Former USAF Bases in US list (Long)
Jm660
States that have closed or
been redesignated between 1948--when the Air Force base (AFB) designation
first came into use--and June 1998.
It is supposed that the gentle reader bears a warmth for the subject, and a
fondness for
the old Air Force.
Thanks to Frank Adcox, Mark Morgan, and Scott Murdock.
Compiled by Joseph McCusker
New York City
June 1998
jm...@aol.com
Comments and corrections welcome.
This file may be freely copied and distributed.
1. Former Air Force bases in the US, Guam and Puerto Rico Part
2. USAF "fields"
3. A word about Army air fields, air fields and fields
4. Contractor operated USAF air bases
5. USAF "forts"
6. Former USAF names of still-open Air Force bases
7. Still-open Air Force bases that will close or "privatize"
1. Former Air Force bases in the US, Guam and Puerto Rico
Some of these bases were redesignated as minor installations; some became civil
airports, with some hosting Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve units; a
few are operated by the Air National
Guard or Air Force Reserve; and some went to the Army or Navy.
Alexandria AFB, Alexandria, La. (renamed England AFB)
Amarillo AFB, Amarillo, Tex. (closed 1 Jan 1969)
Amchitka AFB, Amchitka Island, Alaska (Amchitka AAB redesignated Amchitka AFB,
13 Jan 48.)
Anniston AFB, Eastaboga, Ala. (reported excess in 1952)
Ardmore AFB, Ardmore, Okla. (closed 1959)
Atterbury AFB, Columbus, Ind. (Atterbury AAF redesignated Anniston AFB, 13 Jan
48; redesignated
Bakalar AFB)
Avon Park AFB, Avon Park, Fla. (Avon Park AAF redesignated Avon Park AFB, 13
Jan 48; part
merged with Avon Park AF Range in 1956.)
Bakalar AFB, Columbus, Ind. (closed 1970, ex-Atterbury AFB)
Barking Sands AFB, Kauai, Hawaii (renamed Bonham AFB, 8 May 1953)
Bellows AFB, Oahu, Hawaii (redesignated Bellows AFS in 1958)
Benjamin Harrison AFB, Indianapolis, Ind. (Headquarters Tenth Air Force. Ex-Ft.
Benjamin
Harrison, returned to Army in 1950, closed 1996)
Bergstrom AFB, Austin, Tex. (Closed 1993, part to AFRes. Bergstrom ARS closed
September 1996)
Big Delta AFB, Big Delta, Alaska (to Army 1948)
Big Spring AFB, Big Spring, Tex. (renamed Webb AFB, 1952)
Biggs AFB, El Paso, Tex. (Inactivated 1966; to Army, 1973)
Blytheville AFB, Blytheville, Ark. (redesignated Eaker AFB)
Bonham AFB, Kauai, Hawaii (ex-Barking Sands AFB, redesignated Bonham AFS, then
to Navy in
1964)
Brookley AFB, Mobile, Ala. (closed 1969)
Bryan AFB, Bryan (College Station), Tex. (closed 1958)
Buckingham AFB, Ft. Myers, Fla.. (designated 1955, abandoned while under
construction)
Bunker Hill AFB, Peru, Ind. (redesignated Grissom AFB)
Campbell AFB, Ft. Campbell, Ky. (to Army 1959)
Camp Hood AFB, Killeen, Tex. (redesignated Gray AFB, 1949)
Camp Stewart AFB, Hinesville, Ga. (unk., ex-Stewart AFB)
Cape AFB, Umnak Isl., Alaska (inactivated 1950, transferred to CAA in 1957)
Carswell AFB, Ft. Worth, Tex. (Closed 1993, ex-Griffiss AFB. to AFRes, then to
Navy. Became
Carswell ARS September 30, 1993, and NAS Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base
(Carswell Field) on
September 30, 1994.)
Casper AFB, Casper, Wyo. (transferred to GSA 1952)
Castle AFB, Merced, Calif. (closed 1995)
Chanute AFB, Rantoul, Ill. (closed 1993)
Chatham AFB, Savannah, Ga. (Closed 1950, ex-Savannah AFB. The City of Savannah
traded
Hunter Field, then a municipal airport, for the smaller Chatham AFB to keep SAC
and the USAF in
Savannah.)
Chennault AFB, Lake Charles, La. (closed 1963, ex-Lake Charles AFB)
Cheyenne Mountain AFB, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Redesignated Cheyenne Mountain
AS in 1994;
ex-Cheyenne Mountain Complex.)
Clear Springs AFB, New Braunfels, Tex. (AFB before 1956 and from 1964-67)
Clinton County AFB, Wilmington, Ohio (closed 1971)
Clinton-Sherman AFB, Clinton, Okla. (closed 1970)
Conagree AFB, Conagaree, S.C. (Coangree AB transferred from Navy to USAF and
redesignated
Conagree AFB, 1955; Conagree ANGB, 1960; McEntire ANGB, 1961)
Connally AFB, Waco, Tex. (ex-Waco AFB, renamed James Connally
AFB)
Craig AFB, Selma, Ala. (closed 1977)
Datelan AFB, Datelan, Ariz. (unk., became Datelan AF Aux Fld)
Davis AFB, Adak, Alaska (To Navy in 1950. NAS Adak , later NAF Adak, closed
1998)
Dillingham AFB, Oahu, Hawaii (to Army in 1975, now a civil airport)
Dobbins AFB, Marietta, Ga. (To AFRes in 1968, later became Dobbins ARB.
