Naval Station Norfolk, in
NorfolkNorfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 234,403 as of the 2000 census, it is Virginia's second-largest incorporated city behind its eastern neighbor, Virginia Beach....
,
VirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" because it is the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents. The geography and climate of the state are shaped by the Blue...
, is a base of the
United States NavyThe United States Navy is the sea branch of the U.S. Armed Forces. It is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. As of 31 December 2008, the U.S. Navy had about 331,682 personnel on active duty and 124,000 in the Navy Reserve. It operates 283 ships in active service and more than...
, supporting naval forces in the United States Fleet Forces Command, those operating in the
Atlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres , it covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth's surface and about one-quarter of its water surface area. The first part of its name refers to the Atlas of Greek...
,
Mediterranean SeaThe Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by Africa, and on the east by the Levant. The sea is technically a part of the Atlantic Ocean, although it...
, and
Indian OceanThe Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering about 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by South Asia ; on the west by Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and Australia; and on the south by the Southern Ocean...
. NS Norfolk, also known as the Norfolk Navy Base, occupies about four miles (6 km) of waterfront space and seven miles (11 km) of pier and wharf space of the
Hampton RoadsHampton Roads is the name of both a body of water and the region of land areas which surround it in southeastern Virginia. Hampton Roads is notable for its year-round ice-free harbor, for United States Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force, NASA, Marines, and Army facilities, shipyards, coal piers, and...
peninsula known as
Sewell's PointSewell's Point is a peninsula of land in the independent city of Norfolk, Virginia in the United States, located at the mouth of the salt-water port of Hampton Roads. Sewell's Point is bordered by water on three sides, with Willoughby Bay to the north, Hampton Roads to the west, and the Lafayette...
. It is the world's largest Naval Station, supporting 75 ships and 134 aircraft alongside 14 piers and 11 aircraft hangars, and houses the largest concentration of U.S. Navy forces. Port Services controls more than 3,100 ships' movements annually as they arrive and depart their berths.
Air Operations conducts over 100,000 flight operations each year, an average of 275 flights per day or one every six minutes. Over 150,000 passengers and 264,000 tons of mail and cargo depart annually on Air Mobility Command (AMC) aircraft and other chartered flights from the airfield. It is the hub for Navy logistics going to the European and Central Command theaters of operations, and to the Caribbean.
History
The land on which the naval station is located was originally the site of the 1907
Jamestown ExpositionThe Jamestown Exposition was one of the many world's fairs and expositions that were popular in the United States early part of the 20th century...
. During this exposition, high-ranking naval officers agreed that this site was ideal for a naval activity. A bill was passed in 1908 proposing
CongressThe United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives. Both senators and representatives are chosen through direct election....
to allow $1 million for the purchase of the property and buildings, but it died when the Assistant Secretary of the Navy was given a choice between this property and a new coal ship. He replied that a new ship was an absolute necessity. However, immediately after the United States entered
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
in April 1917, the
Secretary of the NavyThe United States Secretary of the Navy is the civilian head of the Department of the Navy. The position was a member of the President's Cabinet until 1947, when the Navy, Army, and newly created Air Force were placed in the Department of Defense and the Secretary of the Navy was placed under the...
was persuaded to buy the property. A bill was passed for the purchase of 474 acres (1.9 km²); it set aside the sum of $1.2 million as payment for the property and an additional $1.6 million for the development of the base, including piers, aviation facilities, storehouses, facilities for fuel and oil storage, a recruit training station, a
submarine baseA submarine base is a military base that shelters submarines and their personnel.Examples of present-day submarine bases include HMNB Clyde, Île Longue , Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Naval Submarine Base New London, and Rybachiy Nuclear Submarine Base .The Israeli navy bases its growing submarine...
and recreation grounds for fleet personnel. Rear Admiral Dillingham was assigned the task of coordinating the area's development.
Construction of the training camp began on Independence Day 1917, and within the first 30 days housing for 7,500 men had been completed. The next six months saw the establishment of the 5th Naval District Headquarters and the
Naval Operating Base, which included the Naval Training Center, Naval Air Station, Naval Hospital and Submarine Station. By
Armistice DayArmistice Day is the anniversary of the symbolic end of World War I on 11 November 1918. It commemorates the armistice signed between the Allies and Germany at Rethondes, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front, which took effect at eleven o'clock in the morning — the...
