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Elmendorf Air Force Base is a
United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
(USAF) facility in
Anchorage Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolita ...
,
Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
. Originally known as Elmendorf Field, it became Elmendorf Air Force Base after
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. It is the home of the Headquarters,
Alaskan Air Command The Alaskan Air Command (AAC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command originally established in 1942 under the United States Army Air Forces. Its mission was to organize and administer the air defense system of Alaska, exercise di ...
(ALCOM), Alaskan NORAD Region (ANR),
Eleventh Air Force The Eleventh Air Force (11 AF) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is headquartered at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Alaska.This unit is not related to the Eleventh Air Force headquart ...
(11 AF), the 673d Air Base Wing, the
3rd Wing The 3rd Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force, assigned to the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) Eleventh Air Force. It is stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The Wing is the largest and ...
, the 176th Wing and other tenant units. In 2010, it was amalgamated with nearby Fort Richardson to form
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGra ...
. The adjacent facilities were officially combined by the 2005
Base Closure and Realignment Commission Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) was a process by a United States federal government commission to increase the efficiency of the United States Department of Defense by coordinating the realignment and closure of military installations follow ...
. Its mission is to support and defend U.S. interests in the Asia-Pacific region and around the world by providing units who are ready for worldwide air power projection and a base that is capable of meeting
United States Pacific Command The United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) is the unified combatant command of the United States Armed Forces responsible for the Indo-Pacific, Indo-Pacific region. It is the oldest and largest of the unified combatant commands. Lead ...
's theater staging and throughput requirements.


Units

The installation hosts the headquarters for the United States Alaskan Command, 11th Air Force, U.S. Army Alaska, and the Alaskan North American Aerospace Defense Command Region. Major units assigned are: * 673d Air Base Wing : Activated on 30 July 2010 as the host wing combining installation management functions of Elmendorf AFB's 3rd Wing and U.S. Army Garrison Fort Richardson. The 673d ABW comprises over 5,500 joint military and civilian personnel, supporting America's Arctic Warriors and their families. The wing supports and enables three USAF total-force wings, two
U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...
Brigades and 55 other tenant units. In addition, the wing provides medical care to over 35,000 joint service members, dependents,
Veterans Affairs Veterans' affairs is an area of public policy concerned with relations between a government and its communities of military veterans. Some jurisdictions have a designated government agency or department, a Department of Veterans' Affairs, Minist ...
patients and retirees throughout Alaska. The 673d ABW maintains an $11.4B infrastructure encompassing 84,000 acres, ensuring Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson remains America's premier strategic power projection platform. *
Alaskan Air Command The Alaskan Air Command (AAC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command originally established in 1942 under the United States Army Air Forces. Its mission was to organize and administer the air defense system of Alaska, exercise di ...
: Responsible for maximizing theater force readiness for 21,000 Alaskan servicemembers and expediting worldwide contingency force deployments from and through Alaska as directed by the Commander,
United States Northern Command The United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) is one of eleven unified combatant commands of the United States Department of Defense. The command is tasked with providing military support for Civil authority, non-military authorities in t ...
. *
United States Army Alaska The United States Army Alaska (USARAK or "America's Arctic Warriors") was a military command of the United States Army located in the U.S. state of Alaska. A subordinate command of I Corps (United States), I Corps, USARAK was the ground element ...
(US) : U.S. Army Alaska executes continuous training and readiness oversight responsibilities for Army Force Generation in Alaska. Supports U.S. Pacific Command Theater Security Cooperation Program. On order, executes Joint Force Land Component Command functions in support of Homeland Defense and Security in Alaska. *
3rd Wing The 3rd Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force, assigned to the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) Eleventh Air Force. It is stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The Wing is the largest and ...
(USAF) : To support and defend U.S. interests in the Asia-Pacific region and around the world by providing units who are ready for worldwide air power projection and a base that is capable of meeting PACOM's theater staging and throughput requirements. * 176th Wing (ANG) : Composite wing of the
Alaska Air National Guard The Alaska Air National Guard (AK ANG) is the aerial militia of the Alaska, State of Alaska, United States, United States of America. It is, along with the Alaska Army National Guard, an element of the Alaska National Guard. As state military u ...
flying the
C-17 Globemaster The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) between the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previ ...
,
C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 w ...
,
HC-130 Hercules The Lockheed HC-130 is an extended-range, search and rescue (SAR)/combat search and rescue (CSAR) version of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft, with two different versions operated by two separate service ...
and HH-60 Pavehawk. Previously located at the former
Kulis Air National Guard Base Kulis Air National Guard Base was a National Guard of the United States facility in Anchorage, Alaska. The facility adjacent to and south of Ted Stevens International Airport was home to the 176th Wing of the Alaska Air National Guard until th ...
until relocated to Elmendorf per BRAC action. *
477th Fighter Group The 477th Fighter Group is an Air Reserve unit of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the Tenth Air Force, Air Force Reserve Command, stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Alaska. The 477th FG is an associate unit of the ...
(AFRC) :
Air Force Reserve Command The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a MAJCOM, major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of ...
"Associate" unit to the active duty
3d Wing The 3rd Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force, assigned to the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) Eleventh Air Force. It is stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The Wing is the largest and principal unit within 11th Air Fo ...
; operates and maintains the
F-22 Raptor The Lockheed Martin/Boeing F-22 Raptor is an American twin-engine, jet-powered, all-weather, supersonic stealth fighter aircraft. As a product of the United States Air Force's Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program, the aircraft was de ...
. * Alaskan Norad Region : The Alaskan NORAD Region (ANR) conducts aerospace control within its area of operations and contributes to NORAD's aerospace warning mission. *
Eleventh Air Force The Eleventh Air Force (11 AF) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is headquartered at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Alaska.This unit is not related to the Eleventh Air Force headquart ...
: Provide ready warriors and infrastructure for homeland defense, decisive force projection, and aerospace command and control.


