Located near Jacksonville, North Carolina, the installation was originally commissioned as Peterfield Point in 1944 before being redesignated Marine Corps Air Station New River in 1968. Its airfield, McCutcheon Field, honors Brigadier General Keith B. McCutcheon, a pioneer in Marine Corps helicopter aviation. Today it supports the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, including MV-22 Osprey squadrons, CH-53 heavy-lift helicopters, and UH-1Y and AH-1Z units, backed by aircraft hangars, flight line operations, and utility infrastructure constructed largely between the 1940s and 1970s.
AFFF exposure at Marine Corps Air Station New River
Marine Corps Air Station New River has long maintained an Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting unit responsible for protecting its helicopter and tiltrotor flight operations, and Marine Corps publications document recurring live-fire training in which firefighters practiced responding to simulated aircraft crashes and aviation fuel fires. Navy environmental restoration documents identify a firefighting training area where crash crews historically tested equipment and trained, along with multiple fire stations where firefighting foam was stored for emergency response. That changed in 2016, when a policy update ended routine AFFF use for training and limited it to emergency response going forward.
For the decades before that shift, training followed a familiar cycle. Firefighters ignited fuel to simulate a crash, applied AFFF to bring the fire under control, tested proportioning systems to check the mix, and cleaned vehicles and equipment before restocking foam supplies for the next exercise.
Marine Corps ARFF firefighters and Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting personnel carried the bulk of this exposure, joined by fire instructors, firefighter trainees, fire apparatus operators, and the staff responsible for maintaining foam systems and firefighting vehicles.
Marine Corps Air Station New River firefighters who trained with AFFF before the 2016 policy change match the profile researchers have focused on when studying PFAS-linked cancer risk. The conditions most closely tied to that exposure include:
If your firefighter service at Marine Corps Air Station New River took place before the 2016 policy change and you've since received one of these diagnoses, our team can review your history and let you know whether you're eligible to file an AFFF claim.
Asbestos exposure at Marine Corps Air Station New River
Fire resistance and insulation were the whole reason asbestos ended up in so many World War II-era military buildings, and Marine Corps Air Station New River's hangars and support facilities were no exception. Materials commonly used throughout its hangars, fire stations, and administrative buildings included:
- cement pipe
- gaskets
- duct adhesive
- ceiling tiles
- floor tiles
- wiring insulation
- acoustical panels
- electric boards
Marine Corps installations maintain formal asbestos management programs for aging buildings, and certain trades faced more direct exposure than others while servicing older hangars and utility infrastructure:
- electrician
- HVAC mechanic
- boiler technician/watertender
- steelworker
- machinery repairman
Marine Corps Air Station New River contains facilities dating back to World War II, and personnel involved in maintaining older buildings and utility systems faced the greatest opportunity for exposure across that entire history. Mesothelioma and lung cancer, the two conditions most closely tied to this kind of work, often don't surface for 20 to 50 years after the original exposure, meaning a veteran who worked at Marine Corps Air Station New River decades ago might only be seeing symptoms now. If your service included that kind of maintenance work and you've since received either diagnosis, contact our team to find out whether you're eligible to file an asbestos claim.