1918, there were 34,000 enlisted men at the base. When the available land became insufficient, a large part of the flats on the west and north were filled from dredging done to allow large ships to dock. During the fall and winter of 1917, approximately 8 million cubic yards (6,000,000 m³) of dredging took place.
NAS Norfolk
Important historical events were taking place on the air side of the station as well. November 14, 1910 marked the birth of naval aviation. Eugene Ely, a pilot employed by the
CurtissGlenn Hammond Curtiss was an American aviation pioneer and founder of the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company, now part of Curtiss-Wright Corporation.-Birth and early career:...
Exhibition Company, slowly accelerated toward the end of a 57-foot (17 m) wooden ramp constructed on the bow of . The heavy cruiser was anchored in the
James RiverThe James River in the U.S. state of Virginia is a long river, including its Jackson River source. It drains a catchment comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million people...
, not too far from the site of the
Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
's famous ironclad
Battle of Hampton RoadsThe Battle of Hampton Roads, often referred to as the Battle of Monitor and Merrimack , was the most noted and arguably the most important naval battle of the American Civil War from the standpoint of the development of navies...
between the and
MerrimacCSS Virginia was a steam-powered battery design ironclad warship of the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War, built using the remains of the scuttled USS Merrimack in 1862....
.
NAS Norfolk started its roots training aviators at Naval Air Detachment, Curtiss Field,
Newport NewsNewport News is an independent city in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia. It is at the south-western end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending southeast from Skiffe's Creek along many miles of waterfront to the river's mouth at Newport News Point on the...
, May 19, 1917. Approximately five months later, with a staff increasing to five officers, three aviators, ten enlisted sailors and seven aircraft, the detachment was renamed Naval Air Detachment, Naval Operating Base, Hampton Roads. The aircraft, all seaplanes, were flown across the James River and moored to stakes in the water until canvas hangars were constructed. The new location offered sheltered water in an ice-free harbor, perfect for seaplane landings, good anchorage on the beach front, accessibility to supplies from Naval Station Norfolk and room for expansion. Its mission was to conduct anti-submarine patrols, train aviators and mechanics and run an experimental facility.
World War I
When the United States became involved in World War I, the size of the Navy's air component was rapidly expanded. In the 19 months of U. S. participation, a force of 6,716 officers and 30,693 enlisted served in naval aviation. The training of mechanics to support the aircraft began in January 1918 at the Norfolk detachment and the first patrol was conducted five months later.
By then, the air detachment was recognized as one of the most important sources of trained naval aviators. In recognition of its importance, on August 27, 1918, the detachment became
Naval Air Station Hampton Roads, a separate station under its own commanding officer, Lt. Cmdr. P.N.L. Bellinger.
1920s–1930s
As World War I came to an end, the former NAS Hampton Roads saw erratic growth, growing to nearly 167 officers, 1,227 enlisted men and 65 planes. But, it was after the war that demobilization had threatened the future of naval aviation. Within seven months of the war's end, Navy manpower fell to less than half its wartime highs.
The Republican party rose to power in 1920, promising fiscal austerity. Congress cut naval appropriations by 20% and manpower Navy-wide was reduced. The carriers which Congress had authorized were impossible to man. After the 1929 stock market crash and the onset of the
Great DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, President
Herbert HooverHerbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted government intervention under the rubric "economic...
favored more naval limitation through international conferences, but the air operations in Norfolk continued.
On July 12, 1921, the name was changed again under the command of Capt. S.H.R. Doyle, to
NAS Norfolk, with direct reporting to the
Bureau of AeronauticsThe Bureau of Aeronautics was the U.S. Navy's material-support organization for Naval Aviation from 1921 to 1959. The bureau had "cognizance" for the design, procurement, and support of Naval aircraft and related systems...
in Washington, D.C.
Using the same theories of Eugene Ely's flight nearly 13 years earlier, another milestone was achieved. The air station developed an arresting device to train pilots for deck landings aboard the fleet's first aircraft carrier, . At the same time, the station also began work on the development of the catapult.
In January 1923, the Secretary of the Navy ordered a detailed study of the capacity of the bases and stations during war and peace. In comparing the development of the fleet and shore establishments, only Hampton Roads met the requirements.
