Charleston Air Force Base
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| Charleston Air Force Base | |||||||||
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| Airfield shared with Charleston International Airport Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||||||||
Charleston Air Force Base (
Overview
A joint civil-military airport, Charleston Air Force Base today shares its runways with Charleston International Airport for commercial airline aircraft operations, and a commercial aircraft factory making Boeing aircraft, on the south side of the airfield and general aviation aircraft operations on the east side. The 437th Airlift Wing (437 AW) of the Air Mobility Command (AMC) and the 315th Airlift Wing (315 AW) of the Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) operate the C-17A Globemaster III from the base. The installation has also in the past maintained an alert site for rotational Air Combat Command (ACC) and ACC-gained Air National Guard fighter-interceptor aircraft.
Units
Charleston Air Force Base is home to the 628th Air Base Wing (628 ABW), the host wing for installation support. The 628 ABW's primary duties are to provide installation support to 53 DoD and Federal agencies, servicing a total force of over 79,000 airmen, sailors, soldiers, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, civilians, dependents and retirees on Charleston AFB and Naval Weapons Station Charleston. Additionally, they also provide expeditionary Airmen to combatant commanders in support of joint and combined operations.
The
The air base has four operational groups consisting of 21 squadrons and two wing staff directorates. It is augmented by a parallel, collocated Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) "associate" wing, the 315th Airlift Wing (315 AW), which shares the same C-17 aircraft with the 437 AW.
In addition, the USAF Auxiliary / Civil Air Patrol's Coastal Charleston Composite Squadron is also assigned to Charleston Field, utilizing the Charleston AFB Aero Club facility near the control tower.
History
Air Force base
The history of Charleston Air Force Base began in 1919 when U.S. Army Colonel Herbert A. Dargue, then Chief of the Air Service (forerunner to the Federal Aviation Administration), visited the area looking for a suitable landing field for "aeroplanes. Charles Lindbergh's nonstop solo crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in 1927 heightened city officials' interest to establish air operations in Charleston.
In 1928, the City of Charleston rented land and began operating a simple airfield about twelve miles north of city limits. Foreseeing a commercial future in air travel, the city formed the Charleston Aircraft Corporation to acquire the land for a municipal airport. In May 1931, the corporation purchased 432 acres (175 ha) for $25,000 from the South Carolina Mining and Manufacturing Company. Later in the year, the city acquired the airport facility for $60,000 and immediately began improvements.
During the 1930s, airport operations expanded to keep pace with advances in general and commercial aviation being experienced throughout the country. Despite the Great Depression, the Federal Government stepped in to assist the city with modernizing the airport. In 1935, the Works Progress Administration poured $313,000 into the airport. Workers paved one 3,500-foot-long runway (1,100 m) and constructed a second 3,000-foot one (910 m). The project also improved upon the existing lighting system with up-to-date field lighting.
Given the continuing growth in passenger aviation,
World War II
In 1939, with world tensions heightening, the United States Army Air Corps began a massive buildup of troops, bases, and equipment in preparation for war. As a result, Charleston acquired more land in 1940 for additional airport improvements that included construction of a hangar and administration building and lengthening of the runways to 5,000 feet. Prior to the U.S. entering World War II, in 1941 the War Department allotted another $199,000 to the Charleston Airport for runway extension and other improvements needed for aircraft dispersal against attack
After the Pearl Harbor attack on 7 December 1941, the
On 11 December the
Effective 1 April 1942, the base was assigned to Air Service Command and 29th Air Base Group, Distribution Point No. 2 became the first host unit responsible for building, maintaining and operating the installation infrastructure. On 9 June that same year, the base transferred to
On 31 March 1944, Johns Island Army Airfield became an auxiliary of Charleston AAB, providing an emergency landing field for the base.
Renamed Charleston Army Air Field on 15 June 1943, initially the base served mainly as an air depot training station, providing the final phase of training to service groups and air depot groups departing home for the war overseas. Concurrent with its reassignment to First Air Force, in September 1943 the base changed missions. Now it would give the final phase of training to
On 10 April 1944, the 113th Army Air Field Base Unit (CCTS-H) activated and took over as Charleston's host unit. But the need for B-24 crews ended with Germany's defeat and end of the war in Europe. In their place, however, the Army Air Force required a large number of transport crews. Consequently, the base was transferred to
Only a few months after the Japanese surrender, on 25 April 1946 the government placed the base in surplus status as part of the massive postwar draw down. The city of Charleston requested that the field, which originally had been leased to the U.S. Army for $1 per year, be returned to the municipality. By this time, the field consisted of 2,050 acres (830 ha) with more than $12 million worth of facilities and improvements. Despite not being official returned to the city until 19 October 1948, the city council voted to construct a new air terminal in 1947, and commercial air operations resumed on a full-time basis at the now fully civilian airport.
