Blytheville Air Force Base was a

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

base that operated under the Tactical Air Command and Strategic Air Command from 1954 until its closure in 1992. The facility originally served as a B-25 pilot training school during WW2. For the majority of its operation, the base served as a home for SAC's B-52 ground alert program. In 1988, the facility was renamed Eaker Air Force Base in honor of

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 ...

General of the

Eighth Air Force The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Forces S ...

, Ira C. Eaker. It was located northwest of

Blytheville, Arkansas Blytheville is one of two county seat, county seats of and the largest city in Mississippi County, Arkansas, Mississippi County, Arkansas, United States. It is approximately north of West Memphis, Arkansas, West Memphis. The population was 13,40 ...

. The facility now operates as the Arkansas Aeroplex and Arkansas International Airport.

History

Pre-base History

Construction and World War 2

Constructed on former agricultural land, the site was originally activated as the Blytheville Army Airfield in 1942. During

, the site served as a training airfield as part of the 70,000 Pilot Training Program. It was one of many air fields created in the country's interior during the war for this purpose. Blytheville, Arkansas was selected as a training location due to its proximity to the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

, where supplies could easily be shipped to and from the site. Construction of the airfield at Blytheville was quicker than other pilot schools in Arkansas, so the first groups to train at the base were originally intended for Walnut Ridge Army Airfield and Helena Aerotech for their basic training. There were also additional auxiliary airfields at Luxora, AR, Manilla, AR, Hornersville, MO, Steele, MO, and Cooter, MO. WW2 era warehouses Dec 2023

The first casualty of the flight school was Herbert Perkins, a native of Virginia whose BT-13 crashed near the intermediate air field at Luxora, AR. The airfield was used as the Southeastern Training Command's flight training school. Cadets trained on the AT-6, AT-9, and AT-10 to learn to fly the B-25. Additionally, the flight school hosted a small number of TB-25Gs, a trainer version of the B-25. In 1945, the base also hosted a glider school to train servicemen to fly the

Waco CG-4 The Waco CG-4 was the most widely used American troop/cargo military glider of World War II. It was designated the CG-4A by the United States Army Air Forces, and given the service name Hadrian (after the Roman emperor) by the British. The ...

. The airfield closed in October 1945 after the Second World War ended. Then the airfield briefly became a processing center for the rapid demobilization of military personnel being discharged. The

War Assets Administration The War Assets Administration (WAA) was created to dispose of United States government-owned surplus material and property from World War II. The WAA was established in the Office for Emergency Management, effective March 25, 1946, by Executive Or ...

officially closed down the installation in 1946, at which point control and responsibility for the land was transferred to the city of Blytheville.

Reopening under Tactical Air Command

On 15 July 1955, the facility was reopened by the

Tactical Air Command Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Lang ...

as Blytheville Air Force Base (AFB), when the 461st Bombardment Wing was moved from

Hill Air Force Base Hill Air Force Base is a major U.S. Air Force (USAF) base located in Davis County, Utah, just south of the city of Ogden, and bordering the Cities of Layton, Clearfield, Riverdale, Roy, and Sunset with its largest border immediately adja ...

in Utah. Blytheville AFB became fully operational when it was equipped with a wing of three squadrons of B-57 bombers on 19 July 1955. While the 461st never saw any combat during its time at Blytheville Air Force Base, it was assigned to a number of training exercises and experiments. The 461st Wing's B-57Bs participated on Operation Sagebrush,

Operation Redwing Operation Redwing was a United States series of 17 nuclear test detonations from May to July 1956. They were conducted at Bikini and Enewetak atolls by Joint Task Force 7 (JTF7).Blumenson, Martin and Hugh D. Hexamer (1956). ''A History of ...

, Operation Mobile Charlie, Operation Counter Punch, and Operation Able Vista.

Transfer to Strategic Air Command

On April 1, 1958, the base was formally transferred into the

Strategic Air Command Strategic Air Command (SAC) was a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile compon ...

, as part of a planned expansion of the B-52 bomber program. In July 1959, the 97th Bombardment Wing subsequently assumed control of the base and brought with it the long-range B-52G bomber and the KC-135A Stratotanker aerial refueling aircraft to support bomber operations and SAC's ground alert program. A Ready Alert Facility was constructed on the base in 1960, similar to others being built all over America at the time. Blytheville AFB experienced a great deal of activity throughout the Cold War era. The base was taken to a heightened state of alert on three occasions. First, the 4229th Air Base Unit was taken to a "personnel alert" during the 1958 Lebanon Crisis. Second, the base was taken to

DEFCON The defense readiness condition (DEFCON) is an alert state used by the United States Armed Forces. For security reasons, the U.S. military does not announce a DEFCON level to the public. The DEFCON system was developed by the Joint Chiefs of Sta ...

