Mitchel Air Force Base also known as Mitchel Field, was a

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

base located on the

Hempstead Plains The Hempstead Plains is a region of central Long Island, in what is now Nassau County, in New York State. It was once an open expanse of native grassland estimated to once extend to about . It was separated from the North Shore of Long Island by ...

of Long Island, New York,

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. Established in 1918 as Hazelhurst Aviation Field #2, the facility was renamed later that year as Mitchel Field in honor of former New York City Mayor

John Purroy Mitchel John Purroy Mitchel (July 19, 1879 – July 6, 1918) was the 95th mayor of New York, from 1914 to 1917. At 34, he was the second-youngest mayor and he is sometimes referred to as "The Boy Mayor of New York." Mitchel is remembered for his sho ...

, who was killed while training for the Air Service in Louisiana. Decommissioned in 1961, Mitchel Field became a multi-use complex that is home to the

Cradle of Aviation Museum The Cradle of Aviation Museum is an aerospace museum located in Garden City, New York on Long Island, established to commemorate Long Island's part in the history of aviation. It is located on land once part of Mitchel Air Force Base which, to ...

, Nassau Coliseum,

Mitchel Athletic Complex The Mitchel Athletic Complex is part of the Mitchel Field complex, located in Uniondale, New York, on the site of the decommissioned Mitchel Air Force Base. The facility is owned by Nassau County. It is used mostly for football and soccer and als ...

Nassau Community College Nassau Community College (NCC) is a public community college in Uniondale, New York, using the Garden City, New York ZIP Code. It was founded in 1959 and is part of the State University of New York. History Nassau Community College was crea ...

, Hofstra University, and Lockheed. In 2018 the surviving buildings and facilities were recognized as a historic district and listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

History

Origins

During the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

it was known as the Hempstead Plains and used as an Army enlistment center. In the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

and in the Mexican War, it was a training center for Infantry units. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

, it was the location of Camp Winfield Scott. In 1898, in the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cloc ...

, Mitchel's site was known as Camp Black.Office of Information Services Headquarters Continental Air Command, Mitchel Air Force Base, New York, 26 October 1955 Fact Sheet
/ref>

World War I

In 1917, Hazelhurst Field #2 was established south of and adjacent to

Hazelhurst Field Roosevelt Field is a former airport, located east-southeast of Mineola, Long Island, New York. Originally called the Hempstead Plains Aerodrome, or sometimes Hempstead Plains field or the Garden City Aerodrome, it was a training field (Hazel ...

to serve as an additional training and storage base, part of the massive Air Service Aviation Concentration Center.

Curtiss JN-4 The Curtiss JN "Jenny" was a series of biplanes built by the Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft for th ...

Jennies became a common sight over Long Island in 1917 and 1918. Hundreds of aviators were trained for war at these training fields, two of the largest in the United States. Numerous new wooden buildings and tents were erected on Roosevelt Field and Field #2 in 1918 in order to meet this rapid expansion.The History of Mitchel Field, The Cradle of Aviation Museum

Between the Wars

Mitchel Field continued to grow after World War I and between 1929 and 1932. An extensive building program was undertaken after the war to turn the temporary wartime facilities into a permanent Army post, with new barracks, warehouses, hangar space, and administrative buildings. Much of this construction still exists today, being used for non-military purposes. In the 1920s and 1930s, various observation, fighter, and bomber units were stationed at the airfield. It became a major aerodrome for both the Air Corps as well as various civilian activity. The 1920s was considered the golden age of air racing and on 27 November 1920, the Pulitzer Trophy Race was held at Mitchel Field. The race consisted of four laps of a course. 38 pilots entered and took off individually. The winner was Capt. Corliss Moseley, flying a Verville-Packard VCP-R racer, a cleaned-up version of the Army's VCP-1 pursuit plane, at . In October 1923, Mitchel Field was the scene of the first airplane jumping contest in the nation. During the same year, two world's airplane speed records were established there. In 1924, the

airmail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be t ...

service had its inception in experimental flights begun at the airfield. In September 1929, Lt. Gen. James H. Doolittle, then a Lieutenant, made the world's first blind flight. In 1938, Mitchel was the starting point for the first nonstop transcontinental bomber flight, made by Army B-18 Bolo bombers.Brodsky, Robert (July 30, 2018).
Mitchel Field Air Base added to National Register of Historic Places
(subscription required). '' Newsday''. newsday.com. Retrieved 2018-07-30. Mitchel Field also served as a base from which the first demonstration of long-range aerial reconnaissance was made. In May 1939, three B-17s, with Lt. Curtis LeMay navigating, flew out to sea and intercepted the Italian ocean liner ''SS Rex''. This was a striking example of the range, mobility, and accuracy of modern aviation at the time. On September 21 of that year the base was struck by the "Long Island Express" hurricane. Flooding produced water that was over knee-deep, numerous trees were toppled and the glass was smashed atop the traffic control tower.