Civil Air Patrol

* Alaska Wing Civil Air Patrol : Elmendorf AFB also hosts the headquarters for the Alaska Wing of the
Civil Air Patrol Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is a Congressional charter, congressionally chartered, federally supported Nonprofit corporation, non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliaries, auxiliary of the United States Air Force (USAF). CA ...
, the Civilian Auxiliary of the
U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 ...
. There are also two units that are hosted on base, AK-017 17th Composite Squadron and AK-099 Alaska State Legislative Squadron.


Demographics

Elmendorf Air Force Base appeared once on the 1970 U.S. Census as an unincorporated area. Because it was located within the confines of the Anchorage Census Division, it was consolidated into the City of Anchorage in 1975.


History


World War II

Construction on Elmendorf Field began on 8 June 1940, as a major and permanent military airfield near Anchorage. The first
United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...
personnel arrived on 12 August 1940. On 12 November 1940, the
War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet ...
formally designated what had been popularly referred to as Elmendorf Field as Fort Richardson. The air facilities on the post were named Elmendorf Field in honor of Captain Hugh M. Elmendorf, killed on 13 January 1933, while flight testing the experimental Consolidated Y1P-25, fighter, ''32-321'', near
Wright Field Wilbur Wright Field was a military installation and an airfield used as a World War I pilot, mechanic, and armorer training facility and, under different designations, conducted United States Army Air Corps and Air Forces flight testing. Loc ...
, Ohio. The first Army Air Corps unit to be assigned to Alaska was the 18th Pursuit Squadron, which arrived in February 1941. The 23d Air Base Group was assigned shortly afterward to provide base support. More units from the
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
(which legally changed its name in June 1941) poured into Alaska as the
Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...
threat developed into
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
in the aftermath of the surprise
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
in December 1941. The Eleventh Air Force was formed at Elmendorf AFB in early 1942. The field played a vital role as the main air logistics center and staging area during the
Aleutian Islands Campaign The Aleutian Islands campaign () was a military campaign fought between 3 June 1942 and 15 August 1943 on and around the Aleutian Islands in the American theater (World War II), American Theater of World War II during the Pacific War. It was t ...
and later air operations against the
Kurile Islands The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands are a volcanic archipelago administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the Russian Far East. The islands stretch approximately northeast from Hokkaido in Japan to Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia, separating the ...
. After World War II, the Army moved its operations to the new Fort Richardson and following the separation from the Army in 1947, the newly-formed
United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
(USAF) assumed control of the original Fort Richardson and renamed it Elmendorf Air Force Base.


