Naval Air Station Chase Field is a former

naval air station A Naval Air Station (NAS) is a military air base, and consists of a permanent land-based operations locations for the military aviation division of the relevant branch of a navy (Naval aviation). These bases are typically populated by squadron ...

located in unincorporated

Bee County, Texas Bee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. It is in South Texas and its county seat is Beeville. As of the 2020 census, its population was 31,047. The Beeville, TX micropolitan statistical area includes all of Bee County. The ...

, near

Beeville Beeville is a city in Bee County, Texas, United States. Its population of 13,543 at the 2020 census makes it the 207th-largest city in Texas. It is the county seat of Bee County and home to the main campus of Coastal Bend College. The area ar ...

. It was named for Lieutenant Commander Nathan Brown Chase, Naval Aviator #37, who died in 1925 while developing carrier landing techniques for the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

. Seven buildings of the station are individually listed on the U.S.

National 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 ...

NAS Chase Field-Building 1001 The NAS Chase Field-Building 1001, also known as Administration Building, in Beeville, Texas was built in 1943. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994. Building 1001 was one of the first buildings completed on the fiel ...

, NAS Chase Field-Building 1009, NAS Chase Field-Building 1015, NAS Chase Field-Building 1040, NAS Chase Field-Building 1042, NAS Chase Field-Quarters R, and NAS Chase Field-Quarters S.

History

Originally under construction as Beeville Municipal Airport, it was leased in 1943 by the U.S. Navy to satisfy the increasing demand for trained pilots necessitated by

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 ...

. Not initially intended to be a permanent base, it closed in July 1946. In August 1952, it was then purchased by the Navy to again relieve congestion at

Naval Air Station Corpus Christi Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is a United States Navy naval air base located six miles (10 km) southeast of the central business district (CBD) of Corpus Christi, in Nueces County, Texas. History A naval air station for Corpus Christi ...

in preparation for 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 ...

. Jet training began there in 1954. It operated as Chase Field until 1968, when it was redesignated as a full Naval Air Station to meet the demand for pilot training during 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 ...

. It was tasked with preparing U.S. Navy and

U.S. 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 expeditionary ...

Student

Naval Aviator Naval aviation / Aeronaval is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. It often involves '' navalised aircraft'', specifically designed for naval use. Seaborne aviation encompas ...

s to be strike pilots in sea-based jet fighter and attack aircraft. Training for selected

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

and Allied student jet aviators was also conducted at NAS Chase Field. In the early 1990s, the

Base Realignment and Closure Commission 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 ...

(BRAC) decided that NAS Chase Field would be shuttered. At the time of its closure in 1993, it was home to Training Air Wing Three ( tail code "C"), part of

Naval Air Training Command The Naval Air Training Command (NATRACOM) is a one-star Echelon III command that conducts flight training of student Naval Aviators, student Naval Flight Officers and student Air Vehicle Pilots (AVP). Though it does not conduct Naval Aircrew t ...

, with training squadrons VT-24 Bobcats, VT-25 Cougars, and VT-26 Tigers flying the T-2C Buckeye and TA-4J Skyhawk II jet trainers. The wing was disestablished on 31 Aug 1992,Naval Aviation News Nov–Dec 1992 p. 7 prior to the closure of the base. After its closure, the installation was redeveloped into

Chase Field Industrial Complex Chase Field Industrial Complex , formerly Naval Air Station Chase Field, is a former naval air station located in unincorporated Bee County, Texas, near Beeville, Texas. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice operates a group of facilities colle ...

References

External links

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 ...

: Chase Field * Chase Field, Naval Air Station Military installations in Texas Buildings and structures in Bee County, Texas Military installations closed in 1993 Closed installations of the United States Navy {{Texas-airport-stub

History

See also

References

External links