Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts

Located on the high-technology region of the Route 128 beltway, northwest of Boston, Hanscom is said to be the fourth largest corporate entity in Massachusetts, and is one of the Air Force's primary research and development centers for surveillance and intelligence electronics. Established on a World War Two training field by the Air Force, with scientists recruited from MIT, Hanscom is a point of origin for many command, control, communication, computer, and intelligence (called C4I) systems. It is home to the Electronic Systems Center, which develops defense warning systems, including Cheyenne Mountain's underground NORAD control center, AWACS and Joint STARS. The Electronic Systems Center has an annual budget of around $3 billion. Also within the densely developed 846 acres of Hanscom, and related in function, is the Lincoln Lab, operated by MIT. In 2012, the Electronic Systems Center was incorporated with the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, as part of a restructuring effort overseen by Air Force Materiel Command.