Ex-Marietta AFB)
Donaldson AFB, Greenville, S.C. (closed 1964)
Dow AFB, Bangor, Me. (Closed 1968, part to ANG. Also Regular Air Force 776th
Radar Squadron)
Eaker AFB, Blytheville, Ark. (Closed 1992, ex-Blytheville AFB)
Edward Gary AFB, San Marcos, TX (to Army 1956; ex-San Marcos AFB, ex-Gary AFB)
Ellington AFB, Houston, TX (closed 1978, part to ANG)
England AFB, Alexandria, La. (closed 1992, ex-Alexandria AFB)
Ent AFB, Colorado Springs, Colo. (Closed 1976. Was Colorado Springs Tent Camp
from 1943 to
1949. Renamed Ent AFB in 1949, and Ent Annex, 1975.)
Ephrata AFB, Ephrata, Wash. (to U.S. Army, 1950 although reported excess by
USAF in 1952)
Ethan Allen AFB, Burlington, Vt. (Closed 1960, ex-Ft. Ethan Allen.
Administrative base for 37th FIS
at Burlington IAP.)
Forbes AFB, Topeka, Kans. (Closed 1973, part to ANG. Ex-Topeka AFB)
Ft. Worth AFB, Ft. Worth, Tex. (redesignated Griffiss AFB, 1948, Carswell AFB,
1948)
Foster AFB, Victoria, Tex. (closed 1958)
Galena AFB, Alaska (1948; later Galena Airport)
Gary AFB, San Marcos, Tex. (Ex-San Marcos AFB, renamed Edward Gary AFB in
1955.)
George AFB, Victorville, Calif. (closed 1992, ex-Victorville AFB)
George Wright AFB, Spokane, Wash. (closed 1954, ex-Ft. George Wright)
Gila Bend AFB, Gila Bend, Ariz. (unk., became Gila Bend AF Aux Fld)
Glasgow AFB, Glasgow, Mt. (B-52s, KC-135s and F-101s, 1957-68. Reactivated
1972-76, as SAC
dispersal base, and as an Army Safeguard ABM depot supporting construction of a
second ABM
complex northwest of Malmstrom AFB, which was not completetd.)
Godman AFB, Louisville, Ky. (to Army 1954)
Grandview AFB, Kansas City, Mo.(ex-Grandview Airport, renamed Richards-Gebaur
AFB)
Gray AFB, Killeen, Tex. (to Army in 1963)
Greenville AFB, Greenville, Miss. (closed 1965)
Greenville AFB, Greenville, S.C. (renamed Donaldson AFB)
Grenier AFB, Manchester, N.H. (closed 1949, reopened 1951, redesignated
Grenier Field 1959,
redesignated Grenier AFS 1966. New Boston AFS occupies a part of the former
Grenier bombing
range, and preserves almost all of the land.)
Griffiss AFB, Ft. Worth, Tex. (renamed Carswell AFB)
Griffiss AFB, N.Y. (Closed 1995, ex-Rome AFB. Rome Laboratory and the Northeast
Air Defense
Sector and the 485th Electronic Installation Group remained. The 485th EI
Group inactivated
December 1995; NEAD was taken over by the NYANG. The airfield is maintained by
a NYANG
contractor for use by the 10th Mountain Division at Ft. Drum until Wheeler-Sack
AAF is rebuilt to
accept large transport airplanes .)
Grissom AFB, Peru, Ind. (closed 1994, to AFRes)
Gunter AFB, Montgomery, Ala. (Redesignated Gunter AFS in 1973;
Gunter AFB again, in 1988 or 89; then Maxwell AFB, Gunter Annex, in 1992.)
Hamilton AFB, Novato, Calif. (Closed 1976, airfield to Army as Hamilton AAF,
housing to Navy;
USCG west coast environmental disaster strike force. Hamilton AAF closed.)
Harlingen AFB, Harlingen, Tex. (closed 1962)
Harmon AFB, Guam (closed 1949; housing to Andersen AFB)
Hobbs AFB, Hobbs, N.M. (closed, probably late 1951)
Homestead AFB, Homestead, Fla. (destroyed by Hurricane Andrew in 1992,
reopened 1994 as
Homestead ARB)
Hunter AFB, Ga. (to Army 1967, became Hunter AAF)
Indian Springs AFB, Indian Springs, Nev. (redesignated Indian Springs AF Aux
Field, 1964;
ex-Indian Springs AP.)