Cold War

Following World War II, Elmendorf assumed an increasing role in the defense of North America as the uncertain wartime relations between the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
deteriorated into the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
. The Eleventh Air Force was redesignated as the
Alaskan Air Command The Alaskan Air Command (AAC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command originally established in 1942 under the United States Army Air Forces. Its mission was to organize and administer the air defense system of Alaska, exercise di ...
(AAC) on 18 December 1945. The Alaskan Command, established 1 January 1947, also headquartered at Elmendorf, was a unified command under the
Joint Chiefs of Staff The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, which advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and ...
based on lessons learned during World War II when a lack of unity of command hampered operations to drive the Japanese from the western
Aleutian Islands The Aleutian Islands ( ; ; , "land of the Aleuts"; possibly from the Chukchi language, Chukchi ''aliat'', or "island")—also called the Aleut Islands, Aleutic Islands, or, before Alaska Purchase, 1867, the Catherine Archipelago—are a chain ...
of Attu and Kiska. The uncertain world situation in late 1940s and early 1950s caused a major buildup of air defense forces in Alaska. The propeller-driven
P-51 The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in 1940 by a team headed by James H. Kin ...
s were replaced with F-80 jets, which in turn were replaced in succession by F-94s, F-89s, and
F-102 The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger is an interceptor aircraft designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Convair. A member of the Century Series, the F-102 was the first operational supersonic interceptor and delta-wing fighter op ...
s interceptor aircraft for defense of North America. The Air Force built an extensive aircraft control and warning radar system with sites located throughout Alaska's interior and coastal regions. Additionally, the USAF of necessity built the
White Alice Communications System The White Alice Communications System (WACS, "White Alice" colloquially) was a United States Air Force telecommunication network with 80 radio stations constructed in Alaska during the Cold War. It used tropospheric scatter for over-the-horizon li ...
(with numerous support facilities around the state) to provide reliable communications to these far-flung, isolated, and often rugged locales. The Alaskan NORAD Regional Operations Control Center (ROCC) at Elmendorf served as the nerve center for all air defense operations in Alaska. The U.S. Air Force Security Service (USAFSS) activated the 6981st Security Group tasked with monitoring, collecting and interpreting
signals intelligence Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is the act and field of intelligence-gathering by interception of ''signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly u ...
of concern to the region, including installation of an
AN/FLR-9 The AN/FLR-9 is a type of very large circularly disposed antenna array, built at eight locations during the Cold War for HF/DF direction finding of high priority targets. The worldwide network, known collectively as "''Iron Horse''", could loc ...
antenna array as part of a worldwide network known collectively as "Iron Horse". Air defense forces reached their zenith in 1957 with almost 200 fighter aircraft assigned to six fighter interceptor squadrons located at Elmendorf AFB and
Ladd AFB Ladd Army Airfield is the military airfield located at Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks, Alaska. It was originally called Fairbanks Air Base, but was renamed Ladd Field on 1 December 1939, in honor of Major Arthur K. Ladd, a pilot in the U.S. ...
. Eighteen aircraft control and warning radar sites controlled their operations. Elmendorf earned the motto "Top Cover for North America". AAC adopted the motto as its own in 1969. The late 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s brought about a gradual, but significant decline in air defense forces in Alaska due to mission changes and the demands of the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
. The USAF inactivated five fighter squadrons and closed five radar sites. In 1961, the
Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, ...
(DoD) consigned Ladd AFB to the Army which renamed it
Fort Wainwright Fort Wainwright is a United States Army installation in Fairbanks, Alaska. Fort Wainwright is part of the Fairbanks North Star Borough and the coterminous Fairbanks Metropolitan Statistical Area. The installation is managed by U.S. Army Garrison ...
. The Alaskan Command was disestablished in 1975. Elmendorf began providing more support to other USAF commands, particularly
Military Airlift Command The Military Airlift Command (MAC) is an inactive United States Air Force major command (MAJCOM) that was headquartered at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. Established on 1 January 1966, MAC was the primary strategic airlift organization of ...
C-5 Galaxy The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is a large military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed, and now maintained and upgraded by its successor, Lockheed Martin. It provides the United States Air Force (USAF) with a heavy intercontinental-rang ...
and
C-141 Starlifter The Lockheed C-141 Starlifter is a retired military strategic airlifter that served with the Military Air Transport Service (MATS), its successor organization the Military Airlift Command (MAC), and finally the Air Mobility Command (AMC) of t ...
flights to and from the Far East. Despite a diminished number of personnel and aircraft, a turning point in Elmendorf's history occurred in 1970 with the arrival of the