World War II

In 1940 Mitchel Field was the location of the Air Defense Command, a command charged with the mission of developing the air defense for cities, vital industrial areas, continental bases, and military facilities in the United States (also known as the " Zone of the Interior"). Later, First Air Force, was given the responsibility for air defense planning and organization along the eastern seaboard. Under its supervision an aircraft patrol system along the coast for observing shipping was placed into operation. During 1943, Mitchel AAF became a staging area for Consolidated B-24 Liberator bombers and their crews before being sent overseas. Mitchel Field was a major source of supply in initial garrisoning and defense of North Atlantic air bases in Newfoundland,

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...

, and

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

. From the airfield the planning for the air defense of

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

and Newfoundland was conducted. Antisubmarine patrol missions along the Atlantic coast were carried out in 1942 by 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 ...

Antisubmarine Command aircraft based at Mitchel. Under the direction of the First Air Force, Mitchel Army Airfield became a command and control base for both I Fighter and I Bomber Command. Tactical fighter groups and squadrons were formed at Mitchel to be trained at AAF Training Command bases (mostly in the east and southeast) before being deployed to the various overseas wartime theaters. Additionally, thousands of Army Air Force personnel were processed through the base for overseas combat duty. With the end of World War II, returning GIs were processed for separation at Mitchel. Mitchel aircraft crashes included a

P-47 The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt is a World War II-era fighter aircraft produced by the American company Republic Aviation from 1941 through 1945. It was a successful high-altitude fighter and it also served as the foremost American fighter-bomber ...

that struck Hofstra University's Barnard Hall on 23 March 1943. In March 1946, the headquarters of Air Defense Command was established at Mitchel Army Airfield. 514 troop carrier wg-patch

United States Air Force

With the establishment of the

as a separate service in 1947, Mitchel AAF was redesignated as Mitchel Air Force Base. In December 1948, ADC's responsibilities were temporarily assumed by the

Continental Air Command Continental Air Command (ConAC) (1948–1968) was a Major Command of the United States Air Force (USAF) responsible primarily for administering the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve. During the Korean War, ConAC provided the necessary augm ...

, (ConAC), also located at Mitchel AFB. ConAC also was responsible for the reorganization of the Air Force Reserve after World War II. In 1949, the reserve mission was assigned to First Air Force, which was also headquartered at Mitchel AFB. First Air Force became the command and control organization for supervising the training of the air reserve in 15 eastern states and the

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

. By 1949, due to the problems associated with operating tactical aircraft in the urban area – the noise, the small size of the field, and safety concerns – Mitchel AFB was relieved of the responsibility for defending New York's air space.

Army Anti-Aircraft Command An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

moved to Mitchel AFB on 1 November 1950. After Air Defense Command was re-established on January 1, 1951; the 1945 U.S. Air Defense Plan recommendation for "... moving ADC Headquarters from Mitchel Field to a more central location ... in a protected command center" was completed to

Ent Air Force Base Ent Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located in the Knob Hill neighborhood of Colorado Springs, Colorado. A tent city, established in 1943 during construction of the base, was initially commanded by Major General Uzal Gira ...

, Colorado, on 8 January 1951.compiled by On November 29, 1952, President-elect

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

took off from Mitchel Field on a U.S. Air Force aircraft en route to South Korea, to fulfill a campaign promise. Colonel W. Millikan's transcontinental speed record flight of 4 hours, 8 minutes set in a

North American F-86 Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing ...

on 2 January 1954 ended at Mitchel AFB. In April 1961 flying was halted and the

514th Troop Carrier Wing 514th may refer to: *514th Air Defense Group, disbanded United States Air Force (USAF) organization *514th Air Mobility Wing, wing of the United States Air Force based out of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey *514th Fighter-Interceptor S ...

reassigned to McGuire Air Force Base in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. After the 514th TCW moved, the base was closed on 25 June 1961. The property was turned over to Nassau County for redevelopment.USAFHRA Document 00489094
/ref> The facility still has military housing, a commissary, and exchange facilities to support military families and activities in the area. The Garden City-Mitchel Field Secondary, a remnant of the Long Island Rail Road's Central Branch from Garden City to Bethpage, ends in the northern part of Mitchel Field, providing sporadic freight service.

