| Duke Field | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Eglin Air Force Auxiliary Field #3 | |||||||||
| Part ofEglin Air Force Base | |||||||||
| NearCrestview,Florida in United States of America | |||||||||
 ADornier C-146A Wolfhound of the919th Special Operations Wing based at Duke Field. | |||||||||
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| Site information | |||||||||
| Type | US Air Force base | ||||||||
| Owner | Department of Defense | ||||||||
| Operator | US Air Force | ||||||||
| Controlled by | Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) | ||||||||
| Condition | Operational | ||||||||
| Website | 919sow.afrc.af.mil | ||||||||
| Location | |||||||||
  Duke Field Duke Field Show map of Florida Duke Field Duke Field (the United States) Show map of the United States Duke Field Duke Field (North America) Show map of North America Duke Field Duke Field (Gulf of Mexico) Show map of Gulf of Mexico | |||||||||
| Coordinates | 30°39′01″N086°31′22″W / 30.65028°N 86.52278°W /30.65028; -86.52278 | ||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||
| Built | 1941 (1941) – 1942 | ||||||||
| In use | 1942 – present | ||||||||
| Garrison information | |||||||||
| Garrison | 919th Special Operations Wing | ||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: EGI,ICAO: KEGI,FAA LID: EGI,WMO: 722246 | ||||||||
| Elevation | 59.4 metres (195 ft)AMSL | ||||||||
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| Other airfield facilities | 2xVTOL pads and 1x Landing Helicopter Deck | ||||||||
| Source:Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||||||||
Duke Field (IATA:EGI,ICAO:KEGI,FAALID:EGI), also known asEglin AFB Auxiliary Field #3, is a military airport located three miles (5 km) south of thecentral business district ofCrestview, inOkaloosa County, Florida, United States.
Duke Field was one of the first auxiliary fields built on the Eglin Field / Eglin AFB complex. Clearing and grading began 23 January 1941,[2] with the first building foundations laid on 15 February 1942.[3] Field 3 was used as a training base by theDoolittle Raiders in 1942. Shortly after the end of World War II, the field was one of several sites used in the production of the 1949 feature filmTwelve O'Clock High.
In the 1950s, Duke Field became home to the3205th Drone Group, which operated radio remote-controlledB-17s andF-80s that were used for gunnery and missile practice over the Gulf of Mexico. They were also used in the nuclear test program by flying the unmanned aircraft through atomic detonation clouds to gather fallout information.
A large hump-backed steel hangar, the "Butler Hangar", 160 feet (49 m) X 130 feet, transported fromTrinidad (probably from the formerWaller Air Force Base, closed 28 May 1949 due to budget cuts), was erected at Auxiliary Field 3 between 1 April and ~10 July 1950, by personnel of Company 'C', 806th Aviation Engineering Battalion, under Captain Samuel M. Cable, and the men of the550th Guided Missiles Wing. Project Officer was Captain Clarence A. Ebbert of the Proving Ground Command Installations Division. An additional four feet of roof clearance was added to accommodate B-17s in the 21,000-square-foot (2,000 m2) structure. Concrete block buildings, 160 feet (49 m) X 40 feet, were erected on the flanks of the hangar. Concurrently, the 8,000-foot (2,400 m) runway was widened to 100 feet (30 m) and additional parking ramps were constructed, with 117,327 cubic yards of dirt excavated. The new ramps and runway expansion consisted of asphalt over a crushed shell base.[4]
In 1960 and 1961, in preparation for theBay of Pigs Invasion, Duke Field was host to 'sanitized'Douglas C-54s andCurtiss C-46s used for transporting personnel, armaments and supplies between US bases such asHomestead AFB andOpa-locka Airport and CIA-run bases in Guatemala and latterly Nicaragua. A unit at the field was responsible for 'sanitizing' and adapting about 20Douglas B-26 Invaders for use byCuban exile aircrews during the invasion. A fewT-33s andC-130s were also prepared for use in the conflict, but not used.[5]
The Development Projects Division (DPD), theCentral Intelligence Agency's air arm, operated as the1045th Operational Evaluation and Training Group, Headquarters Command, Eglin AFB, as the Air Force designated it, but which was a DPD operation out of Duke Field from late 1960 to June/July 1961.[6] "There was a total of about 20 Polish airmen at Eglin at the time, all of them 'employed' by Lockheed, so there should be enough of them to form at least two crews."[7][8] The DPD operated independently of "the organizational structure of the project, in which it had a vital, central role, including air drops to the underground, training Cuban pilots, operation of air bases, the immense logistical problems of transporting the Cuban volunteers from Florida to Guatemala, and the procuring and servicing of the military planes."[9]
Between August and October 1970, during theVietnam War, the Joint Contingency Task Group usedAFROTC facilities at Duke Field to houseUS Army Special Forces troops involved inOperation Ivory Coast, a mission to rescueprisoners of war atSơn Tây,North Vietnam. Aircraft based atEglin AFB andHurlburt Field involved in the training also used Duke Field daily as an operational airstrip to maintain a low profile.
On 30 July 1971, the919th Tactical Airlift Group (919 TAG) was activated in theAir Force Reserve (AFRES) and established at Duke Field withC-130A Hercules aircraft, with the unit operationally gained by theTactical Air Command (TAC). With this action, the 919 TAG effectively became the "host group" organization (similar to "host wing" at larger USAF installations) for Duke Field.