2 and the 97th Bombardment Wing was placed on airborne alert on 22 October 1962, during the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis () in Cuba, or the Caribbean Crisis (), was a 13-day confrontation between the governments of the United States and the Soviet Union, when American deployments of Nuclear weapons d ...

. Two B-52G bombers were readied to strike the Soviet Union with nuclear weapons if necessary—for which the wing received the

Air Force Outstanding Unit Award The Air and Space Outstanding Unit Award (ASOUA) is one of the unit awards of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force. It was established in 1954 as the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award and was the first independent Air Force ...

for its performance during the crisis. And third, the base was taken to DEFCON 3 in 1973 during the

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...

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 ...

the 97th Bomber Wing at Blytheville supported strike operations throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s. A bomber crew from Blytheville was among the first shot down during

Operation Linebacker II Operation Linebacker II, sometimes referred to as the Christmas bombings and, in Vietnam, Dien Bien Phu in the air, was a strategic bombing campaign conducted by the United States against targets in North Vietnam from 18 December to 29 December ...

, a December 1972 mission targeting complexes in

North Vietnam North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; ; VNDCCH), was a country in Southeast Asia from 1945 to 1976, with sovereignty fully recognized in 1954 Geneva Conference, 1954. A member of the communist Eastern Bloc, it o ...

. Three crewmen died in the crash. Six more men from the 97th were also lost in Vietnam, whose names are recognized on a memorial placard at the former base. In 1972, all of the bombers were temporarily moved to Guam before being returned to Blytheville AFB, at which time the installation resumed normal functions. It launched rescue missions from the base to

Grenada Grenada is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The southernmost of the Windward Islands, Grenada is directly south of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and about north of Trinidad and Tobago, Trinidad and the So ...

in 1983 and in August 1990, the pilots of the 97th Bomber Wing began practicing for missions in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

and eventually supported

Operation Desert Storm Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

Renamed Eaker AFB and base closure

In 1988, the U.S. Air Force officially renamed Blytheville AFB to Eaker AFB in commemoration of World War II General Ira Eaker, the former commander of the 8th Air Force. Officials had hoped, after hearing rumors of the base's possible closure, that the name would endear the base among military leaders and be enough to incentivize its continued existence. Unfortunately, Eaker Air Force Base topped the Strategic Air Command's list of base closures in 1991 and with the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

coming to an end, the installation was officially chosen; in March 1992, the last aircraft left the base. Extensive efforts to offset the negative economic effects on the community of Blytheville were undertaken by local and federal officials, who cleaned up the site and then distributed the land to various organizations, including the Department of the Interior (DOI), the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Some of the land has since been declared a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

The base closure cost the community over 700 civilian jobs, but half of these were recovered through the adaptive reuse of the former base, such as United States Post Office's utilization of the base in the late 1990s as an airport hub during the holidays, some of the base housing being converted by Westminster Village of the Mid-South for a retirement community, the construction of a $2.5 million sports complex by the local community, and the private investment of some $3 million for the creation of the Thunder Bayou Golf Course.

Arkansas Aeroplex and The National Cold War Center

Within a decade of the base's closure, the facility was reopened as the Arkansas Aeroplex, also known as the Arkansas International Airport. The main tenant of the Aeroplex is Aviation Repair Technologies, which specializes in large aircraft repair. In 2020, the National Cold War Center was created by local citizens to take the base's former SAC Alert Facility and turn it into the primary exhibit for a museum that focused on the many aspects of the Cold War.

Historic Districts

The facility houses two historic districts, the Blytheville Air Force Base Strategic Air Command (SAC) Alert and Weapons Storage Areas Historic District and the Blytheville Air Force Base Capehart Housing Historic District. Both were listed on the

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 ...

in 2018. The SAC Alert Facility is a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

which included 23

contributing buildings In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic dist ...

, 33 contributing structures, two contributing sites, a contributing object, as well as two non-contributing buildings. The facility was originally constructed in 1960 after the Strategic Air Command took over the base. With maps and 23 photos. In April 2022, the National Cold War Center began working to restore the facility as its primary exhibit.