James Connally AFB, Waco, Tex. (1968, ex-Waco AFB, Connally AFB)
Johnston Atoll AFB, Johnston Atoll (ex-Johnston Island AFB, no longer an AFB
although technically
still USAF property, operated by Dept. of Energy)
Johnston Island AFB, Johnston Atoll (renamed Johnston Atoll AFB)
Kalkaska AFB, Mich. (designated 1955, abandoned while under construction)
Kearney AFB, Kearney, Neb. (closed 1949)
Kincheloe AFB, Kinross, Mich. (closed 1977, ex-Kinross AFB)
Kinross AFB, Kinross, Mich. (renamed Kincheloe AFB)
K.I. Sawyer AFB, Mich. (closed 1995, ex-K.I. Sawyer Airport)
Ladd AFB, Fairbanks, Alaska (To Army January 1, 1961. Became Ft. Wainwright)
Lake Charles AFB, Lake Charles, La. (renamed Chennault AFB)
Laredo AFB, Laredo, Tex. (closed 1973)
Larson AFB, Moses Lake, Wash. (closed 1966, ex-Moses Lake AFB)
Laurinburg-Maxton AFB, Maxton, S.C. (designated 1954; redesignated
Laurinburg-Maxton Vehicle
Storage Annex, 1956)
Lawson AFB, Columbus, Ga. (to Army 1954)
Limestone AFB, Caribou, Me. (renamed Loring AFB)
Lincoln AFB, Lincoln, Neb. (closed 1966)
Lockbourne AFB, Columbus, Ohio (renamed Rickenbacker AFB)
Loring AFB, Caribou, Me. (closed 1994, ex-Limestone AFB)
Lowry AFB, Denver Colo. (Closed 1994. The Air Force Reserve Personnel Center,
the Defense
Finance and Accounting Service and the 1001st Space Systems Squadron {later Det
1, Space Systems Support Group} remained at what has been referred to as Lowry
Support Center and Lowry AS. Det 1, SSSG, was ordered by BRAC 95 to close by
1998.)
Lubbock AFB, Lubbock, Tex. (Redesignated Reese AFB, 1949)
March AFB, Calif. (to AFRes in March 1996, March ARB)
Marietta AFB, Marietta, Ga. (renamed Dobbins AFB)
Marks AFB, Nome, Alaska (Closed 1950. Used as a cold weather survival school
and an
fighter-interceptor forward base. Marks was too close to the USSR to operate
defending fighter-
interceptors, so they were pulled back to Galena Airport. Marks AFB shared the
airfield with Nome
Airport. Although Marks AFB closed in 1950, an air base squadron was at Nome
Airport until
October 1955.)
Marshall AFB, Ft. Riley, Kans. (unk., to Army)
Mather AFB, Sacramento, Calif. (closed 1993)
McCoy AFB, Orlando, Fla. (Closed 1974, ex-Pinecastle AFB, part to USN as Naval
Training Center.
NTC subsequently closed.)
Mitchel AFB, Hempstead, N.Y. (Closed 1961, Navy operated housing, and BX,
Navy/DCA commissary since then. Often misspelled "Mitchell", Mitchel Field/AFB
is named after former New York City mayor, John P. Mitchel, who upon leaving
office became a fighter pilot. He died in an accident while flying a
Thomas-Morse S-4C Scout at Gerstner Field, La., in July 1918.)
Moses Lake AFB, Moses Lake, Wash. (renamed Larson AFB, 1950)
Myrtle Beach AFB, Myrtle Beach, S.C. (closed 1993)
Naknek AFB, Naknek, Alaska (1948; later King Salmon Airport)
Nenana AFB, Nenana, Alaska (Nenana Airfield redesignated Nenana AFB, 26 Mar
1948. Abandoned
while under construction. Also known as Nenana Area and Nenana Project. Later
Clear AF Auxiliary
Field. Clear AFS, later Clear AS, is on part of the site. Work began in 1947
on a SAC B-36 base
along the Nenana River, about 26 miles south of Nenana and about fifty miles
south of Fairbanks. A
14,500-foot runway was laid out. But, while early construction was underway, a
series of
earthquakes revealed a fault beneath the runway and the project was cancelled.
Eielson
AFB was eventually used by SAC instead.
Newark AFB, Heath, Ohio (1996; ex-Heath Maintenance Annex, ex-Newark AFS))
Newscastle AFB, Delaware (redesignated Newcastle County AP, 1951)
Norton AFB, San Bernardino, Calif. (closed 1994, ex-San Bernardino AFB. Det.
10, Ballistic Missile
Office, remained until September 1995)
Olmstead AFB, Harrisburg, Pa. (1968)
Onizuka AFB, Sunnyvale, Calif. (1994, redesignated Onizuka AS. Ex-Sunnyvale
AFS, Onizuka
AFS.)
Orlando AFB, Orlando, Fla. (1967, part to USN as Naval Training Center. NTC
closed.)
Oscoda AFB, Oscoda, Mich. (renamed Wurtsmith AFB)
Otis AFB, Falmouth, Mass. (Closed 1973, part to ANG and later became Otis
ANGB. Part to CGAS
Cape Cod and to Cape Cod AFS, which was renamed Cape Cod AS in 1994. Base
housing to CGAS
which maintains it for all services.
Oxnard AFB, Camarillo, Calif. (closed 1969)
Paine AFB, Everett, Wash. (1959, redesignated Paine Field where USAF FIS
operations continued
until 1968. USAF facilities at Paine Field were transferred to to ANG as Paine
Field ANG Station in
1972.)
