Mitchel Air Force Base

Mitchel Air Force Base
Mitchel Air Force Base

USAAC Roundel.svg Us army air corps shield.svg Seal of the US Air Force.svg
Mitchel Field

Mitchel AFB NY 2006 Topo.jpg
Former Mitchel AFB, 2006. The remains of runway 5/23 are visible in the center.
Mitchel NY 46USAAF.jpg
Airport Diagram (pre-runway 5/23 extension)
IATA: noneICAO: none
Summary
Airport type Military/Defunct
Owner United States Air Force
Operator United States Air Force
Serves New York City
Location Garden City, New York
Elevation AMSL 85 ft / 26 m
Coordinates 40°43′32″N 73°35′42″W / 40.72556°N 73.595°W / 40.72556; -73.595Coordinates: 40°43′32″N 73°35′42″W / 40.72556°N 73.595°W / 40.72556; -73.595
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
5/23 6,700 1,737 Concrete
9/27 4,960 1,512 Concrete
12/30 5,142 1,567 Concrete
18/36 4,800 1,463 Concrete
Source: Airfields-Freeman.com [1]
Mitchel AFB is located in New York
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Mitchel AFB
Location of Mitchel AFB, New York
For the airport in Wisconsin see General Mitchell International Airport
For the airport in South Dakota see Mitchell Municipal Airport

Mitchel Air Force Base also known as Mitchel Field, was a United States Air Force base located on the Hempstead Plains of Long Island, New York, US Established in 1918 as Hazelhurst Aviation Field #2, the facility was renamed Mitchel Field in honor of former New York City Mayor John Purroy Mitchel who was killed while training for the Air Service in Louisiana.

Decommissioned in 1961, Mitchel Field became a multi-use complex currently home to the Cradle of Aviation Museum, Nassau Coliseum, Mitchel Athletic Complex, Nassau Community College and Hofstra University.

Contents

History

Origins

For almost 250 years the area occupied by Mitchel AFB has played an important role in United States history.

During the American Revolutionary War it was known as the Hempstead Plains and used as an Army enlistment center. In the War of 1812 and in the Mexican War it was a training center for Infantry units. During the American Civil War, it was the location of Camp Winfield Scott. In 1898, in the Spanish-American War, Mitchel's site was known as Camp Black.[2]

World War I

During World War I Camp Mills was located at the site of Mitchel AFB, on the western part, with the United States Army Rainbow (42nd) Division and the Fighting 69th Regiment training there.[2]

In 1917, Hazelhurst Field #2 was established just south of Hazelhurst Field to serve as an additional training and storage base. Curtiss JN-4 Jennies became a common sight over Long Island in 1917 and 1918. Hundreds of aviators were trained for war at these training fields, two of the largest in the United States. Numerous new wooden buildings and tents were erected on Roosevelt and Field #2 in 1918 in order to meet this rapid expansion.[3]

Between the Wars

Mitchel Field continued to grow after World War I and between 1929 and 1932. An extensive building program was undertaken after the war to turn the temporary wartime facilities into a permanent Army post, with new barracks, warehouses, hangar space and administrative buildings. Much of this construction still exists today, being used for non-military purposes.

In the 1920s and 1930s various Observation, Fighter and Bomber units were stationed at the airfield. It became a major aerodrome for both the Air Corps as well as various civilian activity. The 1920s was considered the golden age of Air Racing and on 27 November 1920, the Pulitzer Trophy Race was held at Mitchel Field. The race consisted of four laps of a 29-mile course. Thirty-eight pilots entered and took off individually. The winner was Capt. Corliss Moseley, flying a Verville-Packard VCP-R racer, a cleaned-up version of the Army’s VCP-1 pursuit, at 156.54 mph.[4]

In October 1923, Mitchel Field was the scene of the first airplane jumping contest in the nation. During the same year, two world's airplane speed records were established there. In 1924, the air mail service had its inception in experimental flights begun at the airfield. In September 1929, Lt. Gen. James H. Doolittle, then a Lieutenant, made the world's first blind flight.[5]

In 1938, Mitchel was the starting point for the first nonstop transcontinental bomber flight, made by Army B-18 Bolos. Mitchel Field also served as a base from which the first demonstration of long-range aerial reconnaissance was made. In May 1939, three B-17s led by Lt. Curtis LeMay flew 750 miles out to sea and intercepted the Italian ocean liner SS Rex. This was a striking example of the range, mobility and accuracy of modern aviation at the time.[6][7]

