 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Altus Air Force Base" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(January 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Altus Air Force Base | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Altus,Oklahoma in United States of America | |||||||||||
 ABoeing C-17 Globemaster III of the97th Air Mobility Wing based at Altus AFB. | |||||||||||
 | |||||||||||
| Site information | |||||||||||
| Type | US Air Force base | ||||||||||
| Owner | Department of Defense | ||||||||||
| Operator | US Air Force | ||||||||||
| Controlled by | Air Education and Training Command (AETC) | ||||||||||
| Condition | Operational | ||||||||||
| Website | www.altus.af.mil/ | ||||||||||
| Location | |||||||||||
  Altus AFB  Altus AFB  Altus AFB | |||||||||||
| Coordinates | 34°39′59″N099°16′05″W / 34.66639°N 99.26806°W /34.66639; -99.26806 | ||||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||||
| Built | 1943 (1943) | ||||||||||
| In use | 1943–present | ||||||||||
| Garrison information | |||||||||||
| Current commander | Colonel Richard K. Kind | ||||||||||
| Garrison | 97th Air Mobility Wing | ||||||||||
| Occupants | SeeBased units section for full list. | ||||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: LTS,ICAO: KLTS,FAA LID: LTS,WMO: 0-20000-0-72352 | ||||||||||
| Elevation | 421 m (1,382 ft)AMSL | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
| Source:Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||||||||||
Altus Air Force Base (Altus AFB, AAFB) (IATA:LTS,ICAO:KLTS,FAALID:LTS) is aUnited States Air Force base located approximately 4 miles (6.4 km)east-northeast ofAltus, Oklahoma.
The host unit at Altus AFB is the97th Air Mobility Wing (97 AMW), assigned to theNineteenth Air Force (19 AF) of theAir Education and Training Command (AETC). The wing's mission is to provideC-17 Globemaster III,KC-135 Stratotanker andKC-46 Pegasus formal initial and advanced specialty training programs for up to 3,000 flight crew and aircraft maintenance students annually.
Altus AFB was established in 1943 as Altus Army Airfield (AAF). The 97 AMW is commanded byColonel Richard K. Kind with Vice Commander as Colonel Adam H. Rosado, and the Command Chief Master Sergeant is Chief Master Sergeant Jon T. Adams[1].
The 97 AMW consists of the following major units:
97th Operations GroupFlying and notable non-flying units based at Altus Air Force Base.[2][3][4]
Air Education and Training Command(AETC)
Nineteenth Air Force
97th Air Mobility Wing
97th Comptroller Squadron
97th Operations Group
97th Maintenance Group
97th Maintenance Squadron
97th Medical Group
97th Mission Support Group
97th Civil Engineer Squadron
97th Communications Squadron
97th Logistics Readiness Squadron
97th Security Forces SquadronAir Force Reserve Command (AFRC)
Fourth Air Force
507th Air Refueling Wing
730th Air Mobility Training Squadron (GSU)The base became operational in January 1943, training new pilots on multi-engine aircraft. The primary training aircraft were theCessna AT-17 Bobcat and theCurtiss-Wright AT-9 Jeep. On 15 May 1945, the airfield was placed on temporary inactive status.[5]
It later became an aircraft disposal point for theReconstruction Finance Corporation.