43d Tactical Fighter Squadron The 43rd Fighter Squadron is part of the 325th Fighter Wing at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. It conducts advanced fighter training for F-22 Raptor pilots. The squadron is one of the oldest in the United States Air Force, its origins dating ...
in June 1970 from
MacDill AFB MacDill Air Force Base (MacDill AFB) is an active United States Air Force installation located 4 miles (6.4 km) south-southwest of downtown Tampa, Florida. The "host wing" for MacDill AFB is the 6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW), assig ...
, Florida flying the F-4E Phantom II. The squadron gave AAC an air-to-ground capability which was further enhanced with the activation of the
18th Tactical Fighter Squadron The 18th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (18th FIS) is a subordinate unit of the 354th Fighter Wing based at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska, and flies the Block 30 General Dynamics F-16C/D aircraft. Mission The 18th Fighter Interceptor Squadro ...
at Elmendorf (also with the F-4E) on 1 October 1977. The strategic importance of Elmendorf AFB was graphically realized during the spring of 1980 when the 18th Tactical Fighter Squadron deployed eight of its F-4Es to
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
to participate in exercise
Team Spirit Team Spirit was a joint military training exercise of United States Forces Korea and the Military of South Korea held between 1974 and 1993. The exercise was also scheduled from 1994 to 1996 but cancelled during this time period as part of diplom ...
. It was a historical first and underlined an increasing emphasis AAC placed on its tactical role. The strategic location of Elmendorf AFB and Alaska made it an excellent deployment center, a fact that validated the contention of
Billy Mitchell William Lendrum Mitchell (December 29, 1879 – February 19, 1936) was a United States Army officer who had a major role in the creation of the United States Air Force. Mitchell served in France during World War I and, by the conflict's end, ...
who, in 1935, stated that "Alaska is the most strategic place in the world". Deployments from Elmendorf AFB and
Eielson AFB Eielson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located approximately southeast of Fairbanks, Alaska, and just southeast of Moose Creek, Alaska. It was established in 1943 as Mile 26 Satellite Field and redesignated Eielson A ...
to the Far East are now conducted on a routine basis. The 1980s witnessed a period of growth and modernization of Elmendorf AFB. During 1982, the
21st Tactical Fighter Wing The 21st Wing (21 WG) is an inactive wing of the United States Air Force. It was established in 1953 as the 21st Fighter-Bomber Wing, deploying to Europe to join NATO's Allied Command Europe, before being inactivated in 1958. It reactivated i ...
converted from F-4Es to F-15A/B Eagles. The 18th Tactical Fighter Squadron was assigned to Eielson AFB where it was equipped with
A-10 Thunderbolt II The Fairchild Republic A-10 , also infamously known under the nickname , is a single-seat, twinjet, twin-turbofan, straight wing, straight-wing, Subsonic aircraft, subsonic attack aircraft developed by Fairchild Aircraft, Fairchild Republic ...
s. The 54th Tactical Fighter Squadron, of
Aleutian Campaign The Aleutian Islands campaign () was a military campaign fought between 3 June 1942 and 15 August 1943 on and around the Aleutian Islands in the American theater (World War II), American Theater of World War II during the Pacific War. It was t ...
fame, activated once again in 1987. Operating two F-15 squadrons (43rd and 54th TFS), the F-15s were housed next to the 5021st Tactical Operations Squadron's
T-33 Shooting Star The Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star (or T-Bird) is an American subsonic jet trainer. It was produced by Lockheed and made its first flight in 1948. The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 starting as TP-80C/TF-80C in development, then d ...
s. Rounding out the modernization program was the construction of an enhanced Regional Operations Control Center (completed in 1983), and the replacement of the 1950s generation aircraft control and warning radars with the state of the art
AN/FPS-117 The AN/FPS-117 is an L-band active electronically scanned array (AESA) 3-dimensional air search radar first produced by GE Aerospace in 1980 and now part of Lockheed Martin. The system offers instrumented detection at ranges on the order of and ...
Minimally Attended Radars. The integrated air warning and defense system became fully operational in mid-1985. Alaska's air defense force was further enhanced with the assignment of two
E-3 Sentry The Boeing E-3 Sentry is an American airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft developed by Boeing. E-3s are commonly known as AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System). Derived from the Boeing 707 airliner, it provides all-weath ...
AWACS The Boeing E-3 Sentry is an American airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft developed by Boeing. E-3s are commonly known as AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System). Derived from the Boeing 707 airliner, it provides all-weathe ...
aircraft to Elmendorf AFB in 1986. The Alaskan Command was re-established at Elmendorf in 1989 as subunified joint service command under the Pacific Command in recognition of Alaska's military importance in the Pacific region. The Elmendorf AFB was a site of one of the now decommissioned
FLR-9 The AN/FLR-9 is a type of very large circularly disposed antenna array, built at eight locations during the Cold War for HF/DF direction finding of high priority targets. The worldwide network, known collectively as "''Iron Horse''", could loc ...
Wullenweber-class antennas, a node of the now obsolete High Frequency SIGINT
direction finding Direction finding (DF), radio direction finding (RDF), or radiogoniometry is the use of radio waves to determine the direction to a radio source. The source may be a cooperating radio transmitter or may be an inadvertent source, a naturall ...
system.


