Bellevue Gate re-opening Published March 26, 2015 55th Wing Public Affairs OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. -- The Bellevue Gate is scheduled to re-open at 6 a.m. on March 30. The gate was originally closed to help the 55th Security Forces Squadron mitigate operational requirement issues, such as deployments and physical security concerns, back on Dec. 30. The 55th SFS still has a significant portion of its members deployed, but recently had some of them return from a previous deployment. Those defenders combined with security augmentees from around Team Offutt now provide an adequate number of personnel to work the gate. "We have been very thankful for everyone's patience as we have worked our way through this gate closure over the past three months," said U.S. Air Force Brig. Gen. Gregory Guillot, 55th Wing commander. "With these returning defenders and some internal posturing, we're going to be able to re-open the gate." Security forces personnel remain one of the most heavily tasked career fields in the Air Force. Additionally, our defenders have been on 12-hour shifts for 18 months and will have to continue these shifts for the foreseeable future due to ongoing commitments around world. When required training is added to these duty hours the security forces Airmen work over 240 hours per month. In addition to an increase in security forces manpower, the base addressed a few of the installation requirement concerns that have been identified throughout the years. "We absolutely would not re-open this gate if we were not confident that we can maintain a safe and secure living and working environment for all of Team Offutt," Guillot said. "We will continue to actively evaluate base security and threats in combination with our security forces manning situation." The Bellevue Gate, which is located on Offutt's Nelson Drive and Bellevue's Lincoln Road, will be open from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday and closed on weekends and all federal holidays. "Our plan going forward is to use the same gate hours that were instituted in July of 2012," said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Ted Breuker, 55th SFS commander. The wing will continue to upgrade the gate and increase security measures as funding becomes available from the Air Force in the future. "We have plans in place to completely renovate the gate and we're hopeful that we'll be able to do that in years ahead," Breuker said. "But between now and then, our defenders are prepared and devoted to protecting the base's people and missions." The STRATCOM Gate as well as the Kenney Gate, commonly referred to as the Flag Gate, will continue to be open 24 hours a day.