Hutchinson Air National Guard Base
| Naval Air Station Hutchinson Hutchinson Air National Guard Base .svg.png)   | |
|---|---|
| Located near: Yoder, Kansas | |
|
USGS photo, 1 October 1991 | |
  Hutchinson ANGB Location of Hutchinson ANGB, Kansas | |
| Coordinates | 37°55′34″N 097°53′13″W / 37.92611°N 97.88694°W |
| Type |
Naval Air Station Air National Guard Base |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by |
 United States Navy United States Air Force |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1942 |
| In use | 1942-1946; 1952-1968 |
Hutchinson Air National Guard Base is a closed United States Navy naval air station and a closed Air National Guard base. It is located 2 miles (3.2 km) west-southwest of Yoder, Kansas. It was closed for all military use in 1968.
The airfield was reopened in 1971 as Sunflower Aerodrome Gliderport. It is also used by the Federal Aviation Administration as a long-range radar site data-tied into the Joint Surveillance System (JSS).
History
United States Navy use
In 1942, the United States Navy selected more than 2,500 acres of land near Yoder, Kansas for a naval airfield for training of Student Naval Aviators. Construction of Naval Air Station (NAS) Hutchinson began in October 1942. In addition to the main facility, an additional 3,900 acres were leased for up to 20 additional auxiliary landing fields. While construction was ongoing, the Navy used the Yoder Municipal Airport as a temporary training site.
Aircraft initially assigned to NAS Hutchinson were Stearman N2S-3s and N2S-4s, later upgraded to N2S-5s trainers. In 1944, training of pilots and flight crews for Consolidated PB4Y-1 Liberators, a navalized version of the U.S. Army Air Forces' B-24 Liberator modified for maritime patrol and reconnaissance duties, was also conducted at NAS Hutchinson. At its wartime peak, over 5,000 personnel were assigned. With the end of World War II, NAS Hutchinson was closed and disposed of through the War Assets Administration in 1946.
During the postwar years, the former naval air station was reopened as Yoder Commercial Airport, which apparently operated as a general aviation airport. The private airport was not successful and was closed c. 1950.
As a result of the Korean War, the Navy exercised its right of return to the airfield under a reversal clause and reopened the facility as NAS Hutchinson in 1952. Again a training station, NAS Hutchinson was now used for multi-engine training of Naval Air Reserve pilots and aircrewmen using land-based PB4Y-2 Privateers. In addition of the Privateers, the Navy also had a patrol squadron of P2V-3 Neptunes active at the station. The Navy remained active at NAS Hutchinson until 1957-1958 when it closed its facilities, most likely due to budget reductions, and transferred the installation to the Kansas Air National Guard, which renamed the installation Hutchinson Air National Guard Base (ANGB).
Air Defense Command use
On 1 May 1951, the 793d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron (AC&W Sq) was activated at Hutchinson Air Force Station (AFS) (P-47), the radar site on the facility. In May 1952, the 793 AC&W Sq began operating a pair of AN/FPS-10 radars, and initially the station functioned as a Ground-Control Intercept (GCI) and warning station. As a GCI station, the squadron's role was to guide interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the unit's radar scopes. During 1958, an AN/FPS-3 search radar saw duty and a pair of AN/FPS-6A height-finder radars were installed.
By late 1959, Hutchinson AFS was performing air traffic control duties for the Federal Aviation Administration. At this time the site operated an AN/FPS-20 search radar. In the early 1960s, this radar was upgraded and redesignated as an AN/FPS-66. During late January 1961, Hutchinson AFS joined the Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) system, feeding data to Site DC-22 at Sioux City AFS, Iowa. After joining, the squadron was redesignated as the 793d Radar Squadron (SAGE) on 1 February 1962. The radar squadron provided information 24/7/365 to the SAGE Direction Center, where it was analyzed to determine range, direction altitude speed and whether or not aircraft were friendly or hostile.