Lighter-than-air operations, important for off-shore patrols during the war, ceased in 1924. In an effort similar to base closure struggles the military has today, civilian employees of the Assembly and Repair Department (forerunner of the former Naval Air Depot) joined the Norfolk
Chamber of CommerceA chamber of commerce is a form of business network, e.g., a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to advocate on behalf of the business community...
in successfully fighting the planned suspension of aircraft overhaul work. The training of air groups from newly-commissioned aircraft carriers such as
Langley, and demanded expansion, but appropriations were meager for shore establishments.
During the 1920s and '30s the Naval Station operated at a reduced operating tempo. The training component processed only 1,600 individuals by the late 1920s. By 1927, the Naval Training Station, whose primary mission was to operate 12 service schools and train new recruits, had been reduced considerably from its wartime status, training only 560 recruits at a command with triple that capacity.
During the late 1930s, major construction took place at Naval Station Norfolk. At this time, building K-BB (Naval Station headquarters), the galley, and many barracks were built. As the 1930s came to a close, the station also began to prepare for total war. By 1939, when the Atlantic Fleet returned to the East Coast, the Naval Station was clearly the biggest naval installation on the Atlantic coast. In April 1939, in something of a test, the Naval Station refueled, restocked, and returned to service 25 ships in one week. This force was but the prelude to about 100 ships converging on Norfolk at the time. It included the battleships , and and the carriers,
Lexington, , and .
The expansion of shipboard aviation in the 1930s brought renewed emphasis to Naval Air Station Norfolk. Reverting back to its experimental roots, development and testing of catapult and arresting gear systems took the highest priority at the Air Station. The commissioning of the aircraft carriers
Ranger,
Yorktown, , and increased the tempo of routine training in navigation, gunnery and aerial bombing as new air wings formed prior to
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. This demanded expansion, but appropriations for shore activities were meager. Although congressional approval was gained in 1934 for the purchase of land that would expand the airfield by 540 acres (2.2 km²), the matter was dropped. At the outbreak of war in
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
on September 1, 1939, NAS Norfolk encompassed 236 acres (1.0 km²) with two small operating areas, Chambers Field and West Landing Field. During World War II, the Naval Air Station had a direct combat support role in the area of anti-submarine patrols. President
Franklin D. RooseveltFranklin Delano Roosevelt , the only U.S. President elected to more than two terms, was a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
's response to the start of the war in Europe was the National Emergency Program of September 8, 1939. It resulted in fantastic growth for all Navy activities in the Norfolk area. The combat support role began on October 21, 1939, when a -wide Neutrality Zone was declared around the American coast. Four Norfolk-based patrol squadrons, VP-51, US VP-52, VP-53 and VP-54 were among the first units to enforce the zone.
World War II
World War II profoundly changed the appearance of the Naval Station. With the eruption of war in Europe in September 1939, the station began to vibrate with activity. By December, the Navy had over $4 million in projects underway on the station. By the summer of 1940 the Station employed some 8,000 personnel, a number larger than any time since the end of World War I.
The Hepburn Board had made recommendations to Congress earlier in the year that would also double the size and workload of the station. Since Chambers and West Fields were encroaching on the activities of the former Naval Operating Base, it was decided to expand to the east.
East Camp, with an area of about 1,000 acres (4 km²) between the east side of Naval Station and Granby Street, had been sold off by the Army at the end of World War I. Congress authorized its repurchase in early 1940. On June 29 of that year, a contract was signed with the Virginia Engineering Company of Newport News for the expansion of the station. The cost of expansion and construction was to reach more than $72 million.
Hangars, a new dispensary, three runways, magazine areas, warehouses, barracks and docking areas were patterned after similar existing airfields. The plan was revised and approved by Captain P.N.L. Bellinger, returning as commanding officer 20 years after first holding the job. Bellinger insisted that as many structures as possible be permanent ones. The air station was still largely composed of temporary hangars and workshops left over from World War I. Many were unsafe and costly to maintain.
The last permanent structure added had been the administration building, constructed in 1930. Special attention was paid to control facilities. Prior to the expansion, operations from Chambers Field had no traffic control system except for a white placard inserted through a slot on the roof to indicate the direction of the runway in use.