Palm Beach AFB, West Palm Beach, Fla. (closed 1962)
Parks AFB, Pleasanton, Calif. (Closed 1959, part to National Guard; AF Comm
Station.)
Pease AFB, Portsmouth, N.H. (Closed 1991, part to ANG. Ex-Portsmouth AFB)
Perrin AFB, Sherman, Tex. (closed 1971)
Pinecastle AFB, Orlando, Fla. (renamed McCoy AFB)
Plattsburg AFB, N.Y. (1955-60, renamed Plattsburgh AFB)
Plattsburgh AFB, N.Y. (closed 1995, ex-Plattsburg AFB)
Pocatello AFB, Pocatello, Id. (c.1948.)
Point Spencer AFB, Seward, Alaska (1948)
Portsmouth AFB, Portsmouth, N.H. (renamed Pease AFB)
Presque Isle AFB, Presque Isle, Me. (Closed 1961. ADC fighter-interceptor base
taken over by SAC
for SNARK missiles. In June 1961, four months after becoming operational, the
702nd Strategic
Missile Wing inactivated and the base soon closed. Base housing was retained
by Loring AFB.)
Pyote AFB, Pyote, Tex. (San Antonio Air Materiel Area storage site; closed
1954, known as
"Rattlesnake Air Base".)
Ramey AFB, Aguadilla, P.R. (Closed 1971, airfield continued in use by CGAS
Borinquen; USAF
solar observatory.)
Reese AFB, Lubbock, Tex. (1997)
Reno AFB, Reno, Nev. (renamed Stead AFB)
Richard Bong AFB Superior, Wisc. (designated 1955, abandoned while under
construction. 1959;
excess 1960) Like many new northern tier Air Force bases in the 1950s, Richard
Bong AFB was
going to be an ADC fighter-interceptor base but was taken over by SAC as it
sought to disperse the
bomber force. SAC assumed "jurisdiction, control and accountability" of Bong
from ADC on June 5,
1957, assigning it to the Eighth Air Force, and perhaps intending to base B-58s
there. SAC's 4040th
Air Base Squadron was assigned as the base housekeeping unit on August 1, 1958.
The base and the squadron were transferred to Second Air Force on January 1,
1959. Construction was suddenly
ordered stopped on October 2, 1959, because, as Secretary of the Air Force
James H. Douglas told the people of Racine, "Finally we realized that by
1961-62 when Bong would be ready, we would have
several other medium bomber bases empty of squadrons and we really don't need
Bong." (New York Times, November 5, 1959, "House Unit Visits Abandoned Base".)
Richards Gebaur AFB, Kansas City, Mo. (Closed 1980, part to AFRes.
Richards-Gebaur ARS closed
1994. Ex-Grandview AFB.)
Rickenbacker AFB, Columbus, Ohio (Closed 1980, part to ANG, Rickenbacker ANGB.
Ex-Lockbourne AFB.)
Rome AFB, N.Y. (redesignated Griffiss AFB, 1948)
Sampson AFB, Geneva, N.Y. (closed 1958, part to Seneca Army Depot which later
closed.)
San Bernardino AFB, San Bernardino, Calif. (renamed Norton AFB, 1950)
San Marcos AFB, San Marcos, Tex. (renamed Gary AFB, later Edward Gary AFB)
Savannah AFB, Savannah, Ga. (renamed Chatham AFB)
Schilling AFB, Salina, Kans. (closed 1967, ex-Smoky Hill AFB)
Selfridge AFB, Detroit, Mich. (Closed 1971, became Selfridge ANGB, CGAS
Detroit, NAF Detroit)
Sewart AFB, Smyrna, Tenn. (closed 1970, ex-Smyrna AFB)
Shemya AFB, Shemya Island, Alaska (Designated Shemya AFB in 1948; redesignated
Shemya
Airport 1954; later redesignated Shemya Army Air Base; redesignated Shemya AFS
1959;
redesignated Shemya AFB 1968; redesignated Eareckson AFS in 1993, Eareckson AS
in 1994.)
Sherman AFB, Leavenworth, Kans. (to Army, 1953)
Slocum AFB, Davids Island, New Rochelle, N.Y. (Headquarters First Air Force was
at Ft. Slocum
from 1946 until 1949. Ft. Slocum, on an island near New York City and
accessible only by ferry
boat, was redesignated Slocum AFB in June 1949. Headquarters First Air Force
moved to Mitchel
AFB four months later. The base was then looked after by the 166-person 2226th
Standby Base
Squadron, and later by a much smaller fire guard, until June 30, 1950, when the
New York District
Engineer assumed custody of the property and Slocum AFB ceased to exist. Ft.
Slocum was
reactivated as an Army post late in 1950, and closed in 1965. Twice swept by
fires, the island--which
is owned by the City of New Rochelle--has been in ruins for many years.)
