Ebook: The History of the World War II Tonopah Army Air Field, Nevada

ABSTRACT

In 1940, a three-million acre block in Nevada was withdrawn for military training and named the Tonopah Bombing and Gunnery Range (TB&GR). Tonopah Army Air Field (TAAF) was constructed on the north border of the TB&GR. Another Nevada Army installation was built at the same time and named the Las Vegas Army Air Field. The mission featured gunnery training on a relatively small range and was outside the south border of the TB&GR. TAAF began training pilots in the P-39 Bell Airacobra and B-24 Bomber and by 1944 hosted 6,000 personnel and was one of the largest Army installations in the U.S. When the War ended, TAAF was in the first wave of closures. Las Vegas Army Air Field had been a minor facility until the Department of the Air Force was created in 1947. This installation began a rise to become the nationally-recognized Nellis Air Force Base and continued pilot training on the TB&GR which was renamed Nellis Air Force Range. This publication presents photographs and letters from ex-TAAF personnel and curated by Allen Metscher of the Central Nevada Museum. The story describes efforts to withdraw the land, installation construction, training and accidents, the variety of personnel, off-duty activities, the abandonment phase, and reveals secret Glide Bomb tests.

Federal Technical Responsible Individuals:

Keith Myhrer, Senior Archaeologist, Nellis Air Force Base (99 CES/CEANS) ([email protected]) (702-652-9365)

Dr. Jay R. Newman, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Fort Worth District, CESWF-PER-EC, (817- 886-1721) ([email protected])

Abstract and Preface

The war that would become the largest in history began in 1939. Although the United
States was not yet involved in the conflagration, in 1940 Congress withdrew three million acres
of public land for exclusive military pilot training. Concurrently, an Army official landed at the
airport in Las Vegas to discuss the creation of a gunnery school and military post. In 1941,
Nevada Senator McCarren successfully supported the construction of the Tonopah Army Air
Field, 200 miles north of Las Vegas. The Tonopah and Las Vegas installations were at the
north and south borders of the landscape named the Tonopah Bombing and Gunnery Range.

After the United States entered World War II, the Tonopah Army Air Field staff of
6,000 trained P-39 and B-24 pilots. The Las Vegas Army Air Field provided limited training.
Tonopah Army Air Field was Nevada’s dominant military installation. The installation closed
permanently at the end of World War II. This study, which utilizes the substantial library
created by Allen Metscher of the Central Nevada Museum, describes the physical and human
aspects of a short-lived installation. Tonopah Army Air Field pilot trainees were the first to use
the Tonopah Bombing and Gunnery Range. In 1947, the Department of the Air Force was
created and the Las Vegas Army Air Field began its rise as Nellis Air Force Base. In 1950, Las
Vegas Air Force Base became the second and only other installation to manage the training
acreage which was renamed Nellis Air Force Range and eventually the Nevada Test and
Training Range, the largest and most restricted military range in the nation.

Secret tests for the Glide Bomb were also conducted at the Tonopah Army Air Field.
The tests were the foundation for the development of the Smart Bomb, an ordnance used by
contemporary Red Flag pilots over the same landscape in which P-39 and B-24 pilots trained.
The isolation of the Tonopah Bombing and Gunnery Range has continued to serve the nation
for development of advanced defensive hardware. From 1983 to 1989, the F-117 Stealth
aircraft was also tested in secret 15 miles from the hangar where Glide Bombs were developed.

This 2010 revision reflects fresh research since 2009. Notable changes include the
inclusion of a 2010 photo of the Cactus Camp location. There were questions on its location
and Roger Schofield, 98th Range Wing, made the discovery. Allen and I have also conducted
research for a publication using official documents concerning crashes and fatalities at Tonopah
Army Air Field to honor those who died in training. Certain information on numbers of crashes
and those who sacrificed their lives was added to this document.

Keith Myhrer, Senior Archaeologist
Nellis Air Force Base