On 1 July 1975 the 919 TAG converted to a special operations mission and became the919th Special Operations Group (919 SOG), the only Air Force ReserveAC-130 Spectre gunship unit. AC-130A were transferred from the Regular Air Force as the Regular Air Force transitioned to the AC-130H and nearly $6.7 million in new construction was programmed at Duke Field through Fiscal Year 1976.[10] Although USAF C-130 airlift units were transferred to theMilitary Airlift Command (MAC) in 1975, AC-130 units remained under TAC.
In 1980, Duke Field was also one of the fields used in training forOperation Credible Sport, an initiative to prepare for a second rescue attempt of Americanhostages held in Iran using C-130 aircraft modified with multiple rocket engines for extremely short landings and takeoffs. Most of the testing for this was done atWagner Field (Eglin AFB Auxiliary Field #1) and it was there during a 29 October 1980 demonstration of one of the highly modifiedYMC-130H Credible Sport aircraft that a malfunction and hard landing resulted in the destruction of this particular aircraft. All crew aboard the aircraft survived.
In 1983, operational claimancy for the 919 SOG shifted from TAC to MAC and the latter's newly established23d Air Force (23 AF), said action paralleling the transfer of all Regular Air Force AC-130 and MC-130 units and assets from TAC to MAC. In 1990, 23 AF was re-designated asAir Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC), a separate Air Force major command (MAJCOM), and operational claimancy for the 919 SOG shifted to AFSOC.
In 1992, the 919 SOG was re-designated as the919th Special Operations Wing (919 SOW), the designation it currently retains today. In 1995, the 919 SOW's AC-130A aircraft were retired and the 919 SOW converted to theMC-130E Combat Talon I and MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft and made available for worldwide deployment. Also in 1995, while the wing's711th Special Operations Squadron (711 SOS) transitioned to the MC-130E, the5th Special Operations Squadron (5 SOS) was activated within the 919 SOW at Duke Field to fly the MC-130N/P, Combat Shadow special operations aerial refueling aircraft.
On 17 February 1997, the Air Force Reserve (AFRES) ceased to be a Field Operating Agency of the Air Force and became an Air Force MAJCOM as theAir Force Reserve Command (AFRC), making the 919 SOW a subordinate command of AFRC. However, the 919 SOW's operational relationship with AFSOC would remain unchanged.
In 2000, about 170 active duty USAF aircraft maintenance personnel from the 716th Maintenance Squadron (716 MXS) took up residence at Duke Field as an Active Associate unit to the 919 SOW. At the time, this symbiotic relationship was unique because it was the only active associate maintenance squadron in the Air Force. The 716 MXS worked in tandem with Air Force Reserve members to provide maintenance support to MC-130E aircraft. The 716 MXS maintainers were under the mission control of the 919th Maintenance Group (919 MXG) infrastructure and 919 MXG work center supervisors scheduled the maintainers, prioritized the work, furnished tools and special equipment, and provided first line supervision. However, the 716 MXS maintainers remained under the administrative control of the active duty 16th Maintenance Group (16 MXG) atHurlburt Field through the 716 MXS commander. The commander was responsible for military discipline matters, administrative reports (including performance reports), personnel accountability, manpower, training, individual equipment and temporary duty/travel funding.[11]
Six originalRaiders were present at Duke Field, on Saturday 31 May 2008 for the culmination of their annual reunion. Three civilianB-25s in warbird markings re-enacted the training take-off sessions, with personnel fromNAS Pensacola as flight deck crew representing that service's contribution to the Tokyo raid.
The 919 SOW retired its fleet ofC-145A Combat Coyote in December 2022.[12]
Although technically part of the larger nearbyEglin Air Force Base complex, today Duke Field is essentially a small air force base in its own right. Primarily an AFRC installation, Duke Field is hosted by the919th Special Operations Wing (919 SOW), which operated theMC-130E Combat Talon I aircraft until April 2013[13] The 919 SOW previously operated theAC-130A Spectre gunship aircraft as flown by the 711 SOS prior to transitioning to the MC-130E in 1995.
The 919 SOW currently operates theMQ-9 Reaper,U-28A Draco andC-146A Wolfhound aircraft. As an AFRC unit, the 919 SOW is operationally gained by AFSOC, headquartered at nearbyHurlburt Field. The wing contains 13 squadrons, 2 of which are stationed at Hurlburt Field, Florida.
Flying and notable non-flying units based at Duke Field.[14][15][16][17]
Units marked GSU are Geographically Separate Units, which although based at Duke, are subordinate to a parent unit based at another location.
Air Force Reserve Command(AFRC)
| Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC)
Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC)
|
The installation is named for 1st Lt Robert L. Duke, who died in the crash of aCurtiss A-25A-20-CS Shrike, AAF Ser. No.42-79823, nearSpencer, Tennessee on 29 December 1943. He was assigned as Assistant A-3[18] to the Proving Ground of theAAF Proving Ground Command atEglin Field, Florida, nowEglin Air Force Base.
The Duke Field installation is about 12 miles (19 km) north of the Eglin AFB East Gate onState Road 85.
Duke Field has twoasphalt pavedrunways: Runway 18/36, measuring 8,025 x 150 ft (2,446 x 46 m) and Assault Runway 180/360, measuring 3,500 x 60 ft (1,067 x 18 m).
Although technically an auxiliary field toEglin AFB, Duke Field is essentially a self-contained installation. The airfield has its own air traffic control tower, security forces building, Air Force Fire Protection facilities (Fire Station #8),instrument landing system (ILS),TACAN and support infrastructure such as a large flight line/ramp area, hangars, shoppette, self service gas station, hotel service, fitness track, recreational areas, maintenance facilities and other operational and administrative support buildings.
This article incorporatespublic domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)| Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) | |||||||||
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