Smoky Hill AFB, Salina, Kans. (renamed Schilling AFB)
Smyrna AFB, Smyrna, Tenn. (renamed Sewart AFB)
Standiford AFB, Ky. (Redesignated Standiford Field 1951)
Stead AFB, Reno, Nev. (1966, ex-Reno AFB)
Stewart AFB, Ga. (redesignated Camp Stewart AFB)
Stewart AFB, Newburgh, N.Y. (1970, part to Army, later part to ANG)
Suffolk County AFB, Westhampton Beach, N.Y. (closed 1969, part to ANG)
Thornbrough AFB, Cold Bay, Alaska (closed 1953) (Not a typo, it is Thornbrough
not
Thornborough.)
Tonopah AFB, Tonopah, Nev. (c.1948, not the same place as Tonopah Test Range
Airfield.)
Topeka AFB, Topeka, Kans. (renamed Forbes AFB)
Turner AFB, Albany, Ga. (To Navy in 1967, became NAS Albany which closed in
1974.)
Victorville AFB, Victorville, Calif. (renamed George AFB)
Vincent AFB, Yuma, Ariz. (To USMC in 1960, became MCAS Yuma. Ex-Yuma County
MAP.)
Waco AFB, Waco, Tex. (renamed Connally AFB, James Connally AFB)
Wake Island AFB (ex-Wake Island AFS; redesignated Wake Island Airfield)
Walker AFB, Roswell, N.M. (closed 1967; Roswell AAF redesignated Walker AFB 13
Jan 1948)
Walseth AFB, Seward, Alaska (1948)
Webb AFB, Big Spring, Tex. (closed 1977, ex-Big Spring AFB)
Wendover AFB, Wendover, Ut. (redesignated Wendover AF Auxiliary Field 1958)
Westover AFB, Chicoppee, Mass. (to AFRes, 1974; later became Westover ARB)
Wheeler AFB, Oahu, Hawaii (To Army 1993; Wheeler AAF)
Williams AFB, Chandler, Ariz. (Closed 1993, the Armstrong Laboratory Aircrew
Research Training
Facility remains.)
Wolters AFB, Mineral Wells, Tex. (Returned to Army 1956. Wolters AFB was a
base for Aviation
Engineers.)
Wurtsmith AFB, Oscoda, Mich. (closed 1993, ex-Oscoda AFB)
Some of these bases require an explanation.
The first redesignations of USAF installations to "Air Force bases" were in
January and March
1948. The orders were rescinded and replaced several times leaving a number of
the newly designated
AFBs with new names or, more often, new designations, usually Air Force
auxiliary field. The short-lived bases listed here are taken from the original
orders. Many of the subsequent redesignations, mostly to "Air Force auxiliary
field" occurred before the publication of "US Air Force Installations
Directory, Continental United States" (Washington, D.C.: Headquarters, U.S. Air
Force, 1 April 1948). Issued quarterly, this was the first edition of the USAF
station list to show Air Force bases (AFB, as opposed to AAF or "field").
Most of the other later little-known Air Force bases are also from the
original orders giving them the
AFB designation. Two bases on this list--Datelan AFB, Ariz., and Gila Bend
AFB, Ariz.--were only
found (among the sources available to me) in the "History of the Flying
Division, Air Training
Command" (Randolph Field: Historical Section, Flying Division, Air Training
Command) covering
the four quarters of 1948 and part of 1949. Datelan and Gila Bend were carried
as Air Force
auxiliary fields in the April 1, 1948, USAF station list. But in these command
histories, while there
were many references to other Air Force auxiliary fields, both Datelan and Gila
Bend were shown as
Air Force bases.
2. USAF "fields"
Most USAF "fields" were active from the early 1950s until the early 1980s,
with some closures as
early as 1960. They mostly housed fighter-interceptor squadrons/groups, usually
with 1000-
1500 people assigned. In addition, fields were sometimes the location of air
division headquarters, air
defense sectors, SAGE centers, and radar squadrons.
Byrd Field, Richmond, Va.
Burlington AP, Burlington, Vt. (supported by Ethan Allen AFB) Duluth IAP, Minn.
(Air division
headquarters; air defense sector; SAGE combat and direction center;
fighter-interceptors; BOMARC
missiles.)
Fairfax Field, Kans. (The 326th FIS activated here in December 1953 and moved
to Grandview AFB
three months later.)
Galena AP, Alaska (briefly Galena AFB in 1948; maintained by a private
contractor as a
weather/emergency diversion airfield since Regular Air Force
fighter-interceptor alert operations
ended in 1993.)
Geiger Field, Wash. (Redesignated Spokane IAP c. Aug 1960; Regular Air Force
fighter-interceptor
operations ended July 1963.)
Greater Pittsburgh AP, Coraopolis, Pa.
Grenier Field, Manchester, N.H. (Ex-Grenier AFB)
Hancock Field, N.Y. (Ex-Syracuse AFS. Air division headquarters and combined
SAGE combat
center and direction center; no Regular Air Force fighter-interceptor squadron.
Closed 1982, housing
to Griffiss AFB.)
King Salmon AP, Alaska (Briefly Naknek AFB in 1948; standby base maintained by
the ANG since
regular Air Force fighter-interceptor alert operations ended in 1994.)