1991–2010

Alaska's military importance in the Pacific region was further recognized when the
F-15E Strike Eagle The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F-15E Strike Eagle is an American all-weather multirole strike fighter derived from the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. Intended for the Dual-Role Fighter (DRF) program (initially called Enhanced Tactical Fi ...
-equipped 90th Tactical Fighter Squadron was reassigned to Elmendorf AFB from
Clark Air Base Clark Air Base is a Philippine Air Force base in Luzon, located west of Angeles City, and about northwest of Metro Manila. It was previously operated by the U.S. Air Force and, before that, the U.S. Army, from 1903 to 1991. The base cov ...
in the Philippines in May 1991. The Pacific Regional Medical Center moved from Clark to Elmendorf and construction of a new, greatly expanded hospital began in 1993. In the early 1990s there were major organizational changes and an expansion of Elmendorf's importance. In 1991, the 21st Tactical Fighter Wing was reorganized as an objective wing and all the major tenant units on Elmendorf were placed under it. The 21st Wing was inactivated and the
3d Wing The 3rd Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force, assigned to the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) Eleventh Air Force. It is stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The Wing is the largest and principal unit within 11th Air Fo ...
was reassigned from Clark AB to Elmendorf AFB on 19 December 1991. This was in keeping with the USAF's policies of retaining the oldest and most illustrious units during a period of major force reductions. It was also an alternative landing site for the
Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable launch system, reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. ...
. The DoD proposed a major realignment of the base as part of the
Base Realignment and Closure Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) was a process by a Federal government of the United States, United States federal government commission to increase the efficiency of the United States Department of Defense by coordinating the realignment and ...
recommendations announced on 13 May 2005. Under the plan, one
F-15E The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F-15E Strike Eagle is an American all-weather multirole strike fighter derived from the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. Intended for the Dual-Role Fighter (DRF) program (initially called Enhanced Tactical Fi ...
and one F-15C squadron were replaced with the
F-22 The Lockheed Martin/Boeing F-22 Raptor is an American twin-engine, jet-powered, all-weather, supersonic stealth fighter aircraft. As a product of the United States Air Force's Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program, the aircraft was desi ...
, and the
C-130 The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 w ...
fleet has been replaced with the
C-17 Globemaster III The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) between the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previ ...
. The base (now Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson) hosts the headquarters of the Alaska Wing of the Civil Air Patrol.


