Western Technical Training Command was a command of 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 ...

. It was assigned to the

Army Air Forces Training Command The United States Army Air Forces during World War II had major subordinate Commands below the Air Staff level. These Commands were organized along functional missions. One such Command was the Flying Training Command (FTC). It began as Air Corp ...

, and stationed at

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...

throughout its existence. It was inactivated on 15 October 1945.

History

The command was established initially on 1 November 1941 as a result of the expansion of the Air Corps after May 1940. By early November 1941, students were entering technical training at the rate of 110,000 per year, and Air Corps Technical Command set up five geographically separated districts to manage the expansion.Manning, Thomas A. (2005), ''History of Air Education and Training Command, 1942–2002''. Office of History and Research, Headquarters, AETC, Randolph AFB, Texas

Fort Logan Fort Logan was a military installation located eight miles southwest of Denver, Colorado. It was established in October 1887, when the first soldiers camped on the land, and lasted until 1946, when it was closed following the end of World War I ...

appears to have come under the command's jurisdiction on 1 March 1941, when a clerical school was moved there from Lowry Army Airfield. Fourth Technical Training District was headquartered at Denver, Colo., on 5 March 1942 and construction of a cantonment at the Lowry Auxiliary Landing Field (" Lowry Field Number 2") "began on 5 May 1942" where armament training commenced 6 July 1942. Circa January 1943, Lowry's courses for "communications, engineering, armament and photography aviation cadets" transferred to

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

which was the lead for contract facilities. On 31 July 1943, the new Western Training Training Command was activated. It was a redesignation of the Fourth Technical Training District and also absorbed a portion of the former Third Technical Training District that had been previously headquartered at

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

. The Central Technical Training Command in St. Louis was discontinued 1 March 1944.

Keesler Field Keesler Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Biloxi, a city along the Gulf Coast in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States. The base is named in honor of aviator 2d Lt Samuel Reeves Keesler Jr., a Mississippi nati ...

was the only installation added to WTTC as a result of the disestablishment of CTTC. Requirements in the combat theaters for graduates of technical training schools and even pilots proved to be smaller than initially expected, so the Army Air Forces reduced the size of these training programs in January 1944. With the end of the war in September 1945, on 15 October Western Technical Training Command was inactivated. All its units and stations were reassigned to the Eastern Technical Training Command.

Lineage

* Established as Fourth Technical Training District, on 1 November 1941 : Re-designated: Western Technical Training Command, on 31 August 1943 : Inactivated on 15 October 1945.

Assignments

* Air Corps Technical Training Command, 1 November 1941 * Army Air Forces Technical Training Command, 1 March 1942 *

, 31 July 1943 – 15 October 1945

Schools

* Aircraft Mechanics Technical School; Basic Training Center #8,

Amarillo Field Amarillo ( ; Spanish for " yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Potter County. It is the 14th-most populous city in Texas and the largest city in the Texas Panhandle. A portion of the city extends into Randall Co ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

* Weapons/Photographic Technical School,

Buckley Field Buckley Space Force Base is a United States Space Force base in Aurora, Colorado named after United States Army Air Service First Lieutenant John Harold Buckley. The base is run by Space Base Delta 2, with major units including the U.S. Space For ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

* Administration Technical School; Miscellaneous Support Services training,

* Quartermasters Technical School; Basic Training Center #5, Kearns Center,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

* Aircraft Mechanics/Weapons Technical School; Basic Training Center,

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Mis ...

(After 1 March 1944) * Engine Mechanics Technical School; Basic Training Center #6, Lincoln Army Air Field,

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the so ...

* Weapons/Photographic Technical School; Miscellaneous training,

Lowry Field Lowry Air Force Base (Lowry Field in 1938–1948) is a former United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) training base during World War II and a United States Air Force (USAF) training base during the Cold War, serving as the initial 1955–1958 si ...

* Civil Engineering Technical School; Basic Training Center #3, Sheppard Field,

References

{{Portal bar, Aviation, Schools, World War II Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 Training commands of the United States Army Air Forces Air force technical training units and formations