Patch and Emblem Gallery

File:Army Air Forces Eastern Flying Training Command - Emblem.png, Army Air Forces Eastern Flying Training Command emblem File:Tactical Air Command Emblem.svg, Tactical Air Command emblem File:461st Bombardment Wing.PNG, 461st Bombardment Wing, Tactical emblem File:764th Bombardment Squadron - emblem.png, 764th Bombardment Squadron, Tactical patch File:765 Bombardment Sq emblem.png, 765th Bombardment Squadron, Tactical patch File:766th Bombardment Squadron - emblem.png, 766th Bombardment Squadron, Tactical patch File:SAC Shield.svg, Strategic Air Command Emblem File:Division 042nd Air.png, 42nd Air Division emblem File:Wing 0097th Bomb.gif, 97th Bombardment Wing, Heavy Patch File:340 bomb sq 97 bomb wg.jpg, 340th Bombardment Squadron, Heavy patch File:0097 AIR REFUELING SQUADRON - 2.jpg, 97th Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy patch

Major commands to which assigned

* Army Air Force Flying Training Command, 10 June 1942 – 16 June 1945 * Continental Air Forces, 16 June 1945 – 21 March 1946 ** Redesignated to

, 21 March 1946 – 1 April 1946 *

, 1 April 1946 – 15 August 1946, 10 June 1953 – 1 October 1953 *

Air Materiel Command Air Materiel Command (AMC) was a United States Army Air Forces and United States Air Force command. Its headquarters was located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. In 1961, the command was redesignated the Air Force Logistics Command ...

, 1 October 1953 – 1 July 1954 *

, 1 July 1954 – 1 April 1958 *

, 1 April 1958 – 1 June 1992 *

Air Combat Command The Air Combat Command (ACC) is one of nine List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, Major Commands (MAJCOMs) in the United States Air Force, reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force (HAF) at the Pentagon. It is the prim ...

, 1 June 1992 – 15 December 1992 (not operational) Canadian F-101B intercepting B-52G 1980

Major units assigned

* 326th Army Air Forces Base Unit, July 21, 1942 - April 30, 1944 * 25th Twin Engine Flying Training Group, 25 July 1942 – 29 February 1944 ** 698th Two-Engine Flying Training Squadron ** 699th Two-Engine Flying Training Squadron ** 700th Two-Engine Flying Training Squadron ** 701st Two-Engine Flying Training Squadron ** 702nd Two-Engine Flying Training Squadron ** 703rd Two-Engine Flying Training Squadron ** 704th Two-Engine Flying Training Squadron * 945th Quartermaster Truck Platoon, October 2, 1942 * 309th Aviation Squadron, September 14, 1942 - April 30, 1944 * 2111th Army Air Force Base Unit, 1 May 1944 – 15 June 1945 * 809th Army Air Force Base Unit, 16 June 1945 – 31 March 1946 * 334th Army Air Force Base Unit, 1 April 1946 – 25 November 1946 * 387th Composite Squadron (Reserve), 25 April 1949 – 17 June 1949 * 4431st Air Base Squadron, 19 July 1955 – 16 October 1956 * 461st Bombardment Wing, Tactical, 17 October 1956 – 1 April 1958 ** 764th Bombardment Squadron ** 765th Bombardment Squadron ** 766th Bombardment Squadron * 4229th Air Base Squadron, 1 April 1958 – 1 July 1959 * 97th Bombardment Wing, Heavy, 1 July 1959 – 1 September 1991; Redesignated: 97th Wing, 1 September 1991 – 1 April 1992 ** 340th Bombardment Squadron, Heavy ** 914th Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy ** 97th Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy

Major aircraft assigned

* Vultee BT-13 Valiant, 1942-1945 * North American AT-6B, 1942–1944 * Curtiss AT-9A, 1942–1944 * Beech AT-10B, 1942–1945 * Republic AT-12, 1942–1944 * North American TB-25G, 1945 * Curtiss C-46, 1945 *

Douglas C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II. During the war the C-47 was used for troo ...

, 1945; 1956-1971 *

, 1945 * Martin B-57 Canberra, 1956–1958 * Lockheed T-33, 1956-1961 * Boeing B-52G Stratofortress, 1960–1992 * Cessna T-37, 1960-1992 * Boeing KC-135A Stratotanker, 1961–1992

References

Bibliography

* Bruce-Henderson, S. ''et al.'' (no date) ''Operation Redwing''. Available at: https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/citations/ADA134795 (Accessed: 24 November 2023). * * *

External links

Arkansas Aeroplex

National Cold War Center

Biography of Ira C. Eaker

* ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmEb7NmeoOc Video of Eaker AFB former alert pad {{Navboxes , list = {{Blytheville, Arkansas {{Strategic Air Command {{Tactical Air Command {{USAAF Training Bases World War II Installations of the United States Air Force in Arkansas Airports in Arkansas Installations of Strategic Air Command Military installations closed in 1988 Transportation in Mississippi County, Arkansas 1988 disestablishments in Arkansas Blytheville, Arkansas National Register of Historic Places in Mississippi County, Arkansas