Some 353 acres (1.4 km²) were eventually reclaimed at a cost of $2.1 million. Two large hangars and ramps for seaplanes, barracks, officer quarters and family housing were built. This construction cut off Mason Creek Road and the Navy compensated the city by improving Kersloe Road between Hampton Boulevard and Granby Street.
Norfolk responded by renaming the road, Admiral Taussig Boulevard, in honor of the
retiring commanderEdward David Taussig was a decorated Rear Admiral in the United States Navy. He is best remembered for being the officer to claim Wake Island during the Spanish-American War, as well as recapturing and serving briefly as Governor of Guam, to restore order on the island after its capture by the...
of the Naval Operating Base.
In July 1940, the Federal government began dredging
Willoughby BayThere are several places called Willoughby Bay. These include:*Willoughby Bay in Virginia, United States*Willougby Bay in Antigua...
and the Naval Air Station seaplane operating area at
Breezy PointBreezy Point can refer to a community in the United States:*Breezy Point, Minnesota, a city in Crow Wing County*Breezy Point, Queens, New York, a neighborhood on the Rockaway Peninsula...
was constructed from reclaimed marshlands at the mouth of Mason Creek. By the time President Roosevelt visited at the end of July, the station was clearly reaching the point where it could support ships engaged in war overseas.
In 1941, the possibility of U.S. involvement in the war looked more likely. Construction of more new facilities was pushed forward to match increased requirements. Directives from Washington meant facilities had to be developed to operate five aircraft carrier air groups, seven to nine patrol squadrons, the fighter director school and the Atlantic Fleet operational training program for 200 pilots prior to their fleet assignment. Further requests were made to provide training and maintenance facilities for British aircrew from and .
In June 1941, the personnel count at the Naval Station dramatically increased once again. There were now about 10,000 new recruits at the Naval Training Station, 15,559 officers and enlisted on station, and 14,426 sailors assigned to ships homeported in Norfolk. After
Pearl HarborThe attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Japanese navy against the United States' naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of Sunday, December 7, 1941 , later resulting in the United...
, another $4 million was put into the receiving station to elevate its capacity by some 5,500 individuals. The Navy planned to double hospital capacity, as well as adding a full range of indoor and outdoor athletic facilities to go along with the construction of a new auditorium.
In all, these new requirements led to enlarging the construction project to five times its original scope. At the completion of the first round of construction, East Field was estimated to have the capacity for 410 land planes while Breezy Point's capacity was estimated at 72 seaplanes. From a manpower viewpoint, NAS Norfolk grew from an average of 2,076 officers and enlisted in December 1940 to 16,656 active duty in December 1943. For the first six months of 1943, the flight operations department recorded an average of 21,073 flights per month and an average of 700 flights per day. This represents a take-off or landing every two minutes, 24 hours a day.
The increased pace of operations made it necessary to further physical plant growth. In order to extend runways and provide more parking areas, an additional 400 acres (1.6 km²) including the old Norfolk airport were acquired. Finally, by 1943, the Naval Air Station had become the hub for a series of outlying airfields. Facilities were commissioned at
ChincoteagueChincoteague is a town on Chincoteague Island in Accomack County, Virginia, United States. The population was 4,317 at the 2000 census. The town is perhaps best known for the Chincoteague Ponies, although these are not actually on the island of Chincoteague but on nearby Assateague Island...
, Whitehurst, Reservoir,
OceanaNaval Air Station Oceana or NAS Oceana is a military airport located in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and is a United States Navy Master Jet Base. It is also known as Apollo Soucek Field, named after Lieutenant Apollo Soucek, who was a Navy Test Pilot and world record altitude holder in 1930, having...
,
PungoPungo is a rural community located in the southern portion of the independent city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA. Because the community is located in an independent city, there has been no individual census for the unincorporated town, which was originally located in Princess Anne County until...
, Fentress, Monogram, and Creeds, Va., as well as
Elizabeth CityElizabeth City is a city in Pasquotank and Camden counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The population was 17,188 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Pasquotank County and the principal city of the Elizabeth City Micropolitan Statistical Area....