The 793rd Radar Squadron was inactivated on 8 September 1968, primarily due to budget reductions. With its closure the site was declared excess and closed on 30 September 1968.
Kansas Air National Guard use
In 1957, with the Navy moving out of the airfield, the Kansas Air National Guard's 117th Fighter Interceptor Squadron was formed on the airfield, which was renamed as Hutchinson Air National Guard Base following the Navy's departure. Originally flying F-80C Shooting Stars, the unit transitioned to the RB-57B reconnaissance variant of the B-57 Canberra light bomber during 1957-1958. The unit was subsequently renamed the 117th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron (117 TRS) until its redesignation as the 190th Tactical Reconnaissance Group (190 TRG), with the 117 TRS as its subordinate operational flying squadron, in 1962.[1]
The unit continued to operate its Canberras at Hutchinson ANGB until 1967, when the 190 TRG and its personnel, aircraft and equipment permanently relocated to Forbes AFB, Kansas after Strategic Air Command vacated its facilities at the Topeka base and transferred Forbes AFB to the Tactical Air Command.
Current status
Totally closed as a military installation by 1968 as part of a nationwide reduction of stateside air force and naval air installations to pay for the increasing costs of the Vietnam War, the facility became a private airport in 1971 and primarily used for gliders. The station also became home for several light industrial companies, such as Collins Industries, Consolidated Recycling, Inc., Bella Vista Manufactured Homes, Eaton Metal Tanks, Pioneer Seeds, as the "Hutchinson Air Base Industrial Tract". Many former military buildings were torn down in the late 1960s and 1970s as they reached the end of their service life.
Today, the unused buildings at Hutchinson are deteriorating, and the airfield ramp and most of the aviation facilities consisting of crumbling concrete and pads separating at the expansion joints. One of the runways appear to be partially maintained in aerial photography, for sailplane use. A large amount of cargo trailers are parked on part of the former airfield support area, as well as on one of the former 00L/18R former runway. The Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center (KLETC) is located on the former airfield parking ramp.[2] The Training Center originally used old military buildings for classes and dormitories, but some new structures have since been built. An Emergency Vehicle Operations Course (EVOC) track has been built to the south of the ramp area, and is used to train law enforcement officers in emergency driving.
The airfield was purchased by William Seed, Jr. in the 1970s to become a nationally recognized site for soaring/glider competition. The Kansas Soaring Association joined his quest and is very active. Each year, new pilots flock to the field to learn to fly and existing pilots compete in monthly soaring competitions and state records for distance and speed. (www.soarkansas.org)
William Seed, Jr. has since donated the facility to SSF (Sunflower Soaring Foundation), a 501(c)(3), in which is operated by members of the glider clubs. The SSF mission is to educate new pilots and youth, train people to fly, and foster a competition environment in which the soaring athletes of tomorrow may emerge. Yearly, two Bill Seed Soaring Scholarship's are awarded to youth.
In 1985, a national open class contest was held and top competitors were present. The contest lasted for a week with each day presenting challenges in weather and course planning strategy. The famous soaring pilot Dick Johnson claimed his 10th national win at this event. Flights in sailplanes have ranged from local flying to 425+ mile cross country trips spanning 6+ hours of un-powered flight.
The main support station is now the Hutchinson Community College and Area Vocational School, which have torn down the former military buildings and replaced them with new buildings. Some former military family housing units appear to be in use as private residences.
The Federal Aviation Administration took over operation and maintenance of the former Air Force radars. which are still in use. (N 37 55' 23" W 97 53' 15").
References
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.
External links
- Cornett, Lloyd H; Johnson, Mildred W (1980). A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization, 1946 - 1980 (PDF). Peterson AFB, CO: Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center.
- Winkler, David F.; Webster, Julie L (1997). Searching the skies : the legacy of the United States Cold War defense Radar Program (PDF). Champaign, IL: US Army Construction Engineering Research Laboratories. LCCN 97020912.
- Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields: Hutchinson Naval Air Station