Cold War
As a result of the Cold War, the now independent United States Air Force requesting funds from Congress to begin troop carrier operations at the Charleston airport. By August 1951, Congress approved a $28 million public works improvement package, and during the remainder of the year, preliminary work was underway to construct facilities for a troop carrier wing. In March 1952, the city of Charleston signed a lease agreement with the Air Force for joint use of the airport. For $1 per year the lease allowed the U.S. Air Force to occupy all properties south and west of the Southern Railway's tracks while the city retained terminal buildings, hangars, and other buildings along the north and east boundaries of the airport. Construction of base facilities, meanwhile, began in May 1952.
By early 1953, elements of the
Worldwide airlift
With the 456th already in place, advance elements of the newly activated
On 16 February 1954,
Charleston AFB underwent a significant change on 18 June 1958 when the 1608th received its first
The next big change came in 1962. The Air Force decided to retire the C-121 fleet and sent the 1608th its first replacement
On 8 January 1966, the 437th Military Airlift Wing took over as Charleston AFB's host unit. Although the 1608th inactivated and the 437th activated its place, it appeared that every unit with a "1608" in its name simply changed it to "437." All of the 1608th's people, aircraft, buildings, etc. became the 437th's. The operational history of Charleston AFB is now inextricably tied to the 437th Airlift Wing's history.
Soon after the wing's arrival, on 30 September 1968 the
From the 1990s
In 1992, following the disestablishment of MAC as part of an Air Force-wide reorganization, the 437th Military Airlift Wing (437 MAW) was placed under the newly established Air Mobility Command (AMC) and redesignated as the 437th Airlift Wing (437 AW) and 315th Airlift Wing (315 AW), respectively.
Today, the 437 AW and 315 AW (Associate) operate the
Major commands to which assigned
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Note: Inactivated and declared surplus 25 April 1946; custody assumed by Army division Engineers, 29 June 1946; transferred to War Assets Administration, 24 May 1947; assigned AF in inactive status, 11 July 1952; reactivated 1 August 1953.
Major units assigned
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References for history introduction, major commands and major units[3]
Current status
An Air Force Times article dated 21 December 2009 announced the activation of the 628th Air Wing to "take over administrative duties for a number of military commands" in January 2010. The 628th "will essentially serve as the 'landlord' for Charleston Air Force Base, the Charleston Naval Consolidated Brig and about 50 other military commands. The unit will handle items such as building and grounds services, supply and civil engineering and public works.[4]
After nearly a year of much needed work, runway 03/21 at Joint Base Charleston reopened on 25 February 2010. The $30 million project to rebuild the deteriorating runway began 9 April 2009. Its completion was marked with the first take off and landing of a Charleston C-17. The runway now has newly paved asphalt overruns, and 25-foot-wide (7.6 m) asphalt-paved shoulders, both of which the runway lacked. The runway also has new edge lighting, distance remaining markers and runway end indicator lights on both ends.
Because of that construction, larger and heavier aircraft were cleared to land on runway 03/21, which was key when work scheduled for Fiscal Year 2012 began on runway 15/33, the base's main runway. The last major work done on Joint Base Charleston runways was in 1968.
The Joint Base Charleston Passenger Terminal reopened in their new facility on November 21, 2022, after undergoing renovations that began in 2018. Construction was briefly halted in 2019 after the damaging effects of Hurricane Dorian, the category 5 Atlantic hurricane, which made landfall on September 5, 2019.[5]
See also
References
- ^ "Airport Diagram – Charleston AFB/Intl (CHS)" (PDF). Federal Aviation Administration. 5 December 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
- ^ Joint Base Charleston Units
- ISBN 0-16-002261-4
- ^ http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2009/12/ap_airforce_charleston_122109/ [dead link]
- ^ "Joint Base Charleston Passenger Terminal".
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency- This article incorporates public domain material from Charleston Air Force Base. United States Air Force.
External links
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