World War II

In 1940 Mitchel Field was the location of the Air Defense Command, a command charged with the mission of developing the air defense for cities, vital industrial areas, continental bases, and military facilities in the United States (also known as the "Zone of the Interior"). Later, First Air Force, was given the responsibility for air defense planning and organization along the eastern seaboard Under its supervision an aircraft patrol system along the coast for observing shipping was placed into operation.[2] During 1943, Mitchel AAF became a staging area for B-24 Liberator and crews before being sent overseas.[8]

Mitchel Field was a major source of supply in initial garrisoning and defense of North Atlantic air bases in Newfoundland, Greenland and Iceland. From the airfield the planning for the air defense of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland was conducted. Antisubmarine patrol missions along the Atlantic coast were carried out in 1942 by the Army Air Force Antisubmarine Command aircraft based at Mitchel.[2]

Under the direction of the First Air Force, Mitchel Army Airfield became a command and control base for both I Fighter and I Bomber Command. Tactical fighter groups and squadrons were formed at Mitchel to be trained at AAF Training Command bases (mostly in the east and southeast) before being deployed to the various overseas wartime theaters. Additionally, thousands of Army Air Force personnel were processed through the base for overseas combat duty. With the end of World War II, returning GIs were processed for separation at Mitchel.[2]

United States Air Force

Emblem of the AFRES 514th Troop Carrier Wing, assigned to Mitchel AFB, 1949–1961
Air Defense Command 2d Fighter Squadron (All Weather) Northrop P-61Bs on parking apron at Mitchel AFB. Shown are P-61B 43-8233 and P-61B 43-8290. Taken October 1948

In March 1946 Mitchel Army Airfield was designated as the location for the headquarters of the newly formed Air Defense Command (ADC), which was responsible for the air defense of the United States. With the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate service in 1947, Mitchel AAF was redesignated as Mitchel AFB.

In December 1948, ADC's responsibilities were temporarily assumed by the Continental Air Command, (ConAC) also located at Mitchel AFB. ConAC also was responsible for the reorganization of the Air Force Reserve after World War II. In 1949, the reserve mission was assigned to First Air Force, which was also headquartered at Mitchel. First Air Force became the command and control organization for supervising the training of the air reserve in 15 eastern states and the District of Columbia.[2]

By 1949, Mitchel was relieved of the responsibility for defending New York City because of the many problems associated with operating tactical aircraft in the urban area. However, Mitchel did serve as the terminus for the last speed record set on Long Island, a transcontinental speed record of 4 hours, 8 minutes set by Colonel W. Millikan in an F-86 on 2 January 1954. After several notable crashes, including a P-47 into Hofstra University's Barnard Hall on 23 March 1943,[9] public pressure ultimately led to the field's closure.[3]

Beginning in 1949, the Air Force Reserve's 514th Troop Carrier Wing was the main operational flying organization at Mitchel AFB. Initially flying the Curtiss C-46 Commando, the unit upgraded to the Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar in 1954. However the urban creep around Mitchel led to the decision to curtail flying at the base, and in April 1961 flying was halted and the unit reassigned to McGuire AFB in New Jersey. With the reassignment of the 514th, Mitchel itself was subsequently closed on on 25 June 1961. The property was turned over to Nassau County for redevelopment.[3][10][11]

Although closed as an Air Force base, the facility today still has military housing, a commissary and exchange facilities to support military families and activities in the area. The Garden City-Mitchel Field Secondary, a remnant of the Long Island Rail Road's Central Branch from Garden City to Bethpage, ends in the northern part of Mitchel Field, providing sporadic freight service.

Major commands to which assigned

Redesignated: Director of Air Service
Redesignated: U.S. Army Air Service, 24 May 1918
Redesignated: U.S. Army Air Corps, 2 July 1926
  • General Headquarters (GHQ) Air Force, 1 March 1935
  • Northeast Air District, 18 October 1940
Redesignated: 1st Air Force, 26 March 1941
Redesignated: First Air Force, 18 September 1942
  • Continental Air Forces, 13 December 1944
  • Air Defense Command, 21 March 1946
  • Continental Air Command, 1 December 1948 – 1 April 1961
Remained attached to Air Defense Command until 1 January 1951