,
EdentonEdenton is a town in Chowan County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 5,394 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Chowan County. Edenton is located in North Carolina's Inner Banks region. In recent years Edenton has become a popular retirement location and a destination for...
,
ManteoManteo is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,052 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Dare County.-Geography:...
, and Harvey Point, N.C.
A new command, Naval Air Center, had been formed October 12, 1942 under Captain J.M. Shoemaker, the 15th and 18th commanding officer of NAS Norfolk, to coordinate operations within the Norfolk area. The outlying fields were used for training, patrol plane operations, practice bombing and aerial gunnery. The assembly and repair (A&R) department also offers an excellent example of expansion at Naval Air Station. In 1939, A&R occupied four World War I hangars and a few workshops. It employed 213 enlisted men and 573 civilians in the overhaul of aircraft engines and fuselages.
In 1940, the naval aircraft program passed Congress with a production goal of 10,000 new planes later increased 15,000. To support this effort, A&R, after Pearl Harbor, went to two 10-hour shifts per day, seven days a week for a work force that now numbered 1,600 enlisted and 3,500 civilians. Women, who had been employed only as seamstress for wing and fuselage fabric, began working in A&R machine shops as labor shortages became acute. During the summer of 1942, the apprentice school was opened to provide training in nine trades. By war's end, assembly and repair had developed into a Class "A" industrial plant with peak employment of 3,561 civilians and 4,852 military workers.
After war was formally declared following Pearl Harbor,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
began a
U-boatU-boat is the anglicized version of the German word , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
offense, "Operation Drumbeat," against shipping along the Atlantic coast. The Eastern Sea Frontier, a command headquartered in New York, directed the American response.
Locally, Fleet Air Wing 5 units flew under its operational command of the 5th Naval District. Wing 5 units involved consisted of scouting squadrons, 12
OS2U KingfisherThe Vought OS2U Kingfisher was a American catapult-launched observation floatplane. It was a compact mid-wing monoplane, with a big central float and small stabilizing floats. Performance was modest, because of its light engine...
seaplanes and VPs 83 and 84 equipped with
PBY5A CatalinaThe Consolidated PBY Catalina was an American flying boat of the 1930s and 1940s produced by Consolidated Aircraft. It was one of the most widely used multi-role aircraft of World War II. PBYs served with every branch of the US military and in the air forces and navies of many other nations...
s. By 1942, NAS Norfolk was home to 24 fleet units.
In this early phase of the war, the U-boats had the best of it. With a peacetime mindset still prevalent, valuable ships sailed independently—backlit by the lights of seaside towns.
From January through April 1942, the Eastern Sea Frontier recorded 82 sinkings by U-boats. During the same period, only eight U-boats were sunk by U.S. forces. Eventually, coastal convoys were instituted and more aircraft became available. German U-boats moved elsewhere and sinkings decreased. To move closer to their patrol areas and free up space for the training of new squadrons, NAS Norfolk-based patrol squadrons transferred their operations from Breezy Point to Chincoteague and Elizabeth City.
NAS Norfolk's biggest contribution to the winning of World War II was in the training it provided to a wide variety of allied naval air units.
At the start of the war, training activities at NAS did not fall under the direction of a single overseer. This changed on January 1, 1943 with the creation of Commander Air Force Atlantic Fleet with Rear Admiral (later Vice Admiral) Bellinger in charge. The former NAS commanding officer was tasked with providing administrative, material and logistic support for Atlantic Fleet aviation units. AIRLANT also furnished combat-ready carrier air groups, patrol squadrons and battleship and cruiser aviation units for both the Atlantic and Pacific fleets. To complete this task, Fleet Air Wing 5 in Norfolk turned over its operational commitments for the Eastern Sea Frontier to Fleet Air Wing 9 at
NAS Quonset PointNaval Air Station Quonset Point was a United States Naval Base in Quonset Point, Rhode Island. Next to NAS Quonset Point was Camp Endicott at Davisville, home of the Naval Construction Battalions known as the Seabees. Quonset Point also gave its name to the Quonset hut, a standardized temporary...
,
Rhode IslandRhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
.
In December 1942, recruit training at the base was abolished since the base was now more suitably equipped for advanced training for men going directly to the fleet. With the change in the training station and the declaration of war, the mission became that of a pre-commissioning training station. Three 1,000 foot (300 m) piers, which were used as convoy escort piers, were built during World War II.
