fort Dix. "... But you can't escape regional demographics. You have to be where the customers are.

"Twenty-four percent of the Guard and Reserve - 130,000 soldiers - are within a 300-mile radius. They really need a Northeast regional training center."

Fort Dix was one of the casualties in the first base changes in 1988, losing the basic-training mission that had introduced tens of thousands of soldiers to the military since 1917.

But the fort's supporters in the military and Congress helped attract the Reserve and Guard, which have used the base to train as many as 15,000 troops on many weekends.

That mission, along with the recent heavy dependence on the part-time soldiers, helped make the fort a key player in the recent mobilization of troops for Operation Noble Eagle (homeland security), Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Guantanamo Bay.

The fort mobilized 23,000 troops since Sept. 11, 2001, and has demobilized 13,000, more than any other installation. It was so successful that it won the deployment excellence award from the Army chief of staff in 2002 and last year.

"The core of our mission is training 24 hours a day, seven days a week," Lowry said. "The very billets and barracks that are maintained for training on weekends are used in times of war and national crisis. One mission dovetails well into the other."

The 31,000-acre fort has shown great flexibility, providing space for the Army's active, Guard and Reserve forces, as well as the Air Force Reserve, Navy Reserve, Coast Guard Atlantic Strike Force, the FBI, the nation's largest federal correctional facility, and other government agencies. The fort also has been used for humanitarian missions, such as housing the Kosovo refugees in 1999.

What's more, Lowry said, Dix and McGuire have been working together to eliminate duplication of services while providing housing now through a private developer. "There is always room for more joint initiatives," he said.

The three South Jersey bases are among the region's largest employers. About 3,000 people work full time at Dix, 7,500 at McGuire, and 3,330 at Lakehurst, Saxton said. Base closings "would have devastating impact on the local economy," he added.

Lowry will be joined Thursday by McGuire's commander, Col. Jimmie C. "J.J" Jackson, and Lakehurst's commander, Capt. Mark Bathrick.

Those bases also will be submitting data on their operations. McGuire can point to its busy record since the Sept. 11 attacks. Its KC-10 tankers flew 4,700 sorties and its C-141 transport planes flew 800 during Operation Enduring Freedom. The tankers flew 600 sorties during Operation Iraqi Freedom, and the transports flew 70 sorties. The base is still flying missions in support of Noble Eagle.

Nearby Lakehurst will be emphasizing its role as the largest Naval aviation facility in the Northeastern United States. It provides all aircraft launch, recovery and support equipment to the entire naval fleet. It's the only location in the world that designs and develops the catapults and arrest gear for aircraft carriers.

In Pennsylvania, the Naval Air Station - Joint Reserve Base at Willow Grove can recount its service in support of homeland security and missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. It hosts the Air Force, Air National Guard, Navy, Marines and Army.

While other bases collect data on their operations, Fort Dix prepares for its presentation, focusing much attention on its training role. Said Lowry: "The more sweat you lose training in peace, the less blood you lose in war."

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