Major units assigned

  • 92d Aero Squadron, 4 December–21, 1918
  • 1st Army Observation Group
1st Aero Squadron, 10 October 1919 – 6 November 1940
Reassigned to 9 Group (Observation), 1 August 1922
  • 3d Observation Group
5th Aero Squadron, 1 November 1919 – 6 November 1940
Reassigned to 9 Group (Observation), 1 August 1922
Redesignated: 9 Observation Group on 25 January 1923
Redesignated: 9 Bombardment Group on 1 March 1935
Redesignated: 9 Bombardment Group (Medium) on 6 December 1939 – 6 November 1940
99th Observation Squadron, 9 November 1928 – 6 November 1940
Redesignated: 1st Air Force, 26 March 1941
Redesignated: First Air Force, 18 September 1942 – 3 June 1946; 17 October 1949 – 23 June 1958
Headquarters, I Air Support Command, 1 September 1941
Redesignated: I Ground Air Support Command, 1 April 1942
Redesignated: I Air Support Command, 1 September – 30 November 1942
Headquarters, I Bomber Command, 1 October 1943 – 21 March 1946
Headquarters, I Interceptor Command, 5 June – 27 December 1941
Redesignated: I Fighter Command, 9 June 1942 – 21 March 1946
326th Fighter Group, 19 August 1942 – 1 September 1942
352d Fighter Group, 1 October–31, 1942
353d Fighter Group, 1 October–7, 1942
62d Fighter Wing, 12 December 1942 – 13 January 1943
80th Fighter Group, 2 March – 30 April 1943
356th Fighter Group, 30 May – 4 July 1943
36th Fighter Group, 3 June–23, 1943

397th Fighter Squadron (368th Fighter Group, 23 August 1943-20 December 1943

362d Fighter Group, 19 October – 12 November 1943
301st Fighter Wing, 1 November 1944 – 30 May 1945
373d Fighter Group, 28 September – 7 November 1945
318th Fighter Squadron, 21 May – 2 December 1947
82d Fighter Squadron, 25 June 1947 – 24 November 1948
83d Fighter Squadron, 25 June 1947 – 24 November 1948
84th Fighter Squadron, 25 June 1947 – 24 November 1948
2nd Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 25 June 1947 – 4 October 1949
5th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 25 June 1947 – 4 October 1949
Replaced by: 465th Troop Carrier Wing (18th Air Force), 25 August 1953 – 23 March 1954

Notes: Records incomplete for units assigned prior to 1940; Air Defense Command (ADC); Air Force Reserve (AFRES) assigned to Continental Air Command (ConAc); 18th Air Force Troop Carrier Wings assigned to Tactical Air Command; Military Air Transport Service (MATS) 1112th Special Air Missions Squadron (SAMS) provided VIP transportation in New York area for Commanding General, First Army, General Eisenhower and UN Military Staff using VC-47. The SAM mission was taken over by the 1254th Air Transport Group at Bolling AFB with deployed aircraft (1298th ATS, 1299th ATS) to Mitchel.

Source for Major Commands and Major Units assigned:[10][12][13][14][15][16][17]

See also

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

  1. ^ Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields: New York, Central Long Island
  2. ^ a b c d e f Office of Information Services Headquarters Continental Air Command, Mitchel Air Force Base, New York, 26 October 1955 Fact Sheet
  3. ^ a b c The History of Mitchel Field, The Cradle of Aviation Museum
  4. ^ Pulitzer Trophy Air Races
  5. ^ USAFHRA Document 00489043
  6. ^ Mitchel Field History Document
  7. ^ John T. Correll, Rendezvous With the Rex, Air Force Magazine, December 2008 Vol 91 No. 12
  8. ^ USAFHRA Document 00175652
  9. ^ Associated Press, "College Building Set Afire by Crash of Army Airplane", The Roanoke World-News, Roanoke, Virginia, Tuesday afternoon, 23 March 1943, Volume 81, Number 70, page 3.
  10. ^ a b USAFHRA Document 00489094
  11. ^ USAFHRA Organizational Records Branch, 514th Air Mobility Wing
  12. ^ a b Mauer, Mauer (1969), Combat Squadrons of the Air Force, World War II, Air Force Historical Studies Office, Maxwell AFB, Alabama. ISBN 0-89201-097-5
  13. ^ Air Force Historical Research Agency Organizational Records Branch
  14. ^ Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947–1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-912799-12-9.
  15. ^ Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.
  16. ^ USAFHRA Document 00175687 (2500 ABG/Wing)
  17. ^ 11 October 1950: 100,000 miles to Bolling

18. Grace, Dr. Timothy M. (2008) SECOND TO NONE: THE HISTORY OF THE 368TH FIGHTER GROUP

External links


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