Mather Air Force Base
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Mather Air Force Base (Mather AFB) was an United States Air Force Base located in Rancho Cordova, California. Mather AFB was closed on October 1, 1993 as a result of the Base Realignment and Closure Act (BRAC) and reopened in 1995 as Sacramento Mather Airport.
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[edit] History
The United States Army Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps, activated Mills Field on February 21, 1918 as a pilot training base. Mills Field was renamed Mather Field for Second Lieutenant Carl Spencer Mather, an Army Signal Corps pilot, who was killed in an air collision at Ellington Field, Texas in January 1918. He earned his pilot's license at the age of 16 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Army Signal Corps on January 20, 1918. Five days later, he was killed during one of the first training classes for World War I pilots. The remainder of his class was restationed at Mills Field and requested that the facility be renamed in Mather's honor. On May 2, 1918, the name was changed to Mather Field, the precursor to Mather Air Force Base and today's Sacramento Mather Airport.
Following World War I, the field was used intermittenly to support small military units. During World War II, Mather Field was used for pilot and navigator training as well as observer and bombardier training.
After World War II, Mather AFB became the sole aerial navigation school for the U.S. Air Force and its allies after Harlingen, Ellington and James Connally Air Force Bases were closed in the 1960's. The 3535th Navigator Training Wing, Air Training Command (ATC), was responsible for Bombardment Training beginning in 1946 and later transitioned to Navigator Training, Electronic Warfare Officer (EWO) and Weapon Systems Officer (WSO) training after the closure of the other Navigator training bases. The Wing was redesignated as the 323rd Flying Training Wing (323rd FTW) on April 1, 1973. The 323rd FTW continued training Navigator's, EWO's and WSO's until it was inactivated on September 30, 1993 and Navigator training was moved to Randolph AFB and consolidated under the 12th Flying Training Wing.
On October 1, 1993, Mather AFB was decommissioned as an active Air Force Base under the Base Realignment and Closure Act. At the time of closure, the base encompassed 5,845 acres (24 km²), including 129 acres (522,000 m²) of easements. Most of the base was ruled surplus to the needs of the federal government and has been transferred or leased to various entities, primarily the County of Sacramento.
In 1995, the airport was officially reopened as a Sacramento Mather Airport, a 2,675 acre (11 km²) cargo airport. Another 1,432 (5.8 km²) acres became the Mather Regional Park. Other areas of the former Air Force Base have been developed for housing, a business park, the Veterans Administration Medical Center, and the Federal Aviation Administration’s Northern California TRACON facility.
[edit] Units
- 3535th Navigator Training Wing (ATC) 1946 to 1973
The 3535th Navigator Training Wing was composed of the following squadrons:
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- 3535th Navigator Training Squadron (3535th NTS)
- 3536th Navigator Training Squadron (3536th NTS)
- 3537th Navigator Training Squadron (3537th NTS)
- 3538th Navigator Training Squadron (3538th NTS)
- 3539th Navigator Training Squadron (3539th NTS)
- 3540th Navigator Training Squadron (3540th NTS)
- 3541st Navigator Training Squadron (3541st NTS)
- 323rd Flying Training Wing (ATC) 1973 to 1993
The 323rd Flying Training Wing was composed of the following squadrons:
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- 449th Flying Training Squadron (449th FTS)
- 450th Flying Training Squadron (450th FTS)
- 451st Flying Training Squadron (451st FTS)
- 452nd Flying Training Squadron (452nd FTS)
- 453th Flying Training Squadron (453rd FTS)
- 454th Flying Training Squadron (454th FTS)
- 455th Flying Training Squadron (455th FTS)
- 4134th Strategic Wing (SAC) 1958 to 1963
On April 1, 1958, the Strategic Air Command's (SAC) 4134th Strategic Wing composed of the 72nd Bombardment Squadron and 904th Aerial Refueling Squadron was assigned to Mather AFB. The Strategic Wings were formed in the late 1950's as part of SAC's plan to disburse it's big bombers over a larger number of bases, thus making it more difficult for the Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike. All of the "Strat" Wings had one squadron of B-52's containing 15 aircraft. Half of the planes were maintained on fifteen minute alert, fully fueled, armed, and ready for combat. The remaining planes were used for training in bombardment missions and air refueling operations. Most of the "Strat Wings" also had a squadron of KC-135 tankers. The Strategic Wing designation was phased out in early 1963. In most cases, the aircraft and crews remained at the same base, but the wing (and its bomb squadron) were given new designations. The 4134th Strategic Wing was deactivated on February 1, 1963.
- 320th Bombardment Wing (SAC) 1963 to 1989
The 320th Bombardment Wing (320th BW) was assigned to Mather AFB on February 1, 1963. The 320th BW included the 441st Bombardment Squadron and 904th Aerial Refueling Squadron. The 441 BS flew the B-52 and the 904 ARS flew the KC-135. The 320th BW and the 441st BS were inactivated on September 30, 1989.