Kinglsley Field, Klamath Falls, Ore. (Formerly Klamath Falls MAP)
Klamath Falls MAP, Ore. (Redesignated Kingsley Field following renaming of
airport by civil
authorities)
Long Beach MAP, Calif. (The 354th FIS activated here in 1952 and soon moved to
Oxnard AFB.)
McGhee-Tyson MAP, Tenn.
Minneapolis-St. Paul IAP, Minn.
New Castle County AP, Wilmington, Del.
Niagara Falls MAP, N.Y. (fighter-interceptor squadron/group until 1960, then
BOMARC missiles
and a Regular Air Force FIS detachment)
O'Hare IAP, Ill.
Paine Field, Wash. (ex-Paine AFB)
Portland IAP, Ore.
Sioux City MAP, Iowa
Truax Field, Wisc.
Washington National Airport [1254th Air Transport Group (Special Mission)]
Willow Run AP, Mich. (Portion later renamed Willow Run AFS. Air division
headquarters, no
fighter-interceptor squadron.)
Youngstown MAP, Ohio
Yuma County-Municipal Airport, Ariz. (ADC fighter-interceptor air-to-air
gunnery and rocketry
training center. Redesignated Vincent AFB.)
Some of these fields have been referred to as Air Force bases, but there is
no evidence in the places where I have been able to look that the AFB
designation was ever official.
Duluth AFB (Duluth IAP)
Geiger AFB and Geiger Field AFB (Geiger Field, Wash.);
Orchard Place AFB and O'Hare AFB (O'Hare IAP, Ill.)
Truax AFB, (Truax Field, Wisc.)
Roslyn AFB (Roslyn Control Center, later Roslyn AFS, N.Y., air
division headquarters. To ANG 1958 and ordered closed by BRAC
95.)
In addition to the USAF fields listed, federalized Air National Guard units
sometimes operated from
their home fields, often eventually with many regular AF personnel assigned.
This occurred during the
Korean War.
Also, during the 1960s, ADC dispersed the fighter-interceptor force by
placing alert detachments at
civil airports, including Niagara Falls, N.Y., Byrd Field, Richmond, Va.;
Atlantic City, N.J; Billings,
Mont.; Walla Walla, Wash.; and New Hanover County Airport, N.C.
And, later, SAC set up dispersal sites, often at non-SAC Air Force bases but
sometimes at former
bases. Two of these were detachments of the 2nd Bomb Wing, Barksdale AFB, La.
Det 2 was at
Amarillo Air Terminal (formerly Amarillo AFB) and Det. 3 was at Clinton-Sherman
Industrial Air
Park (formerly Clinton-Sherman AFB). Both dets were active from 1969 or the
early 1970s until
30 March 1975, when they were inactivated.
4. A word about Army air fields, air fields and fields
Generally, Army Air Forces installations were named two ways: when named to
honor individuals
they were designated "fields" and when named geographically, they became "Army
air fields."
(The designation Army air base was also used.)
Between the time the Air Force was established on September 18, 1947, and
the first designation of Air Force bases on January 13, 1948, some Army air
fields may have dropped the word "Army".
A January 1, 1948, Air Training Command station list includes Las Vegas Air
Field; San Marcos
Air Field; Datelan Air Field; and Gila Bend Air Field. "Air Force Bases, Vol.
I: Active Air Force
Bases Within the United States of America on 1 January 1974" by Robert Mueller
(Maxwell AFB:
Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center, 1982), and a later edition, show
the November
28, 1947, to January 13, 1948, name of today's Ellsworth AFB to be Rapid City
Air Field, changed
from Rapid City Army Air Field.
5. Contractor operated USAF air bases
During most of the 1950s, the USAF conducted some basic pilot training under
contract at a number of WW II-vintage airfields designated as air bases. These
were:
Bainbridge AB, Bainbridge, Ga., 1951-61;
Bartow AB, Bartow, Fla., 1951-61;
Graham AB, Marianna, Fla., 1952-61;
Hondo AB, Hondo, Tex., 1951-1958;
Malden AB, Malden, Mo., 1951-60;
Marana AB, Marana, Ariz., 1951-57;
Moore Field, Mission, Tex., Jan 1955. Renamed Moore AB at the end
of 1955 and closed in 1961;
Spence AB, Moultree, Ga., 1951-61;
Kinston Air Field, Kinston, N.C., 1951-53. Renamed Stallings AB
in 1953 and closed in 1957.
In 1965, the Air Force began contractor-operated pilot screening training
using T-41s at, among
other places, Columbus-Lowndes Airport, Miss.; Stinson Field, near San Antonio;
and
Hondo MAP. The training was consolidated at Hondo MAP in 1973, where the 1st
Flight Screening
Squadron and Doss Aviation, Inc., continues, using the Slingsby Aviation T-3A
Firefly.
6. USAF "forts"
These USAF installations retained the "fort" designation for a while:
Fort Francis E. Warren, Wyo. (renamed Francis E. Warren AFB, 1949)
Fort Slocum, N.Y. (renamed Slocum AFB, 1949)
Fort George Wright, Wash. (renamed George Wright AFB, 1949)
Fort Ethan Allen, Vt. (renamed Ethan Allen AFB).