Major commands assigned

Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps The Aviation Section, Signal Corps, was the aerial warfare service of the United States from 1914 to 1918, and a direct statutory ancestor of the United States Air Force. It absorbed and replaced the Aeronautical Division, Signal Corps, and con ...

, July 1917 *

Division of Military Aeronautics The Division of Military Aeronautics was the name of the aviation organization of the United States Army for a four-day period during World War I. It was created by a reorganization by the War Department of the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps ...

, 29 May 1918 : Redesignated: Director of Air Service : Redesignated: U.S. Army Air Service, 24 May 1918 : Redesignated:

U.S. Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

, 2 July 1926 * General Headquarters (GHQ) Air Force, 1 March 1935 * Northeast Air District, 18 October 1940 : Redesignated: 1st Air Force, 26 March 1941 : Redesignated: First Air Force, 18 September 1942 *

Continental Air Forces Continental Air Forces (CAF) was a United States Army Air Forces major command, active 1944–1946. It was tasked with combat training of bomber and fighter personnel, and for Continental United States (CONUS) air defense after the Aircraft Wa ...

, 13 December 1944 * Air Defense Command, 21 March 1946 *

, 1 December 1948 – 1 April 1961 : Remained attached to Air Defense Command until 1 January 1951

Major units assigned

* 92d Aero Squadron, 4 December – 21, 1918 * 1st Army Observation Group : 1st Aero Squadron, 10 October 1919 – 6 November 1940 :: Reassigned to 9 Group (Observation), 1 August 1922 * 3d Observation Group : 5th Aero Squadron, 1 November 1919 – 6 November 1940 :: Reassigned to 9 Group (Observation), 1 August 1922 * (32 other Aero Squadrons, Unknown organizations, 1919) * 9 Group (Observation), 1 August 1922 : Redesignated: 9 Observation Group on 25 January 1923 : Redesignated: 9 Bombardment Group on 1 March 1935 : Redesignated: 9 Bombardment Group (Medium) on 6 December 1939 – 6 November 1940 :: 99th Observation Squadron, 9 November 1928 – 6 November 1940 * 9th Air Division, 1 April 1931 – January 1933 *

22d Bombardment Group D, or d, is the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''dee'' (pronounced ), plural ''dees''. History Th ...

, 1 February – 14 November 1940 *

8th Fighter Group 008, OO8, O08, or 0O8 may refer to: * The Streetwear Brand @008us , inspired by Ian Fleming & Virgil Abloh *"030", the fictional 030 Agent of MI6 * '' 038: Operation Exterminate'', a 1965 Italian action film * '' Explosivo 030'' a 1940 Argentine c ...

, 5 November 1940 – 26 January 1942 * 57th Fighter Group, 15 January 1941 – 19 August 1941 * Headquarters, Northeast Air District, 18 October 1940 :: Redesignated: 1st Air Force, 26 March 1941 :: Redesignated: First Air Force, 18 September 1942 – 3 June 1946; 17 October 1949 – 23 June 1958 : Headquarters, I Air Support Command, 1 September 1941 :: Redesignated: I Ground Air Support Command, 1 April 1942 :: Redesignated: I Air Support Command, 1 September – 30 November 1942 : Headquarters, I Bomber Command, 1 October 1943 – 21 March 1946 : Headquarters, I Interceptor Command, 5 June – 27 December 1941 :: Redesignated: I Fighter Command, 9 June 1942 – 21 March 1946 ::

324th Fighter Group 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

, 24 June – 6 July 1942 :: 326th Fighter Group, 19 August 1942 – 1 September 1942 ::

352d Fighter Group The 352nd Fighter Group was a unit of the Eighth Air Force that was located in the European Theater of Operations during World War II. The unit served as bomber escort, counter-air patrols, and attacking ground targets. It initially flew P-47 Th ...

, 1 October–31, 1942 :: 353d Fighter Group, 1 October–7, 1942 ::

62d Fighter Wing The 62d Fighter Wing (62 FW) is a disbanded unit of the United States Air Force, last stationed at Van Nuys Airport, Van Nuys, California. It was withdrawn from the California Air National Guard (CA ANG) and inactivated on 31 October 1950. This ...

, 12 December 1942 – 13 January 1943 ::

80th Fighter Group 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of t ...

, 2 March – 30 April 1943 :: 356th Fighter Group, 30 May – 4 July 1943 :: 36th Fighter Group, 3 June–23, 1943 ::

368th Fighter Group 368th may refer to: *368th Bombardment Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit *368th Expeditionary Air Support Operations Group (368 EASOG) is a support unit of the United States Air Force *368th Fighter Group or 136th Airlift Wing, unit o ...

, 23 August 1943 – 20 December 1943 :: 362d Fighter Group, 19 October – 12 November 1943 ::

301st Fighter Wing The 301st Fighter Wing (301 FW) is an Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the Tenth Air Force, Air Force Reserve Command, stationed at Carswell Field, Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Tex ...

, 1 November 1944 – 30 May 1945 ::

373d Fighter Group The 373rd Fighter Group is an inactive United States Army Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with First Air Force stationed at Mitchel Field, New York. It was inactivated on 7 November 1945. During World War II the group was assigned to Ni ...

, 28 September – 7 November 1945 * Headquarters, Air Defense Command, 21 March 1946 – 1 January 1951 * 355th Fighter Group (Air Defense) (ADC), 1 August – 20 November 1946 *

4th Fighter Wing The 4th Fighter Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command's Ninth Air Force. It is stationed at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina, where it is also the host unit. The wing is one of two Air Force uni ...

(AFRES), 20 December 1946 – 27 June 1949 * 319th Bombardment Group (AFRES), 27 December 1946 – 27 June 1949 *

325th Fighter Group 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

(ADC), 3 August–31, 1942; 21 May – 2 December 1947 : 318th Fighter Squadron, 21 May – 2 December 1947 *

78th Fighter Group The 78th Fighter Group (78 FG) is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 78th Fighter Wing, at Hamilton Air Force Base, California. It was inactivated on 1 February 1961. During World War II the group was an Eigh ...

(ADC), 1 June 1947 – 1 November 1948 : 82d Fighter Squadron, 25 June 1947 – 24 November 1948 : 83d Fighter Squadron, 25 June 1947 – 24 November 1948 :

84th Fighter Squadron Area codes 084 and 086 are Nigerian telephone area codes serving the cities of Port Harcourt and Ahoada in Rivers State. They fall under the Southeast Zone in the National Numbering Plan (NNP) restructured in 2003. When in Port Harcourt or Ahoad ...

, 25 June 1947 – 24 November 1948 * 320th Bombardment Group (AFRES), 9 June 1947 – 27 June 1949 *

52d Fighter-Interceptor Wing The 52nd Fighter Wing (52 FW) is a wing (air force unit), wing of the United States Air Force stationed at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. It flies the F-16 Fighting Falcon variants#F-16CJ/DJ Block 50D/52D, F-16CJ fighter aircraft. It was activat ...

(ADC), 9 June 1948 – 4 October 1949 :

2nd Fighter-Interceptor Squadron The 2nd Fighter Training Squadron, sometimes written as 2d Fighter Training Squadron, is an active United States Air Force unit, assigned to the 325th Operations Group at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Originally constituted in 1940 as the '' ...

, 25 June 1947 – 4 October 1949 : 5th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 25 June 1947 – 4 October 1949 * 1112th Special Air Missions Squadron (MATS), 19 July 1948 – 15 March 1951 * 2500th Air Base Group (later Wing), 28 September 1948 – 25 June 1961 * Headquarters,

, 1 December 1948 – 1 April 1961 * 84th Fighter Wing, (All Weather) (ADC), 1 June – 10 October 1949 * Headquarters,

Eastern Air Defense Force The Eastern Air Defense Force (EADF) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command being stationed at Stewart Air Force Base, New York. It was inactivated on July 1, 1960. History EADF was ...

(ADC), 1 September 1949 – 1 August 1950 *

(AFRES), 10 October 1949 – 1 February 1953; 1 April 1953 – 15 March 1961 * 65th Troop Carrier Wing (AFRES), 14 June 1952 – 1 April 1953 * 313th Troop Carrier Wing (

Eighteenth Air Force Eighteenth Air Force (Air Forces Transportation) (18 AF) is the only Numbered Air Force (NAF) in Air Mobility Command (AMC) and one of the largest NAFs in the United States Air Force. 18 AF was activated on 28 March 1951, inactivated on 1 Janu ...

), 1 February – 25 August 1953. : Replaced by: 465th Troop Carrier Wing (

), 25 August 1953 – 23 March 1954 11 October 1950: 100,000 miles to Bolling
/ref>

References

External links

Cradle of Aviation Museum

US Family Health Plan
{{authority control Installations of the United States Air Force in New York (state) 1918 establishments in New York (state) 1961 disestablishments in New York (state) Airports in Nassau County, New York Air transportation infrastructure on the National Register of Historic Places Defunct airports in New York (state) Garden City, New York Historic districts in Nassau County, New York Military facilities on the National Register of Historic Places in New York (state) National Register of Historic Places in Hempstead (town), New York Nassau Community College Sports venues in Long Island Military installations closed in 1961 Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in New York (state)