McChord Field

By Kimberly Peterson

McChord Field, tucked away in the Pacific Northwest, maintains an understated presence. Yet this subdued outpost plays a vital role in major conflicts around the world. On July 3, 1940, McChord officially opened as a training base, developing bomber crews for aircraft such as B-17s, B-18s, B-25s, B26s, and even some of the Doolittle Raiders. Strategically located, McChord functioned as an aircraft modification center, producing P-39s, the Soviet Union s most venerable aircraft, as well as a homeland defense center during World War II. The dawning of the Cold War expanded air defense operations with the newly formed Air Defense Command, receiving the P-61, followed by the F-86, F-102, F-106, and F-15. A global airlift hub using C-124s, C-141s, and C-17s, McChord has supported humanitarian, Antarctic, and wartime missions for America.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Release date: Jul 22, 2013
• ISBN: 9781439643686

Kimberly Peterson

Kimberly Peterson is a military researcher with over 22 years of experience studying military operations and culture spanning the Pacific, European, Southwest Asian theaters, as well as World War II home-front efforts. She is a world traveler, an expert on modern military lifestyle, and an award-winning photographer. She employs her skills to research and develop the untold story of McChord Field from its origins to the present day, using rare and memorable photographs from the Air Force Historical Agency and the McChord Museum.

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history.

INTRODUCTION

Nestled between the Cascade Mountains and Puget Sound in Pierce County, Washington, McChord Field is a part of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, formerly known as McChord Air Force Base. McChord Field, home to the 62nd Airlift Wing, is located in Tacoma, 45 miles south of Seattle, and has a very rich and detailed history at home and around the world.

McChord Field was not always full of concrete, enormous hangars, and gigantic aircraft. Not so long ago, fields covered with trees and grass occupied the site. Ownership of the land had passed from the Northwest Fur Company to the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1821. In 1833, the Hudson Bay Company founded Fort Nisqually and began to operate a number of farms and sheep stations on 150,000 acres of land. Around 1847, the company established a sheep station in the area where the east gate is now located. Nearly 30 years later, the company sold its lands to the US government, ending the operation of the sheep stations.

Early in the 20th century, the sheep fields were replaced by an airfield. On November 7, 1927, a bond issued by Pierce County provided the funds to establish an airfield, which was voted and approved by 66 percent of the electorate. After much debate, the Pierce County Commissioners voted to name the new airfield Tacoma Field. The geography of Tacoma Field and the surrounding area was swamp, plains, and prairie, but the location, weather, and terrain still offered a good location to build the airfield. The temperature is moderate year-round, the land is flat, ranging from 200 to 800 feet above sea level, and the Cascade and Olympic Mountain ranges provide shelter from the northwesterly winds.

Despite its good location, Tacoma Field was operating in the red in early 1933. The Army became interested in Tacoma Field and sent 100 Army airships from San Francisco in May to take part in a Fort Lewis training exercise. This move helped save the airport, but around 1934, Congress authorized the secretary of war to establish airfields in six strategic areas around the United States. The 900-acre Tacoma Field was chosen as the best location in the Pacific Northwest.

This deal was a preview of the fate of the airfield. On May 5, 1938, the governor of Washington approved the transfer of land to the US government. The new owner of the old Tacoma airport now owned one hangar and two landing strips. Tacoma Field received a new name, McChord Field, in honor of Col. William C. McChord, who had been killed in an airplane accident near Richmond, Virginia, on August 18, 1937. Shortly afterward, contracts were awarded and construction crews began to shape and mold many of the structures that remain in place to this very day. Hangars No. 1, 2, 3, and 4 were built, as were the enormous Air Corps barracks, also known as the Castle. Also erected were warehouses, housing for enlisted and officer personnel, and everything necessary to operate a base.

At last, McChord Field was ready for the public to view all of its latest innovations, structures, and airplanes. The base was formally dedicated on July 3, 1940, during the same week that the Tacoma Narrows Bridge opened. The week was full of ceremonies and parades in honor of the fact that supplies and personnel could be easily moved between McChord Field, Fort Lewis, and the Puget Sound Navy Shipyard in Bremerton, Washington, in preparation for the nation’s defense. The first airplanes to arrive at McChord Field were B-18As and B-23s, which were a part of the 17th Bombardment Group and the 89th Reconnaissance Squadron.

The time to celebrate came to an end with the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. McChord Field’s mission changed quickly, from training, aerial resupply, and defense of the Pacific Northwest, to strictly defense. Satellite fields were quickly built at Port Angeles, Olympia, Kitsap, and Ephrats, all to support the increase in airplanes arriving at the base.

Early in the war years, at least 10 members of the 17th Bombardment Group were selected to participate in the Doolittle raid over Tokyo, flying B-25s off the aircraft carrier Hornet. The feat, never before attempted, shook the Japanese, who were surprised to see US aircraft flying over their homeland. As the war progressed, the mission at McChord expanded to include modification of P-39s and, later, redeployment of troops.

After World War II, McChord Field established itself as an airlift facility with the arrival in June 1947 of the 62nd Troop Carrier Group from Bergstrom Field, Texas. This group flew the Fairchild C-82A Packet, marking the beginning of a longtime association between the base and military airlift. On January 1, 1948, McChord Field was renamed McChord Air Force Base. As the decades progressed, the 62nd name underwent a few name changes, from the Troop Carrier Group, to the Military Airlift Wing, and finally the 62nd Airlift Wing. The nature of the airlift aircraft also changed, and included the C-82, C-54, C-124, C-141 and the C-17, to name a few. The command structure changed to GHQ Air Force Northwest Air District, to Military Air Transport Service, then to Military Airlift Command in 1966