Where is homestead afb

The U. The 31st Fighter Wing was inactivated, and all other operations, with the exception of Air Force Reserve activities, were relocated.

The Final SEIS analyzes the proposed transfer of 1, acres of surplus property for reuse by the local community. The Air Force seeks to transfer the property in a manner that supports local plans for economic revitalization of south Florida, and protects Biscayne Bay and the nearby national parks. After its destruction by Hurricane Andrew in August , the base was taken off active status and rebuilt, reopening as an Air Force Reserve facility in The nd Fighter Wing, Air Force Reserve Command, maintains and operates Homestead Air Reserve Base, It is a fully combat-ready unit capable of providing FC multi-purpose fighter aircraft, along with mission ready pilots and support personnel, for short-notice worldwide deployment.

Nearly destroyed by Hurricane Andrew in August , the facility was non-operational until March when it was reopened as Homestead Air Reserve Station. The mission of the nd Fighter Wing is to train and equip Air Force Reservists to respond to wartime and peacetime taskings as directed by higher headquarters.

The wing specifically trains for: Mobility, Deployment, and Employment. Army Corps of Engineers. Nearly destroyed by Hurricane Andrew in August , the facility was non-operational until March when it was reopened as Homestead Air Reserve Station.

Shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor , Army Air Forces officials decided the site would better serve defense needs as a maintenance stopover point for aircraft being ferried to the Caribbean and North Africa. For its first six months of existence, Homestead Army Airfield served as a scheduled stop on a well traveled air route from northeast U.

The 54th, 75th and 76th Ferrying Squadrons were assigned to the airfield in support of that mission. The mission of the permanently assigned cadre of nine officers, 15 enlisted men, and 12 civilian flight instructors was to provide advanced training for aircrew members who would one day pilot Douglas C Skymaster , Consolidated C Liberator Express and Curtiss-Wright C Commando transport aircraft along the , miles of the USAAF Air Transport Command's ATC globe-girdling routes.

During this period of time the base was under two commands. As the need for trained transport pilots grew during , officials in Washington decided to beef up the training program at Homestead. By , Homestead AAF represented the largest four-engine transport training operation in the entire ATC — the 2nd OTU had graduated 2, C pilots, 14, copilots, navigators, 85 radio operators and 1, flight engineers.

But it all came to a rather abrupt end. On 15 September , three years to the day of the base's founding, a massive hurricane barreled through, sending winds of up to mph whistling through the cinderblock buildings. Enlisted housing facilities, the nurses' dormitory and the base exchange were all destroyed. The roof was ripped off what would later be Building , also known as the "Big Hangar.

The few remaining aircraft were tossed about like leaves. On 25 October , following an evaluation of the damage caused by the storm, officials announced that Homestead AAF would shut down, with a target date for complete closure of December Military control of Homestead officially ended on 14 December After being closed by the military, Homestead was known as Dade County Airport , and operated as a civilian facility for almost a decade. In the early s, as the Korean War was winding down, defense officials once again looked toward Homestead with an eye at making the site a key player in continental defense.

In mid, an advance party arrived at the old airfield to begin cleaning it up, and on 8 February the th Air Base Squadron was activated. On 1 November , the now-Homestead AFB was upgraded to a group level facility with the activation of the th Air Base Group which managed a major construction and rehabilitation program through The th Bomb Wing was activated at Homestead on 1 November It consisted of the following squadrons:.

During the first five months, the th BMW concentrated on the manning and equipping of the unit and formulated a training schedule on 20 April The squadrons received their Bs in April and commenced training for air refueling and strategic bombardment operations. This requirement continued throughout the rest of the wing's assignment at Homestead AFB.

With the activation of the 19th BW, the d Air Division was activated to command the two bomb wings at Homestead. By , Homestead housed more than 6, permanently assigned members, twice the size of its busiest World War II days, and a fleet of Boeing B Stratojet bombers.

The 19th BW maintained a portion of its tactical resources on continual overseas alert until April With the departure of the th, the 19th Bomb Wing became the host unit at Homestead.