Also Camp Cooke, Calif., was a USAF installation for three months in 1957,
and then renamed
Cooke AFB.
And, ADC Air Force radar stations were often located on former Army bases
and used the Army
base names until the sites were redesignated Air Force stations.
For example, Det. 1, 646th AC&WS--an early Cold War air defender--was
assigned in 1948 to the
virtually abandoned WW II Coast Artillery post, Camp Hero, N.Y., on Montauk
Point at the eastern
tip of Long Island. In 1951, it was replaced by the 773rd AC&WS, which was soon
joined by an
Army AAA unit. The USAF site was redesignated Montauk AFS in December 1953.
After the Army
AAA unit left, around 1957, the remainder of Camp Hero was absorbed by Montauk
AFS, which closed in 1982.
7. Former USAF names of still-open Air Force bases
These still-open Air Force bases have had more than one post-1948 name:
Abilene AFB, Tex. (renamed Dyess AFB)
Arnold AFB, Tenn. (ex-Arnold Engineering and Development Center, ex-Arnold AFS.
May have been
redesignated Arnold AS for a short while in spring or summer 1995, then
redesignated Arnold AFB
again.)
Beale AFB, Calif. (Beale Bombing and Gunnery Range)
Cannon AFB, N.M. (ex-Clovis AFB)
Clovis AFB, N.M. (renamed Cannon AFB)
Cooke AFB, Calif. (renamed Vandenberg AFB)
Dyess AFB, Tex. (ex-Abilene AFB)
Edwards AFB, Calif. (ex-Muroc AFB)
Ellsworth AFB, S.D. (ex-Weaver AFB, Rapid City AFB)
Enid AFB, Okla. (renamed Vance AFB)
Fairchild AFB, Wash. (ex-Spokane AFB)
Fairfield-Suisun AFB, Calif. (renamed Travis AFB)
Falcon AFB, Colo. (ex-Falcon AFS; renamed Schrieiver AFB, 1998)
Great Falls AFB, Mont. (renamed Malmstrom AFB)
Hanscom Field, Laurence G. Hanscom Field, Laurence G. Hanscom AFB, Hanscom AFB,
Bedford,
Mass.
Las Vegas AFB, Nev. (renamed Nellis AFB)
Long Range Proving Ground AFB, Fla. (renamed Patrick AFB)*
Los Angeles AFB, Calif. (Ex-Los Angeles AFS. Part of Ft. MacArthur annexed by
Los Angeles AFS
in 1982.)
Malmstrom AFB, Mont. (ex-Great Falls AFB)
McConnell AFB, Kans. (ex-Wichita AFB)
Muroc AFB, Calif. (renamed Edwards AFB)
Nellis AFB, Nev. (ex-Las Vegas AFB)
Patrick AFB, Fla. (ex-Long Range Proving Ground AFB)*
Peterson AFB, Colo. (ex-Peterson Field. Renamed 1976)
Rapid City AFB, S.D. (ex-Weaver AFB, renamed Ellsworth AFB)
Reese AFB, Tex. (ex-Lubbock AFB)
Schriever AFB, Colo. (ex-Falcon AFS, Falcon AFB)
Sedalia AFB, Mo. (renamed Whiteman AFB)
Spokane AFB, Wash. (renamed Fairchild AFB)
Travis AFB, Calif. (ex-Fairfield-Suisun AFB)
Vance AFB, Okla. (ex-Enid AFB)
Vandenberg AFB, Calif. (ex-Cooke AFB)
Weaver AFB, S.D. (renamed Rapid City AFB, Ellsworth AFB)
Whiteman AFB, Mo. (ex-Sedalia AFB)
Wichita AFB, Kans. (formerly Wichita MAP, renamed McConnell AFB)
*A lineage and honors history of the Eastern Space and Missile Center
prepared by the Albert F.
Simpson Historical Center in 1980 says that the previous USAF name of Patrick
AFB was Joint Long
Range Proving Ground AFB. However, Mueller, "Air Force Bases, Vol. I," shows
the name to be
Long Range Proving Ground AFB.
8. Still-open Air Force bases that will close or "privatize"
Kelly AFB, Tex. (depot to "privatize", other non-airfield areas to Lackland
AFB)
McClellan AFB, Calif. (depot to "privatize")
Onizuka AS (formerly Onizuka AFS, Onizuka AFB, Sunnyvale AFS)
JBaker
Thanks for the great research.
One of the "other places" that T-41 training took place was at Eloy
Airport, Eloy, Arizona, for Williams AFB in Chandler, AZ.
Thanks again,
JB
Jm660 wrote in message <199807141224...@ladder03.news.aol.com>...
L.R.S.
>This is an annotated list of U.S. Air Force major installations in the United
>States that have closed or
>been redesignated between 1948--when the Air Force base (AFB) designation
>first came into use--and June 1998.
>
>Thanks to Frank Adcox, Mark Morgan, and Scott Murdock.