On September 18, 1943, FAW-5 assumed the primary mission of providing training under the direction of AIRLANT. The aviation service school offered courses in metalsmith work, engine repair, radio repair and ordnance. Aviation machinist's mate A school consisted of two months of training and two months of practical experience in A&R department shops.
The advanced base aviation training unit helped sailors develop the skills necessary to maintain all types of aircraft at advanced bases in combat area. The aircraft they completed went to the fleet pool for distribution to squadrons in the process of commissioning.
A similar service for maintenance crews in squadrons awaiting the commissioning of new carriers was provided by the carrier air service unit. Among the earliest schools at NAS was the fighter director school, which taught fleet communications and tactics, radar operations and direction of aircraft from ships before moving to
GeorgiaGeorgia is a state in the United States. One of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule in the American Revolution, it had been the last of the Thirteen Colonies to be established, in 1733. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January...
. The celestial navigation training unit instructed pilots being assigned to patrol squadrons. The aerial free gunnery training unit was originally located at Breezy Point, but moved to Dam Neck in 1943 to be able to carry out range work without restricting airspace.
Carrier qualifications training unit provided for field carrier landing practice, simulated carrier search techniques and qualification landings. Any carriers available in Hampton Roads were used to deck-qualify pilots, but the bulk of the load went to . For most of the war,
Charger acted as school ship both for squadrons in training and for flight deck personnel assigned to newly commissioned carriers.
The air station's impact on winning World War II was more extensive than most people think. With only a few exceptions, all Navy air squadrons that fought in the war trained in Norfolk. The air station also trained numerous British fighter squadrons and
FrenchFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
and
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n patrol squadrons. From 1943 to the end of the war, a total of 326 U.S. units were commissioned and trained under the control of AIRLANT.
Undoubtedly, the loudest noise heard and one of the most devastating Navy accidents in Hampton Roads during World War II occurred at 11 AM September 17, 1943. A NAS ordnance department truck was pulling four trailers loaded with depth charges on the taxiway between NAS and the NOB piers. Each trailer was designed to carry four aerial depth charges. To save time, two additional charges were loaded on top of each trailer. Compounding the problem, the charges on top were not properly chained down. One of the charges slipped loose and became wedged between the trailer and the ground. The friction of being dragged against the road caused the charge to begin smoking.
An alert Marine sentry spotted the smoke and notified the driver who immediately stopped the truck and ran to a nearby fire station. Assistant Fire Chief Gurney E. Edwards hurried to the scene and attempted to cool down the charges with a fire extinguisher. As soon as he started his attempt, the first depth charge exploded, killing him instantly. For several minutes, charges continued to explode. The blasts shattered windows up to seven miles (11 km) away (10 km) and were heard in Suffolk, 20 miles (30 km) distant.
In the center of the explosion was a group of old enlisted men's barracks opposite the dispensary, the vicinity of the current location of V-88. A total of 18 buildings were destroyed by the blast. They were so badly damaged that they had to be razed. Thirty-three aircraft were also destroyed with a monetary damage of $1.8 million.
According to official histories, the shock of the explosion found people scaling fences that had been considered man-proof and impossible to climb. Other persons found themselves some time later with shoes in hand, waiting for street cars, with no memory of the event. The casualties amounted to 426, including 40 dead. Among them was Seaman 2nd Class Elizabeth Korensky, the only woman killed and the first WAVE to die in the line of duty in the war.
NAS Norfolk responded to the tragedy by building six new brick barracks to house the troops and added industrial space by building R-80, the largest airplane hangar in the world. Winning the war was a full-time effort.
Post war
Postwar period developments underscored the capacity of the Naval Station to change. The station at first stored inactive aircraft carriers, other reserve vessels, and finally submarines and destroyers. Fire fighting and salvage control now became specialties. The Atlantic Fleet Command came ashore in 1948 and placed its headquarters with a staff of 165 officers and 315 enlisted in an abandoned hospital. At the same time, the station rendered service to military as well as scientific pursuits.
Known officially as Naval Operating Base until 31 December 1952, on January 1, 1953 the name of the installation was changed to
Naval Station Norfolk.
