43°08′23″N089°20′15″W / 43.13972°N 89.33750°W /43.13972; -89.33750
| Truax Field Air National Guard Base | |||||||||||
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| Madison,Wisconsin in theUnited States | |||||||||||
 F-16 Fighting Falcons assigned to the115th Fighter Wing of theWisconsin Air National Guard in a hangar at Truax Field ANGB. | |||||||||||
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| Site information | |||||||||||
| Type | Air National Guard Base | ||||||||||
| Owner | Department of Defense | ||||||||||
| Operator | US Air Force (USAF) | ||||||||||
| Controlled by | Wisconsin Air National Guard (ANG) | ||||||||||
| Condition | Operational | ||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||
| Location | |||||||||||
  Truax Field ANGB  Truax Field ANGB  Truax Field ANGB .svg) Truax Field ANGB | |||||||||||
| Coordinates | 43°08′23″N089°20′15″W / 43.13972°N 89.33750°W /43.13972; -89.33750 (Truax Field) | ||||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||||
| Built | 1942 (1942) (as Madison Army Airfield) | ||||||||||
| In use | 1942 – present 1946 (1946) | ||||||||||
| Garrison information | |||||||||||
| Garrison | 115th Fighter Wing (host) | ||||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: MSN,ICAO: KMSN,FAA LID: MSN,WMO: 726410 | ||||||||||
| Elevation | 270.3 meters (887 ft)AMSL | ||||||||||
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| Airfield shared withDane County Regional Airport. Source:Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||||||||||
Truax Field Air National Guard Base (IATA:MSN,ICAO:KMSN,FAALID:MSN), also known asTruax Field, is a military facility located atDane County Regional Airport. It is located five miles (8 km) northeast of the center ofMadison, a city inDane County,Wisconsin,United States.
Truax Field was named in honor of Wisconsin native Lieutenant Thomas L. Truax, who was killed in aP-40 training accident in November 1941.
The airport is home to both theWisconsin Army National Guard and theWisconsin Air National Guard.
Originally known asMadison Army Airfield, Truax Field was activated as anArmy Air Forces airfield in June 1942 duringWorld War II. During the war it was used by the Army Air Force Eastern Technical Training Center, a major school operating at Truax AAF for training radio operators and mechanics, and later expanded to training in radar operations, control tower operations and other communications fields for the Army Airways Communication Service. A special unit established in 1943 trained radio operators and mechanics onB-29 Superfortress communications equipment. The host unit on the airfield was the 334th (later 3508th) Army Air Force Base Unit. On 17 September 1945, the airfield's mission was changed to that of a separation center, and it was closed as an active AAF airfield on 30 November 1945.
Conveyed to local civilian authorities, the "Madison Municipal Airport" also became the home of theWisconsin Air National Guard and its present-day115th Fighter Wing (115 FW), anAir National Guard fighter wing operationally-gained by theAir Combat Command (ACC) and which still operates from the base, flying theF-35A Lightning II.
Reactivated by theUnited States Air Force on 1 February 1952 and renamedTruax Air Force Base, the installation was brought up to active duty status during theKorean War as anAir Defense Command (ADC) fighter-interceptor base. The initial USAF unit assigned to Truax was the 78th Air Base Squadron. ADC assigned Truax AFB to itsCentral Air Defense Force and activated the Wisconsin Air National Guard's128th Fighter-Interceptor Group, normally based in Milwaukee. The 128th FIG flewF-80 Shooting Stars from Truax until returning toMilwaukee in February 1952.
After some construction of additional runways, taxiways, aprons and support facilities, the78th Fighter-Interceptor Group with its432d and433d Fighter-Interceptor Squadrons arrived on 1 November 1952, replacing the 78th ABS as the host operating unit at Truax. The 78th was reassigned fromHamilton AFB,California and flew theF-86 Sabre andF-89 Scorpion aircraft in a fighter-interceptor role.
On 9 April 1955, Truax AFB became the headquarters of ADC's37th Air Division (Defense). The 37th AD was responsible for the air defense of parts ofWisconsin,Illinois, andIndiana, includingChicago. On 1 April 1959, ADC's30th Air Division, operating theSemi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) system, replaced the 37th AD. The 30th was a command and control organization responsible for radar coverage of the midwest using theSemi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) automated control system for tracking and intercepting enemy bomber aircraft. SAGE, in later versions, could also automatically direct aircraft to an interception by sending commands directly to the aircraft's autopilot.
In the late 1950s, the aircraft assigned to the base changed to theF-102 Delta Dagger and the 78th was replaced by the327th Fighter-Interceptor Group, which arrived in 1956, replacing the 78th. The 327th's squadrons were the 61st, 323d and325th Fighter-Interceptor Squadrons.
In 1966, Headquarters, 30th Air Division, was reassigned toSioux City Municipal Airport, Iowa, and the20th Air Division replaced it at Truax. The 20th AD was responsible for air defense of parts of Wisconsin,Minnesota,Iowa,Missouri,Arkansas,Tennessee,Kentucky,Indiana, and all ofIllinois. It also supervisedAir National Guard units that flew interception sorties using, among others, theF-101 Voodoo andF-106 Delta Dart aircraft, while at the same time controlling numerous ground-based USAF radar squadrons.
By the late 1960s, the need for air defense against crewed aircraft was diminishing and the renamedAerospace Defense Command (ADC) was consolidating and drawing down its forces. On 31 December 1967, the 20th AD was reassigned to Fort Lee AFS, Virginia and Truax AFB was deactivated as an active Aerospace Defense Command base in early 1968. Those portions of Truax AFB not reverting to civilian control were turned over to theWisconsin Air National Guard asTruax Field Air National Guard Base and Dane County Regional Airport/Truax Field has been a joint military/civil airport ever since.
Truax Field ANGB remains the home installation of the115th Fighter Wing (115 FW), anAir National Guard unit operationally gained by theAir Combat Command (ACC), formerly flying theLockheed F-16 Fighting FalconC/D multi-role fighter aircraft. The 115 FW has two distinct missions. The Federal mission under Title 10 USC is to staff and train flying and support units to augmentAir Combat Command general purpose fighter forces to effectively and rapidly project F-16 combat power anywhere in the world to perform wartime or peacetime missions as well as operations other than war. The 115 FW maintains mobilization readiness as part of the Air Reserve Component (ARC) and conducts training as directed by ACC. The State mission under Title 32 USC is to provide trained and equipped units to protect life and property and to preserve peace, order, and public safety as directed by the Governor of Wisconsin.
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In April 2020, the Air Force announced that theF-35A Lightning II would be based at Truax Field, with the 115th Fighter Wing receiving its first aircraft in 2023.[2]
The 115 FW's last F-16 left Truax field in October 2022. The first three F-35As arrived in 25 April 2023.[3]
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
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