Major commands to which assigned

* Alaskan Defense Force (June 1940 – February 1941) * Alaskan Defense Command (February – May 1941) * Air Field Forces, Alaskan Defense Command (May – December 1941) * Alaskan Air Force (December 1941 – February 1942) *
Eleventh Air Force The Eleventh Air Force (11 AF) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is headquartered at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Alaska.This unit is not related to the Eleventh Air Force headquart ...
(February – September 1942) *
Alaskan Air Command The Alaskan Air Command (AAC) is an inactive United States Air Force Major Command originally established in 1942 under the United States Army Air Forces. Its mission was to organize and administer the air defense system of Alaska, exercise di ...
(December 1945 – August 1990) *
Pacific Air Forces The Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) is a List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, Major Command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force and is also the air component command of the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). PAC ...
(since August 1990)


Base operating units

* 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, US(June 1940 – February 1941)
(initial base complement) * 23d Air Base Group (February 1941 – July 1942) * 23d Service Group (July 1942 – January 1948) * 23d Air Service Group (January – April 1948) * 57th Airdrome Group (April – September 1948) * 57th Air Base Group (September 1948 – January 1951) * 39th Air Depot Wing (January 1951 – April 1953) * 5039th Air Base Wing (April 1953 – October 1957) * 5040th Air Base Wing (October 1957 – February 1959) * 5040th Air Base Wing (August 1960 – July 1966) * 21st Air Base Group (July 1966 – January 1980) * 21st Combat Support Group (January 1980 – December 1991) * 3d Wing (December 1991 – July 2010) * 673d Air Base Wing (July 2010 – present)


Major units assigned

* 28th Bombardment Group (Composite) (February 1941 – March 1943) *
343rd Fighter Group The 343d Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Pacific Air Forces at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, where it was inactivated on 20 August 1993. The unit was formed at Eielson as the 343d Composite Wing a ...
(September 1942 – March 1943) * 93rd Air Depot Group (May 1944 – September 1946) * 28th Bombardment Group (June 1946 – June 1948) * 57th Fighter Group (March 1947 – April 1953) * 64th, 65th, 66th Fighter-Interceptor Squadrons (June 1947 – November 1957) * 5039th Air Depot Wing (September 1948 – January 1951) * 39th Air Depot Wing (January 1951 – April 1953) * 5039th Air Base Wing (April 1953 – June 1957) * 5040th Air Base Wing (June 1957 – July 1966)
(Under
10th Air Division "The 10th Air Division assumed responsibility for the air defense of Alaska south of the Alaskan Range on 1 November 1950. Subordinate units flew numerous interception and training missions. Between June 1957 and March 1960, the division operat ...
until August 1960) *
5070th Air Defense Wing The 5070th Air Defense Wing is a discontinued United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the Alaskan Air Command, being stationed at Elmendorf Air Force Base Elmendorf Air Force Base is a United States Air Force ( ...
AAC (1 August 1960 – 1 October 1961) with
317th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (25 August 1960 – 1 October 1961) * 602nd Military Airlift Support Squadron (62MAW, McChord AFB, WA) (about 1966–1970 – exact dates unknown at this time) *
21st Tactical Fighter Wing The 21st Wing (21 WG) is an inactive wing of the United States Air Force. It was established in 1953 as the 21st Fighter-Bomber Wing, deploying to Europe to join NATO's Allied Command Europe, before being inactivated in 1958. It reactivated i ...
(May 1966 – December 1991) * 343d Tactical Fighter Wing (November 1977 – January 1980) *
381st Intelligence Squadron The United States Air Force's 381st Intelligence Squadron is an intelligence unit located at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The unit operated the last operational AN/FLR-9 Circularly Disposed Antenna Array (CDAA), also known as an "El ...
(1955–present)
(6981st with various unit designations under USAFSS) *
3rd Wing The 3rd Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force, assigned to the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) Eleventh Air Force. It is stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The Wing is the largest and ...
(December 1991 – present)


