George Air Force Base


George Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located within the city limits, 8 miles northwest, of central Victorville, California, about 75 miles northeast of Los Angeles, California.
Established by the United States Army Air Corps as an Advanced Flying School in June 1941, it was closed at the end of World War II. It was again activated as a training base by the United States Air Force with the outbreak of the Korean War in November 1950. It remained a training base throughout the Cold War and in the immediate post-Cold War period, primarily for the Tactical Air Command and later the Air Combat Command, training USAF, NATO and other Allied pilots and weapon systems officers in front-line fighter aircraft until being closed in 1993.
The base was closed at the end of the Cold War following a decision by the 1988 Base Realignment and Closure Commission and is now the site of the Southern California Logistics Airport. Since 2009, the California Air National Guard's 196th Reconnaissance Squadron has operated an MQ-1 Predator Remotely Piloted Aircraft training facility at the site.

History

George Air Force Base was named in honor of Brigadier General Harold Huston George. He was a World War I fighter ace, serving with the 185th and 139th Aero Squadrons. At the beginning of World War II he was assigned to the V Interceptor Command, Far East Air Force in the Philippines. There, he directed air operations in defense of the fortified islands in Manila Bay. Withdrawn to Australia, he died on 29 April 1942 in an aircraft accident near Darwin, Northern Territory.
A Curtiss P-40 of the 49th Fighter Group, piloted by Lt. Bob Hazard, taking off as second of two P-40s from Twenty-Seven Mile Field, SE of Darwin, Australia, lost directional control in the propwash of the lead fighter, striking a recently arrived Lockheed C-40 parked next to airstrip, killing General Harold H. George, Time-Life war correspondent Melvin Jacoby, and base personnel 2nd Lt. Robert D. Jasper, who were standing next to the Lockheed. A number of others received injuries, but the P-40 pilot survived. George Air Force Base was named for the late general in June 1950.

World War II

In April 1940, civic leaders from Victorville, California approached the United States Army with a proposal to develop an airfield in the High Mojave Desert. They promoted the area's 360-days per year of sunny weather, abundance of wide-open spaces, and the availability of services from the nearby towns of both Victorville and Adelanto. In 1941, as part of the buildup of the United States Army Air Corps prior to the entry of the United States into World War II, an agreement was made, and construction of the 2,200-acre base, called Victorville Army Air Field at the time, commenced with a groundbreaking ceremony on 12 July 1941.
Runway construction consisted of a four runway configuration along with seven hangars. Known sub-bases and auxiliaries of Victorville AAF were:
In addition to the airfield, the building of a large support base was carried out with barracks, various administrative buildings, maintenance shops and hangars.
The station facility consisted of a large number of buildings based on standardized plans and architectural drawings, with the buildings designed to be the "cheapest, temporary character with structural stability only sufficient to meet the needs of the service which the structure is intended to fulfill during the period of its contemplated war use" was underway. To conserve critical materials, most facilities were constructed of wood, concrete, brick, gypsum board and concrete asbestos. Metal was sparsely used.
The station was designed to be nearly self-sufficient, with hangars, barracks, warehouses, hospitals, dental clinics, dining halls, and maintenance shops. There were libraries, social clubs for officers and enlisted men, and stores to buy necessities. With over 250 buildings, together with complete water, sewer, electric and gas utilities, the airfield served over 4,000 military personnel.
Training began in February 1942 on Curtiss AT-9's, T-6 Texan's, and AT-17's for pilots, and AT-11's and BT-13 Valiant's for bombardiers. The army operated an advanced twin-engine pilot training school at the field, its graduates generally flying C-47 Skytrain transports, B-25 Mitchell or B-26 Marauder medium bombers. The school also trained replacement crew members in the B-25 and B-26. The first class of flying cadets graduated on 24 April 1942.
In addition to the pilot training, a USAAF Bombardier training school was operated. The 516th, 517th, and 518th Twin-Engine Flying Training Squadrons were the flying squadrons. Bombardier training was conducted by the 519th, 520th, 521st, and 522d Bombardier Training Squadrons. In April 1942, these training squadrons were organized under the 36th Flying Training Wing, which became the main flying operations command and control organization. The first bombardier classes had to practice their target runs at nearby Muroc Army Air Field, later renamed Edwards Air Force Base. The pilots used Highway 395 as a landmark and guide north to the bombing range.
Waco CG-4 Glider pilots were also trained at Victorville Field, with special emphasis on spot-landing and night flying. The gliders were an essential part of the 6 June 1944, D-Day invasion as hundreds of gliders carried troops and equipment to landing sites in Normandy, France. To ease the overcrowded runways at Victorville, glider students practiced take-offs and landings at the El Mirage Lakebed and El Mirage Field. There were seven oiled runways on the dusty dry lake and they worked well until the lake bed flooded in January 1943.
1944 saw several changes at Victorville Field, with the 3035th Army Air Forces Base Unit taking over the administrative organization of the school in April. On 15 March 1944 a transition training school for P-39 Airacobra single-engine pursuit pilots was established, announced that date by base C.O. Col. Earl C. Robbins. Also training for B-24 Liberator bombardiers began, and in September, a RADAR training school for bombardiers was established.
In May 1945, with the surrender of Germany, the training at Victorville Field began to slow down, and on 15 August, all training at the base ceased. After the Japanese capitulation, the post commander, Colonel Earl C. Robbins, was notified by Major General Willis H. Hale, Fourth Air Force, on 25 September that Victorville was to be placed in a standby status. On 12 October 1945, all flying at the airfield ended and the base was placed on standby status.