>
>
>Compiled by Joseph McCusker
>New York City
>June 1998
>
>Galena AFB, Alaska (1948; later Galena Airport)
>
>Galena AP, Alaska (briefly Galena AFB in 1948; maintained by a private
>contractor as a
>weather/emergency diversion airfield since Regular Air Force
>fighter-interceptor alert operations
>ended in 1993.)
>
Joseph
Great list with some really interesting information. I would like to
point out though, that Galena, Alaska was never, to the best of my
knowledge, known as an Air Force Base (AFB). I was stationed there in
1971 and it was Galena Air Station (AS). Then, I was assigned to
Elmendorf AFB in the mid '80. It was called Galena AS at that time
also. Because of my position as the editor of the base newspaper at
Elmendorf, I had to refer to the satellite sites correctly.
My understanding of the terminology is this:
Air Force Base (AFB) - United States based (all 50 states)
installations with specifically assigned aircrart.
Air Base (AB) - Overseas installations operated primarily by the U.S.
Air Force.
Air Station (AS) - U.S. installations where specific aircraft are not
assigned, but a specific mission is accomplished.
Galena fell into the AS category as it did not have "assigned"
aircraft. The alert duty aircraft were all assigned to Elmendorf and
rotated to the station on a weekly basis.
I sure hope I got this information out of the back of my mind
correctly. :-) However, I am pretty sure it is correct.
Again...great research. Thanks for the "memories"
L. Sobkoviak, the dueces wild man of now retired Air Force origin.
Jm660
>point out though, that Galena, Alaska was never, to the best of my
>knowledge, known as an Air Force Base (AFB). I was stationed there in
>1971 and it was Galena Air Station (AS). Then, I was assigned to
>Elmendorf AFB in the mid '80. It was called Galena AS at that time
>also. Because of my position as the editor of the base newspaper at
>Elmendorf, I had to refer to the satellite sites correctly.
>
>My understanding of the terminology is this:
>
>Air Force Base (AFB) - United States based (all 50 states)
>installations with specifically assigned aircrart.
>
>Air Base (AB) - Overseas installations operated primarily by the U.S.
>Air Force.
>
>Air Station (AS) - U.S. installations where specific aircraft are not
>assigned, but a specific mission is accomplished.
>
>Galena fell into the AS category as it did not have "assigned"
>aircraft. The alert duty aircraft were all assigned to Elmendorf and
>rotated to the station on a weekly basis.
>
>I sure hope I got this information out of the back of my mind
>correctly. :-) However, I am pretty sure it is correct.
>
>
Here's the citation: Dept. of the Air Force General Orders No. 10, 26 March
1948,
"Air Force Installations Foreign Countries and U.S. Possessions".
It changed the official designation of Galena Airfield to Galena Air Force
Base.
DAF G.O. 10 was rescinded by by DAF GO 37, 10 June 1948. DAF G.O.
changed theofficial designation of Galena Airfield to Galena Air Force
Auxiliary Field.
During this time a lot of installations were designated AFBs with that
designation or
base name soon rescinded and replaced in a subsequent G.O.. Bases that
remained unchanged from the original
designating G.O. use the date of that original G.O. as the date that the base
was named
even though the original orders were rescinded and replaced.
In Alaska, this also happened, among others, to King Salmon Airport. Nalnek
Army Air Base was designated Naknek AFB. It became King Salmon AF Aux Fld the
same time that Galena did. The names for both of them changed from time to
time since then.
There's lots of other examples, but this post is confusing enough!
About the criteria for designating AFBs, ASs, etc. It has changed from time to
time, like everything else in the Air Force. I think the stationary companies
with USAF contracts do very well!
There once was a lot of Air Force bases (AFB) outside the United States--in
areas under allied military occupation (Japan, Germany and Austria) and at
places were the US had 99-year leases from England (Newfoundland, Bermuda and
the Caribbean), and U.S. territories.
There have been a lot of domestic AFBs that never had airfields, and there
still are a few.
AS (air station) only came into use domestically in the 90s, replacing the AFS
(Air Force station) designation and some places, but not at others.
Historically, there's no consistancy at all!
Best regards,
Joe
L.R.S.
>I was surprised, too.
> Here's the citation: Dept. of the Air Force General Orders No. 10, 26 March
>1948,
>"Air Force Installations Foreign Countries and U.S. Possessions".
>It changed the official designation of Galena Airfield to Galena Air Force
>Base.
>DAF G.O. 10 was rescinded by by DAF GO 37, 10 June 1948. DAF G.O.
>changed theofficial designation of Galena Airfield to Galena Air Force
>Auxiliary Field.
>
>Historically, there's no consistancy at all!
>Best regards,
>Joe
Joe
Thanks for additional information. Shortly after I sent out my
posting, I realized that everything I had written was based on the Air
Force as I knew it, not as people in the past, or people in the future
knew or will know it.
You are right though...there appears to be on consistancy at all in
the naming conventions.
L. Sobkoviak, retired and a bit senile now :)
Phil Brandt
>>Galena fell into the AS category as it did not have "assigned"
>>aircraft. The alert duty aircraft were all assigned to Elmendorf and
>>rotated to the station on a weekly basis.
You are correct; my brother pulled F-4E strip alert there in the late
Seventies and early Eighties.
Phil Brandt
>>