Keystone Army Airfield, was a

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 ...

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 ...

airfield, located north-northwest of

Keystone Heights, Florida Keystone Heights is a city located in southwestern Clay County, Florida, United States. It is the southwestern most city in the Jacksonville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, and is the principal city and primary economic driver of the La ...

History

The airport was constructed in 1942 as Crystal Lake Airfield, and was commissioned in December 1942 as Keystone Army Airfield (AAF) by the

. It was used as part of the Air University's

Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by p ...

(AAFSAT) tactical combat simulation school in Central and Northern

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. Kaystone AAF was assigned as a sub-base of Alachua Army Airfield, near Gainesville.

Strategic Reconnaissance School

During the war, Keystone AAF was the home of the AAFSAT Strategic Reconnaissance School. The

432d Tactical Reconnaissance Group 43 may refer to: * 43 (number) * one of the years 43 BC, AD 43, 1943, 2043 * Licor 43, also known as "Cuarenta Y Tres" ("Forty-three" in Spanish) * George W. Bush, 43rd president of the United States, nicknamed "Bush 43" to distinguish from his fat ...

was moved in early March 1943 from Alachua as the Operational Training Unit (OTU), although its component, 3d Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron was assigned to Keystone in January in an attached status from the AAFSAT Air Support Department. At Keystone, students flew the F-3A Havoc (a version of the A-20 Havoc attack aircraft), and the P-39D-3 Reconnaissance version of the Airacobra fighter. The L-2 and L-3 Grasshopper light observation aircraft were also utilized. Pilots were trained in battlefield reconnaissance as well as long-range strategic reconnaissance photography, evasion techniques and other skills necessary for the unarmed combat reconnaissance missions to assist fighter, bombardment, and ground units. In November 1943, the 313th Fighter Squadron was moved from Alachua with

P-40 Warhawk The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter-bomber that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry ...

s. The 313th was part of the AAFSAT 50th Fighter Group which trained single-engine pilots in combat maneuvers. Crowded conditions at Alachua and the phasedown of the photo-reconnaissance school at Keystone were the reasons necessitating the move of the 313th. The 313th FS was upgraded to

P-47D Thunderbolt The P-47 Thunderbolt is a World War II fighter aircraft built by Republic Aviation from 1941 to 1945. Early designs XP-47 (AP-10) In response to a USAAC requirement for a new fighter aircraft, Republic Aviation engineer Alexander Kartveli p ...

s in July 1943. Phase-down of Keystone AAF began in late 1943 when the 432d was inactivated on 1 November 1943, and the 3d TRS was moved back to

Orlando Army Air Base Orlando Executive Airport is a public airport three miles (6 km) east of downtown Orlando, in Orange County, Florida. It is owned and operated by the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) and serves general aviation. Overview Orlan ...

in early February 1944. The 313th FS was moved back to Orlando in January in preparation for its parent 50th Fighter Group being sent to the

European Theater of Operations The European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was a Theater (warfare), theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, from 1942 to 1945. It command ...

(ETO) as an operational fighter group under

Ninth Air Force The Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is the Air Force Service Component of United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), a joint D ...

Closure

With the operational squadrons leaving, a caretaker unit was assigned and the flying mission at the airfield was reduced to the support of transient aircraft using Keystone for landings and cross-country flights. The number of personnel were reduced, being reassigned to other bases. In January 1945, AAFSAT sent down orders to close the facility, and it was placed on inactive status on 1 February 1945. Jurisdiction of the airfield was transferred to

Air Technical Service Command An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...

(ATSC), whose mission was the transfer of any useful military equipment to other bases around the country. Under ATSC, buildings and equipment were sold and any useful military equipment was transferred to other bases around the country. The base was declared as surplus in 1946 and was turned over to the

War Assets Administration The War Assets Administration (WAA) was created to dispose of United States government-owned surplus material and property from World War II. The WAA was established in the Office for Emergency Management, effective March 25, 1946, by Executive Or ...

(WAA) for disposal and return to civil use. The City of Keystone Heights acquired the property from the federal government in 1947.

Major units assigned

* 432d Reconnaissance Group, 1 March-1 November 1943 * 3d Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, 21 January 1943 – 3 February 1944 * 313th Fighter Squadron, 17 November 1943 – 28 January 1944

References

* * Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947–1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. . * Shaw, Frederick J. (2004), Locating Air Force Base Sites History's Legacy, Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force, Washington DC, 2004.
World War II airfields database: Florida

AFHRA search Keystone Army Airfield

External links