Postwar years

Victorville Army Airfield was used during the postwar years to store aircraft by Air Materiel Command. Sacramento Air Materiel Area took control in May 1947. Large numbers of aircraft were flown to the field and parked out in the high desert. These included Boeing B-29 Superfortress, Beechcraft AT-7 Navigator, and AT-11 trainers. Its caretaker host unit was renamed the 2756th Air Base Squadron in January 1948 after the establishment of the United States Air Force.

Cold War

The outbreak of the Korean War on 25 June 1950 meant that the United States Air Force would soon see an increase in training requirements. By 1 July the Air Force had approved plans to increase to 95-wings from the reduced force during the postwar years due to the demobilization after World War II. Experienced pilots trained in fighter jets were needed. The new Continental Air Command was assigned the dual missions of the air defense of the United States as well as the employment of tactical air forces to support contingency deployments around the world. ConAC activated the World War II training base at Victorville, now called George Air Force Base, and assigned it to the Air Defense Command.
When re-activated, George AFB had been in mothballs for five years, and many of the World War II buildings on it were deteriorating due to the temporary nature of the structures when they were built. A rapid refurbishment of the base was necessary to bring it up to postwar standards including updated electrical telephone and electrical systems, barracks and support buildings and extending a runway to accommodate jet aircraft. A dial telephone system was activated in mid-September 1953 after a year's planning. A new communications building was built with a main switchboard installed by the Kellogg Switchboard & Supply Company, Chicago.

Recent history

George AFB was closed pursuant to a decision by the 1988 Base Realignment and Closure Commission at the end of the Cold War. It is now the site of the Southern California Logistics Airport. In 2002, the , an 830 MW combined cycle gas turbine power plant, opened on the site; since the 2010s various portions of the George AFB site also have been proposed as grid-scale energy storage facilities, taking advantage of its proximity to transmission facilities owned by Southern California Edison and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. Since 2009, the California Air National Guard's 196th Reconnaissance Squadron has operated an MQ-1 Predator Remotely Piloted Aircraft training facility at the site.
The abandoned military housing block has been used by private companies for various purposes. The site was a filming location for the film Jarhead, and episodes of TV series MythBusters and Roadkill. The abandoned housing has also been used for airsoft games, particularly military simulation ones.

Primary USAF wings assigned

1st Fighter-Interceptor Wing

The initial USAF unit assigned to George AFB was the Continental Air Command's 1st Fighter-Interceptor Wing, being reassigned from March AFB, California on 18 July 1950. Operational squadrons of the 1st FIW were:
The 1st FIW headquarters was normally assigned to George, however during its time at George, its 27th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was detached to Griffiss AFB, New York for attachment to the Eastern Air Defense Force. The 71st Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was attached to Air Force Reserve/Air National Guard facility at Pittsburgh International Airport, Pennsylvania, also as part of the EADF.
Air Defense Command was reestablished as a major command on 1 January 1951. Continental Air Command lost responsibility for air defense on that date and the wing was reassigned to ADC.
In May 1951, the 27th and the 71st were attached to the 103d Fighter-Interceptor Wing, which provided administrative and logistical support and operational control, although the squadrons remained assigned to the 1st Fighter Group. Air Defense Command planners recognized that the policy of deploying squadrons over a wide area negated whatever advantages may have accrued from the establishment of the wing-base plan in 1948. In the case of the 1st Fighter-Interceptor Wing, a wing headquarters stationed in California could provide only limited control and virtually no support to squadrons deployed on the East Coast.
With the exception of the Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron, and the three fighter-interceptor squadrons, all 1st Fighter-interceptor Wing organizations and the group headquarters were reduced to a strength of one officer and one enlisted man on 30 November 1951, at which time the wing moved from George to Norton Air Force Base, California. The 94th FIS remained at George until 1955 when it was reassigned to Selfridge AFB, Michigan.
Other ADC squadrons assigned to the Western Air Defense Force at George were: