During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, 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 ...

(USAAF) established numerous airfields in

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

for training pilots and aircrews of USAAF fighters and bombers. Most of these airfields were under the command of First Air Force or 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 ...

(AAFTC) (A predecessor of the current-day

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 ...

Air Education and Training Command Air Education and Training Command (AETC) is one of the nine List of major commands of the United States Air Force, Major Commands (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force (USAF), reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force. It was establis ...

). However the other USAAF support commands (Air Technical Service Command (ATSC); Air Transport Command (ATC) or Troop Carrier Command) commanded a significant number of airfields in a support roles. It is still possible to find remnants of these wartime airfields. Many were converted into municipal airports, some were returned to agriculture and several were retained as

installations and were front-line bases during the Cold War. Hundreds of the temporary buildings that were used survive today, and are being used for other purposes.

Major Airfields

Army Air Force Training Command * Chester Army Airfield, Perryville : Contract flying training : Now:

Perryville Municipal Airport Perryville Regional Airport (also known as McBride Airport / Perryville Municipal Airport) is a city-owned public-use airport located nine nautical miles (17 km) north of the central business district of Perryville, a city in Perry County, ...

Harris Army Airfield Cape Girardeau Regional Airport is a city owned public use airport in Scott County, Missouri, United States. It is located five nautical miles (6 mi, 9 km) southwest of the central business district of Cape Girardeau, a city in C ...

Cape Girardeau Cape Girardeau ( , french: Cap-Girardeau ; colloquially referred to as "Cape") is a city in Cape Girardeau and Scott Counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. At the 2020 census, the population was 39,540. The city is one of two principal citi ...

: Contract flying training : Now:

Cape Girardeau Regional Airport Cape Girardeau Regional Airport is a city owned public use airport in Scott County, Missouri, United States. It is located five nautical miles (6 mi, 9 km) southwest of the central business district of Cape Girardeau, a city in ...

* Harvey Parks Airport,

Sikeston Sikeston is a city located both in southern Scott County and northern New Madrid County, in the state of Missouri, United States. It is situated just north of the "Missouri Bootheel", although many locals consider Sikeston a part of it. By way ...

: Contract flying training : Now: Sikeston Memorial Municipal Airport
Troop Carrier Command *

Malden Army Airfield Malden Regional Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) north of the central business district of Malden, a city in Dunklin County, Missouri, United States. This airport is included in the National ...

, Malden : 445th Army Air Force Base Unit : Was:

Malden Air Base Malden Regional Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) north of the central business district of Malden, Missouri, Malden, a city in Dunklin County, Missouri, Dunklin County, Missouri, United States ...

(1951-1960) : USAF Contract Flight Training : Now: Malden Regional Airport * Sedalia Army Airfield, Knob Noster : I Troop Carrier Command :

405th Army Air Force Base Unit 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

: Was: Sedalia Air Force Auxiliary Field (1948-1951) : Was: Sedalia Air Force Base (1951-1955) : Now: Roundel of the USAF

Whiteman Air Force Base Whiteman Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located just south of Knob Noster, Missouri, United States. The base is the current home of the B-2 Spirit bomber. It is named for 2nd Lt George Whiteman, who was killed during the attac ...

(1955-Pres) *

Vichy Army Airfield Rolla National Airport is a public use airport in Maries County, Missouri, United States. It is owned by the City of Rolla (in adjacent Phelps County) and located 11 nautical miles (13 mi, 20 km) north of its central business d ...

Vichy Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais. It is a spa and resort town and in World War II was the capital of ...

: Sub-base of Sedalia AAF : Now:

Rolla National Airport Rolla National Airport is a public use airport in Maries County, Missouri, United States. It is owned by the City of Rolla (in adjacent Phelps County) and located 11 nautical miles (13 mi, 20 km) north of its central business d ...

* Grandview Airport, Belton (1944-1945) : Was: Grandview Air Force Base (1952-1957) : Was:

Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base Richards-Gebaur Memorial Airport is a former airport that operated alongside Richards-Gebaur Air Reserve Station (also Richards-Gebaur Air Force Station) until the base's closure in 1994, and until it was closed in 1999. Formerly, it was oper ...

(1957-1976) : Was:

then

Richards-Gebaur Air Reserve Station Richards-Gebaur Memorial Airport is a former airport that operated alongside Richards-Gebaur Air Reserve Station (also Richards-Gebaur Air Force Station) until the base's closure in 1994, and until it was closed in 1999. Formerly, it was oper ...

and
Richards-Gebaur Memorial Airport (1976-1999)
: Closed 1999. Now non-aviation use as Kansas City SmartPort. * Forney Army Airfield,

Fort Leonard Wood Fort Leonard Wood is a U.S. Army training installation located in the Missouri Ozarks. The main gate is located on the southern boundary of The City of St. Robert. The post was created in December 1940 and named in honor of General Leonard W ...

: Support airfield for Ft. Leonard Wood : Now:

Waynesville Regional Airport at Forney Field Waynesville-St. Robert Regional Airport , also known as Forney Field, is a public and military use airport located at Fort Leonard Wood in Pulaski County, Missouri, United States. The airport's passenger terminal is operated under the control of ...

Air Technical Service Command * Lambert Field,

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

: Joint use USAAF/US Navy/Civil Airport : Now:

Lambert-St. Louis International Airport St. Louis Lambert International Airport is the primary commercial airport serving metropolitan St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Commonly referred to as Lambert Field or simply Lambert, it is the largest and busiest airport in the state of ...

Air Transport Command * Rosencrans Field Army Airfield, St. Joseph :

406th Army Air Force Base Unit 4 (four) is a number A number is a mathematical object used to count, measure, and label. The original examples are the natural numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and so forth. Numbers can be represented in language with number words. More unive ...

: Now:

Rosecrans Air National Guard Base Rosecrans Air National Guard Base or Rosecrans ANGB, is located on a portion of the Rosecrans Memorial Airport , Saint Joseph, Missouri, USA. It is the home of the 139th Airlift Wing, Missouri Air National Guard and the Advanced Airlift Tactics ...

* Kansas City Apt, Kansas City : Joint use USAAF/Civil Airport : Now:

Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport serving Kansas City, Missouri. Located in Clay County, this facility is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems, which categorized it as a general aviat ...

References

* Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. . * Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947-1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. . * Thole, Lou (1999), Forgotten Fields of America : World War II Bases and Training, Then and Now - Vol. 2. Pictorial Histories Pub .
Military Airfields in World War II - Missouri

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Missouri World War Ii Army Airfields

Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in the United States by state United States World War II army airfields