San Julián Air Base
San Julián Air Base Base Aérea San Julián | |||||||||||||||
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Coordinates | 22°05′43″N 084°09′07″W / 22.09528°N 84.15194°W | ||||||||||||||
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San Julián Air Base or Base Aérea San Julián (IATA: SNJ, ICAO: MUSJ) is a military air base located approximately 8 mi (13 km) southwest of the city of Guane a municipality in the province of Pinar del Río in Cuba. The provincial capital, Pinar del Río is located to the northeast approximately 36 mi (58 km) with the capital of Havana also to the northeast 134 mi (216 km).
Tenant commands
The 23.Regimiento de Caza operating Russian Mig-23ML aircraft
History of San Julián
On December 9, 1941, Cuba declared war on the Empire of Japan.
On December 11, 1941, Cuba and the United States of America,
On January 14, 1942, the Cuban
On June 18, the United States established Naval Air Facility (NAF)
June 26, the United States established Naval Air Auxiliary Station (NAAS) (
August 6, in
September 7, Cuba and United States sign a new Naval and Military Agreement of Cooperation. The strategic importance of Cuba for the air and maritime communications of United States and the importance of its production of sugar obliged them to reinforce the island. The Pinar del Río area was considered ideally situated for further development and the Army began construction by expanding the existing Pan American airfield on November 1.
- A second air base was negotiated between Cuba and the United States and known as USAAF flew out of San Antonio de los Baños and the US NAVYused San Julián.
September 22, the USAAF began to organize the Army Air Forces Antisubmarine Command (AAFAC), using the I Bomber Command as its core for personnel and aircraft. The USAAF had been engaged in anti-submarine war for almost a year. During that time it had laid the basis for an effective organization and made plans for a larger anti-submarine force. The new AAFAC was constituted on October 13 and activated on October 15, 1942. Simultaneously, I Bomber Command was inactivated the same day.
- The principal mission of AAFAC was to be "the location and destruction of hostile submarines wherever they may be operating". As a necessary means to this end it had the secondary mission of training crews and developing devices and techniques. The command was to be a direct reporting agency to the Commanding General, United States Army Air Forces, although its operations on the US NAVY Sea Frontierswere to be conducted under the tactical control of US NAVY officials. The former I Bomber Command furnished the personnel, aircraft, and equipment for the new organization.
November 20, AAFAC had organized the squadrons it had inherited from I Bomber Command into the 25th and 26th anti-submarine Wings with headquarters at New York and Miami respectively.
1943
January 1, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) set up postal operations for San Julián using a non-descript number. They used Army Post Office, Miami with the address: 2754 APO MIA.[8] Although the facility was under USAAF administration and operational control all air activities and operations were US Navy.
April 1, USAAF transferred control of NAAS San Julián to the Navy. The first Commander of the base was
July 1, construction was completed and the new facility was re-designated Naval Air Facility (NAF) San Julián.[11]
- The US Navy's Airship Squadron Twenty One (ZP-21) established a number of detachments at advance bases to provide ASW, rescue, escort and utility services in its area of operations, i.e. CARIB (Caribbean). These detachments were maintained throughout the war and located at: NAF San Julián;
October 1, the US Navy's Bombing Squadron One Hundred Twenty Five (VB-125) sent a three-aircraft detachment to NAF San Julián for ASW patrols.
1944
May 1, VB-125 transferred from Boca Chica, Florida, to NAF San Julián, joining the detachment sent there previously. The squadron was under the operational control of Fleet Airship Wing Twelve (FAW-12) and stayed in San Julián until February 11, 1945 when they we relieved by VPB-145.[13]
Between mid-1942 until early 1944, seven Cuban ships were sunken by German submarines (U-Boats) in actions where more than eighty Cuban mariners and three Americans were killed.[14]
1945
Many American squadrons trained in Cuba in navigation, bombing,
February 8, by means of Decree 409, the control of civil aviation is transferred from the Cuban Army to the newly created Commission of National Transportation.
Post-World War II
May 20, 1946 NAF San Julián was disestablished.
- Both airports were passed to the Cuban Army for the use of the Ramón Grau San Martín. San Antonio de los Baños Air Base was used by the military aviation at all times, however San Julián Air Base was used to host the San Julian Aircraft Technical School for both military and commercial aviation.[16][17]
May 2, 1952 by Decree Law No. 41, the Civil Aeronautics Board (Dirección General de Transporte Aéreo) is created.
June 1952 the Army Aviation Corps changes to Cuban Army Airforce (FAEC).
December 22, 1954 the Commission of Civil Aeronautics is created by Law-Decree 1863.
Bay of Pigs Invasion
Early preparations for the invasion included the Cuban Democratic Revolutionary Front (FRD) on October 26, 1960 distributing its first Combat Order. In general terms, the order describes the logistics of an attack on the San Julián air base. That plan calls for seizing the airfield and using it as an operational base for "our air and land force." The order also describes how supplies will be obtained and communications handled during the operations.[18]
Planning for the invasion included targeting numerous military bases including
References
- ^ "Our Airports".
- ^ "Aeroflight".
- ^ "A Timeline of Diplomatic Ruptures, Unannounced Invasions, Declarations of War, Armistices and Surrenders".
- ^ "United States Department of State / Foreign relations of the United States diplomatic papers, 1942. The American Republics".
- ^ "Glossary of U.S. Naval Code Words".
- ^ "U.S. Naval Chronology Of W.W.II, 1942".
- ^ "The Mercury, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia".
- ^ "Army Post Offices".
- ^ "Early Aviators".
- ^ "World War II Navy Post Office Numbers".
- ^ Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons Volume 2 The History of VP, VPB, VP(H) and VP(AM) Squadrons (PDF).
- ^ Kite Balloons to Airships...the Navy's Lighter-than-Air Experience (PDF).
- ^ Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons Volume 2 The History of VP, VPB, VP(H) and VP(AM) Squadrons (PDF).
- ^ "Cuba in World War II".
- ^ "History of the Cuban Military Aviation".
- ^ "History of the Cuban Military Aviation".
- ^ "Cuba Improving Quality of Crops".
- ^ "The National Security Archive, Bay of Pigs Chronology".
- ^ "CIA FOIA Documents on the Bay of Pigs Invasion" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-05-11.