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"Developers have WWII airfield in their sights."
/ref> In 2018 The Louis Berger company was commissioned by Hunt Development Corp (Ford Island properties) to provide an Ewa Battlefield preservation plan.
Photos of MCAS Ewa past and present
{{authority control Buildings and structures in Honolulu County, Hawaii Defunct airports in Hawaii Ewa Military installations closed in 1952 Military installations in Hawaii World War II airfields in the United States Attack on Pearl Harbor
Marine Corps Air Station Ewa (MCAS Ewa) was a
It was founded as an
"> During the attack, an United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
air station that was located west of Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...
on the island of Oahu, Hawaii
Oahu (, , sometimes written Oahu) is the third-largest and most populated island of the Hawaiian Islands and of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. The island of Oahu and the uninhabited Northw ...
. The base was hit during the 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 ...
, and later served as the hub for all Marine aviation units heading into combat in the Pacific Theater during 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 ...
. The base was closed in 1952 because its runways were too short for jet aircraft, and expansion was impossible due to the proximity of Naval Air Station Barbers Point
Naval Air Station Barbers Point , on O'ahu, home to John Rodgers (naval officer, World War I), John Rodgers Field (the original name of Honolulu International Airport), is a former United States Navy airfield closed in 1999, and renamed Kalaeloa ...
. Ewa has been abandoned since 1952; however, two of its runways are still visible from the air and many of the revetment
A revetment in stream restoration, river engineering or coastal engineering is a facing of impact-resistant material (such as stone, concrete, sandbags, or wooden piles) applied to a bank or wall in order to absorb the energy of incoming water an ...
s still remain in good condition.
History
It was founded as an airship
An airship, dirigible balloon or dirigible is a type of aerostat (lighter-than-air) aircraft that can navigate through the air flying powered aircraft, under its own power. Aerostats use buoyancy from a lifting gas that is less dense than the ...
base for the United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
in 1925, but no airships ever landed there. The USS Shenandoah crashed in Ohio in 1925, the USS Akron was destroyed in 1933 and the USS Macon in 1935, leading to the cancellation of the airship program. The base's upgrade to an air station began in September 1940, and on 3 February 1941, it was commissioned Marine Corps Air Station Ewa.
By the onset of World War II, the air station had four runways and numerous hangars. On 7 December 1941, MCAS Ewa was the first installation hit during the 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 ...
. All forty-eight aircraft based there were destroyed, although the runway was not bombed and remained serviceable.Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields
Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields is a website detailing information and first hand memories about airports in the United States which are no longer in operation, or are rarely used.
The website was started by Paul Freeman in 1999 as he had d ...Aichi D3A
The Aichi D3A (Navy designation "Type 99 Carrier Bomber"; World War II Allied names for Japanese aircraft, Allied reporting name "Val") is a World War II carrier-borne dive bomber. It was the primary dive bomber of the Imperial Japanese Na ...
dive bomber was shot down by pilots George Welch and Kenneth Taylor in their P-40
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 entr ...
s above the Station. Private William Turner and Sergeant Emil Peters also fired at the Japanese planes from a tail gunner's position on a grounded SBD dive bombers. Turner and Peters managed to shoot down at least one Japanese plane during the attack. Shot in the abdomen, Private Turner died on December 12. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star
The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone.
Wh ...
.
In April 1944, the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing
The 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (abbreviated as 3rd MAW) is the major west coast aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, ...
was relocated to MCAS Ewa where they stayed for the remainder of the war.
The start of the Korean War
The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...
saw another surge in activity at MCAS Ewa, but because the runways were becoming more and more unsuitable for jet aircraft, the Marine Corps shifted its aviation assets to Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay
Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay or MCAS Kaneohe Bay is a United States Marine Corps (USMC) airfield located within the Marine Corps Base Hawaii complex, formerly known as Marine Corps Air Facility (MCAF) Kaneohe Bay or Naval Air Station (N ...
. Ewa was officially closed on 18 June 1952, and its property assumed by Naval Air Station Barbers Point.
Redevelopment
In 2008, the US Navy announced they would be leasing of the old air station to Ford Island Properties, who plan on building expensive homes and shopping centers to create an urban center for Kapolei. The Navy has said that 4 to of the base near the center of the old runways qualifies for theNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
, while some locals looking to preserve the field were trying to rally support to make it a National Cemetery. The Navy and Ford Island Properties were expected to conclude their lease agreement in August 2008.
In 2013 the Honolulu City Council moved forwards on a plan to have a road built over the airfield./ref> In 2018 The Louis Berger company was commissioned by Hunt Development Corp (Ford Island properties) to provide an Ewa Battlefield preservation plan.
See also
*History of the United States Marine Corps
The military history, history of the United States Marine Corps (USMC) begins with the founding of the Continental Marines on 10 November 1775 to conduct ship-to-ship fighting, provide shipboard security and discipline enforcement, and assist ...
* List of United States Marine Corps Air Stations
References
External links
Photos of MCAS Ewa past and present
{{authority control Buildings and structures in Honolulu County, Hawaii Defunct airports in Hawaii Ewa Military installations closed in 1952 Military installations in Hawaii World War II airfields in the United States Attack on Pearl Harbor