After the Second World War, the air side of the station continued to operate at near peak levels as well. It served as operational headquarters for the Fleet Air Command, and with the emergence of NAS Oceana as a master jet base in the late 1950s, the tandem formed the nucleus of the biggest air base on the East Coast. The air station would be known as Naval Air Station Norfolk throughout the postwar period. In 1967 it came under the control of Command Naval Air Force, Atlantic.
The Norfolk facility remained the chief supplier of aircraft parts and a major rework plant. Classified as "industrial", the station employed about 7,500 civilians in 1946. In one postwar year the Navy invested $36 million in the overhaul and repair plant alone. The average annual payroll in the last had of the 1950s came to nearly $45 million. By 1976, the air rework plant covered 174 acres (0.7 km²) and included 175 buildings. In the 1970s and 1980s its workers restored or repaired, among other craft,
F-14 TomcatThe Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, variable-sweep wing aircraft. The F-14 was the United States Navy's primary maritime air superiority fighter, fleet defense interceptor and tactical reconnaissance platform from 1974 to 2006...
s,
A-6 IntruderThe Grumman A-6 Intruder is a twin jet-engine, mid-wing attack aircraft built by Grumman Aerospace. In service between 1963 and 1997, the Intruder was designed as an all-weather replacement for the piston-engined A-1 Skyraider medium attack aircraft. A specialized electronic warfare derivative, the...
s, and
F-8 CrusaderThe F-8 Crusader was a single-engine aircraft carrier-based air superiority fighter aircraft built by Vought. It replaced the Vought F-7 Cutlass. The first F-8 prototype was ready for flight in February 1955, and was the last American fighter with guns as the primary weapon, principally serving in...
s. From June 1980 until June 1981, the air station handled over 135,478 aircraft operations, 29,832 tons of air cargo, and 132,000 passengers. In 1996, as part of the Congressional "Base Realignment and Closure" (BRAC) process this plant, known by this time as the Naval Aviation Depot Norfolk, closed its doors.
The air station, at one time, was host to more than 70 tenant commands, including several carrier groups, carrier airborne early warning wings, helicopter sea control wings, and Navy Air Reserve units. In addition, the station rendered support in photography, meteorology, and electronics to the fleet commands of the Hampton Roads naval community. The Naval Air Station also responded to national times of stress, such as Operation Sincere Welcome in 1994, when 2,000 civilian workers, dependents, and non-essential military personnel were evacuated to Norfolk from
Guantanamo Bay Naval BaseGuantanamo Bay Naval Base is located on 45 square miles of land and water at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba which the United States leased for use as a coaling station following on the Cuban-American Treaty of 1903. The base is located on the shore of Guantánamo Bay at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is...
in
CubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island country in the Caribbean. It consists of the island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city. Cuba is home to over 11 million people and is...
. This influx of people was an instance of history repeating itself, as the station also welcomed evacuees during the
Cuban Missile CrisisThe Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation between the United States, the Soviet Union, and Cuba in October 1962, during the Cold War. In Russia, former Eastern Bloc, and communist countries , it is termed the "Caribbean Crisis" , while in Cuba it is called the "October Crisis"...
in 1962.
One other milestone in NAS's history occurred in 1968 when the station assumed a major role in putting a man on the moon. The air station became Recovery Control Center Atlantic, providing command, control and communications with all the ships and aircraft involved in the recovery operations of
Apollo 7Apollo 7 was the first manned mission in the Apollo program to be launched. It was an eleven-day Earth-orbital mission, the first manned launch of the Saturn IB launch vehicle, and the first three-person American space mission. The crew consisted of Mission Commander Walter M. Schirra, Command...
.
As part of the Navy's response to the post-Cold War drawdown of the 1990s, many new initiatives were implemented at Navy shore installations to reduce their operating cost, improve their efficiency, and better match their capacity to the reduced size of the Navy. In 1998, the Navy began a major realignment of shore command organizations and processes throughout Hampton Roads in a process known as "regionalization". One of the biggest steps and efficiencies in this process was the merger of separate Naval Station and Naval Air Station (which were directly adjacent to each other) into a single installation to be called Naval Station Norfolk. This consolidation became official on February 5, 1999.
Naval Station Norfolk supports Defense Depot Norfolk Virginia (DDNV).
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