The base sat idle for only a few years. The onset of theKorean War in June 1950 created the need for more staff to fly
During the 1950s, the base underwent many changes and changed hands from TAC to theStrategic Air Command (SAC). Later that year, on 18 November, the96th Bombardment Wing, Medium (96 BMW), arrived and began operations with three bomber squadrons and one air refueling squadron. The squadrons eventually flew the first all jet-engined bomber, theB-47 Stratojet and theKC-97 Stratofreighter, a dual-purpose cargo and air-refueling aircraft. By the end of the decade, both of these aircraft would be replaced by aircraft still in the Air Force inventory, theKC-135 Stratotanker and theB-52 Stratofortress. The KC-135 was the first all jet-engined air-refueling aircraft and the B-52 still remains the backbone of the USAF bomber fleet. When the 96th BW moved toDyess AFB, Texas, the 11th Bombardment Wing (Heavy) activated and stood on alert during the Cold War.[5]
June 1961 witnessed the activation of twelveAtlas “F”intercontinental ballistic missile sites within a 40-mile radius of the base. Controlled by the577th Strategic Missile Squadron, the missiles sat inside a silo, constructed underground with a launch facility, and staffed around the clock. The missile silos became operational on 10 October 1962, but the activation would be short-lived. The missile at the Frederick, OK, site exploded in May 1964. The missiles were outdated. By April 1965, the missiles were phased out of the national strategic defense plan.[5]
In August 1966, the4th Mobile Communications Group transferred fromHunter AFB, Georgia, to Altus. The unit's mission consisted of providing mobile and transportable communication services, aiding navigation and air traffic control throughout the world.[5]
In 1967, the Air Force began searching for a base that could handle the training for its strategic airlift fleet, theC-141 Starlifter and its newest and largest transport aircraft, theC-5 Galaxy. Again, Oklahoma proved to be well suited for the mission. TheMilitary Airlift Command (MAC) assumed command of the base from SAC and activated the443d Military Airlift Wing (443 MAW), Training, to assume host wing responsibilities and to fly alongside the SAC aircraft that would become a tenant command at Altus.[5]
By the start of the 1970s, Altus AFB had three aircraft type/models assigned: KC-135s, C-141s, and C-5s. For the KC-135 aircraft at Altus still under SAC's control, the USAF activated the340th Air Refueling Wing, which continued to operate the base's KC-135s.[5]
The post Cold War environment brought many changes to Altus AFB. On 1 June 1992, the Air Force reorganized and theMilitary Airlift Command (MAC) disestablished. In its place the newAir Mobility Command (AMC) was activated, which placed MAC's strategic and tactical airlift aircraft and SAC's aerial refueling aircraft under a single command. Second, the443d Airlift Wing and the340th Air Refueling Wing were inactivated, with the latter's aircraft transferred to the19th Air Refueling Wing atRobins AFB, Georgia.[5]
On 1 October, the first Air Mobility Wing (AMW), the97th Air Mobility Wing (97 AMW), arrived Altus without personnel or equipment, having formerly been designated as SAC's 97th Bombardment Wing and having been transferred from the deactivatingEaker AFB, Arkansas as a result ofBase Realignment and Closure (BRAC) action. The 97 AMW was tasked with flight crew formal training unit (FTU) responsibilities for the C-141 and C-5 aircrew, and with the closure ofCastle AFB, California due to BRAC action, concurrently assumed FTU responsibilities for KC-135E/R/T flight crews. On 1 July 1993, the 97th was transferred from AMC to the newly establishedAir Education and Training Command (AETC) as part of a USAF initiative to move most FTU activities to AETC.
More changes were on the horizon. In 1996, the latest addition to Altus AFB, the newC-17 Globemaster III, arrived. Even before its arrival, the base began training pilots and loadmasters to operate and fly the aircraft.[5]
In August 2002, the mission of the wing grew when the Air Force moved the basic loadmaster course fromSheppard AFB, Texas, to Altus. This initiative combined similar training programs to reduce the number of moves required by trainees while cutting overall costs. Additionally, during that same month, the wing reorganized as a "combat wing": the 97th Support Group became the 97th Mission Support Group, gaining the new 97th Logistics Readiness Squadron (comprising the former 97th Supply Squadron, 97th Transportation Squadron and logistics plans flight) and the 97th Contracting Squadron. Also, the 97th Logistics Group inactivated and the 97th Maintenance Directorate was activated. The directorate comprises civil-service personnel, who are responsible for the care and maintenance of all three airframes at the base.[5]
The 97 AMW discontinued FTU responsibilities for the C-141 concurrent with that aircraft's retirement from the USAF inventory in 2006. On 1 July 2007, theAir Force Reserve Command's (AFRC)433d Airlift Wing (433 AW) atLackland AFB/Kelly Field (formerKelly AFB) assumed responsibility for all flying training and academic training for the C-5 aircraft for all Regular Air Force,Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) andAir National Guard (ANG) aircrews, leaving the 97 AMW and Altus to concentrate onC-17A,KC-135R, andKC-46A training forAMC,USAFE,PACAF,AFRC andANG aircrews.[6]
|
|
|
|
|
|
The577th Strategic Missile Squadron operated twelve missile sites, of one missile at each site:
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency This article incorporatespublic domain material fromAltus Air Force Base.United States Air Force.| Air Forces | | |
|---|---|---|
| Bases | ||
| Wings | ||
| Groups | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
