President Donald Trump has unveiled the “Golden Dome,” a $175 billion missile defense initiative inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome. This ambitious plan aims to deploy a multilayered shield of space-based sensors and surface missiles to protect the U.S. from threats posed by its adversaries.
With Trump renewing focus on missile defense, potential deployment sites could include eastern Long Island—particularly Westhampton—given its Cold War legacy as a strategic missile base.
An area off County Road 31 housed the BOMARC Missile Base, officially known as the Suffolk County Air Force Base Missile Annex, which was operational from the late 1950s until 1964. This facility was part of America’s air defense strategy, equipped with long-range anti-aircraft missiles designed to intercept Soviet bombers.
The BOMARC base featured 56 missile shelters and was integrated into the Semi-Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) system, allowing for rapid response to potential aerial threats. Although the base was decommissioned in the 1960s, its infrastructure and strategic location remain. In recent years, the site has served various purposes, including a county impound lot, storage, and shooting range used by law enforcement agencies.
With the announcement of the Golden Dome initiative, the historical precedent set by the BOMARC base suggests that eastern Long Island could once again play a role in national defense. The existing infrastructure and strategic positioning make it a candidate for consideration as the U.S. expands its missile defense capabilities.
Building up military assets in Greenland is another component of Trump’s strategy to seal off military access to the U.S. via the North Atlantic. Setting up interceptor missiles along the seaboard, including Long Island, would fit well into the strategy of fending off attacks from Russian nuclear submarines and intercontinental ballistic weapons.
As the Golden Dome project progresses, decisions regarding deployment sites will be crucial. While concrete plans have yet to be released, Eastern Long Island’s legacy in missile defense could make it an asset in this new era of national security.