Aviation accidents

On September 9, 1958, a USAF Douglas SC-47 stalled after takeoff from Elmendorf AFB and crashed, killing 13 of 20 occupants. Engine failure was blamed as the cause of the crash. On December 26, 1968, a commercial Pan American
Boeing 707 The Boeing 707 is an early American long-range Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, the initial first flew on Decembe ...
landed at Elmendorf AFB instead of
Anchorage International Airport Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport is a major airport in the U.S. state of Alaska, located southwest of downtown Anchorage. The airport is named for Ted Stevens, who served as a senator of Alaska from 1968 to 2009. It is included in ...
because of weather conditions. Clearance was delayed several times to accommodate other traffic. When they finally got clearance, the crew didn't lower their wing flaps as required to achieve successful takeoff because the pre-takeoff checklist lacked a vital item to lower flaps, and the captain had raised flaps during the taxiing phase to prevent icing as required by the carrier's cold weather operations procedures. The jet crashed just off the west end of the runway, killing all crew members. Cargo consisting of mail and food packages was largely consumed by ground fire following impact. The
National Transportation Safety Board The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and inci ...
's report found the probable cause to be (a) the defective checklist, (b) the 707's defective takeoff warning hardware, (c) ineffective implementation of Boeing's Service Bulletins, and (d) stress caused by a rushed flight schedule. On 22 September 1995, a
Boeing E-3 Sentry The Boeing E-3 Sentry is an American airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft developed by Boeing. E-3s are commonly known as AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System). Derived from the Boeing 707 airliner, it provides all-weathe ...
Airborne early warning and control An airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) system is an airborne radar early warning system designed to detect aircraft, ships, vehicles, missiles and other incoming projectiles at long ranges, as well as performing command and control of the ...
aircraft with 22 USAF personnel and two
RCAF The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Canad ...
air crew members crashed after ingesting a flock of
Canada geese The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), sometimes called Canadian goose, is a large species of goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North ...
, killing all on board. The aircraft, serial number 77-0354, and using call sign Yukla 27, lost power in two of the four engines, subsequently crashing into a wooded area less than a mile from the end of the runway. On 28 July 2010, a USAF
Boeing C-17 Globemaster III The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) between the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previ ...
cargo aircraft practicing for an upcoming airshow crashed into a wooded area within the base, killing all four air crew members; three from the
Alaska Air National Guard The Alaska Air National Guard (AK ANG) is the aerial militia of the Alaska, State of Alaska, United States, United States of America. It is, along with the Alaska Army National Guard, an element of the Alaska National Guard. As state military u ...
and one from the USAF. The cause of the accident has been reported to be pilot error. The pilot performed an aggressive righthand turn and ignored the aircraft's stall warning, continuing the turn until the aircraft stalled due to lack of airspeed. The low altitude of the turn made it impossible for the crew to recover from the stall in time to avoid impacting the ground. On 16 November 2010, a USAF
Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor The Lockheed Martin/Boeing F-22 Raptor is an American Twinjet, twin-engine, Jet engine, jet-powered, Night fighter, all-weather, supersonic Stealth aircraft, stealth fighter aircraft. As a product of the United States Air Force's Advanced Ta ...
took off for a training mission. At approximately 1900 hrs., the base reported that the aircraft was overdue and missing. USAF rescue teams were reported to be concentrating their search for the missing plane and pilot in
Denali National Park Denali National Park and Preserve, formerly known as Mount McKinley National Park, is a United States national park and preserve located in Interior Alaska, centered on Denali (federally designated as Mount McKinley), the highest mountain in Nor ...
. The F-22's crash site was found about 100 miles north of Anchorage near the town of
Cantwell, Alaska Cantwell (''Yidateni Na’'' in Ahtna Athabascan) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Denali Borough, Alaska, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the CDP was 200. Cantwell is the western terminus of the Denali Highway. ...
. The pilot, of the 525th Fighter Squadron, was killed in the crash.


See also

* Alaska World War II Army Airfields * Arctic Thunder Air Show *
United States Pacific Air Forces The Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) is a Major Command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force and is also the air component command of the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). PACAF is headquartered at the Hickam AFB portion of Join ...


References

* Endicott, Judy G. (1999) Active Air Force wings as of 1 October 1995; USAF active flying, space, and missile squadrons as of 1 October 1995. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. CD-ROM. * * Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. . * Mueller, Robert (1989). Active Air Force Bases Within the United States of America on 17 September 1982. USAF Reference Series, Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. * Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947–1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. . * Rogers, Brian (2005). United States Air Force Unit Designations Since 1978. Hinkley, England: Midland Publications. .


External links


Elmendorf AFB Installation Overview
fro
AirForceUSA.org


at GlobalSecurity.org
BRAC 2005: Closings, Realignments to Reshape Infrastructure

Elmendorf AFB FamCamp Information
* * {{Authority control Installations of the United States Air Force in Alaska 1940 establishments in Alaska 2010 disestablishments in Alaska Airports in Anchorage, Alaska History of Anchorage, Alaska Military in Anchorage, Alaska Military airbases established in 1940 Military Superfund sites Populated places in Anchorage, Alaska Superfund sites in Alaska