Naval Air Station Banana River
Encyclopedia
Naval Air Station Banana River was a U.S. Navy airfield and seaplane base located just north of Satellite Beach
, Florida
along the Banana River
prior to and during World War II
. Deactivated as a naval installation in 1947 and placed in a caretaker status, NAS Banana River was transferred to the United States Air Force
on September 1, 1948 and renamed the Joint Long Range Proving Ground
on June 10, 1949. The installation was renamed Patrick Air Force Base
in August 1950 and is currently an active Air Force installation.
and PBM Mariner
seaplanes based at this facility. PBMs returned to training duty in March 1942 when replaced on patrol by OS2U Kingfisher
seaplanes. Landing strips were constructed in 1943, thereby allowing for concurrent operation of shore based aircraft. Officers of the Free French Navy also trained in PBMs at NAS Banana River at this time. Various military related activities took place at NAS Banana River, including maritime patrol aviation operations against German U-Boats, air search and rescue operations, patrol bomber bombardier training, seaplane pilot training, and communications research. Other activities included a blimp squadron detachment, an Aviation Navigation Training School, and an experimental training unit termed Project Baker, a confidential program that developed and tested instrument landing equipment. NAS Banana River also hosted and a major aircraft repair and maintenance facility. Later in the war, a small detachment of German POWs from Camp Blanding
worked at NAS Banana River on cleanup details. At its peak, the base complement included 278 aircraft, 587 civilian employees, and over 2800 officers and enlisted personnel.
, a formation of five TBM Avenger torpedo bombers, which had departed NAS Fort Lauderdale
, Florida on a routine over-water training mission. When the flight failed to return to home station, a search and rescue operation was undertaken by multiple air and naval units. After sunset on December 5, two PBM Mariner seaplanes from NAS Banana River, originally scheduled for their own training flights were diverted to perform square pattern searches in the area west of 29°N 79°W/29, -79. One of these aircraft, a PBM-5, Bureau Number (BuNo) 59225, took off at 19:27 Eastern Time from NAS Banana River, called in a routine radio message at 19:30 Eastern Time, and was never heard from again.
At 19:50, the tanker SS Gaines Mills reported seeing a mid-air explosion, then flames leaping 100 feet (30 m) high and burning on the sea for 10 minutes. The position was 28°35′N 80°15′W / 28.59, -80.25. Captain Shonna Stanley of the SS Gaines Mills reported searching for survivors through a pool of oil, but found none. The escort carrier USS Solomons
also reported losing radar contact with an aircraft at the same position and time. No wreckage of PBM-5 BuNo 59225 was ever found.
During investigation by a board of inquiry regarding the entire Flight 19 incident, attention was also paid to the loss of the NAS Banana River-based PBM. Several witnesses from both NAS Banana River and other PBM Mariner operating locations were questioned concerning occurrences of aviation gasoline (AvGas) fumes in the bilges of PBM series aircraft and associated no smoking regulations, which were reportedly well posted and rigidly enforced aboard all PBMs. Although the board's report is not a verbatim record and no accusations were made, there seems to be enough inference present to cause one to suspect that the board was aware of the PBM's nickname, "the flying gas tank". As such, it is possible that the PBM-5 was destroyed by either (a) an aircrewman violating the no smoking regulations in the aircraft or (b) a stray electrical spark in the lower aircraft hull that may have ignited AvGas fumes
Satellite Beach, Florida
Satellite Beach is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 9,577 at the 2000 census. As of 2005, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau is 9,811. It is part of the Palm Bay–Melbourne–Titusville Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
along the Banana River
Banana River
The Banana River is a lagoon that lies between Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island in Brevard County, Florida in the United States. It is part of the Indian River Lagoon system, and connects at its south end to the Indian River; it is the only part of the lagoon system not in the Intracoastal...
prior to and during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Deactivated as a naval installation in 1947 and placed in a caretaker status, NAS Banana River was transferred to the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
on September 1, 1948 and renamed the Joint Long Range Proving Ground
45th Space Wing
The 45th Space Wing is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the Fourteenth Air Force, stationed at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida. It is also the host unit at Patrick AFB.-Overview:...
on June 10, 1949. The installation was renamed Patrick Air Force Base
Patrick Air Force Base
Patrick Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base located between Satellite Beach and Cocoa Beach, in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It was named in honor of Major General Mason Patrick. An Air Force Space Command base, it is home to the 45th Space Wing...
in August 1950 and is currently an active Air Force installation.
World War II
Authorized by the Naval Expansion Act of 1938, NAS Banana River was commissioned October 1, 1940 as a sub-base of NAS Jacksonville, Florida. With the advent of war with Japan and Germany in December 1941, the Navy began anti-submarine patrols along the Florida coast using PBY CatalinaPBY Catalina
The 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 United States Armed Forces and in the air forces and navies of many other...
and PBM Mariner
PBM Mariner
The Martin PBM Mariner was a patrol bomber flying boat of World War II and the early Cold War period. It was designed to complement the PBY Catalina in service. A total of 1,366 were built, with the first example flying on 18 February 1939 and the type entering service in September 1940.-Design and...
seaplanes based at this facility. PBMs returned to training duty in March 1942 when replaced on patrol by OS2U Kingfisher
OS2U Kingfisher
The Vought OS2U Kingfisher was an American catapult-launched observation floatplane. It was a compact mid-wing monoplane, with a large central float and small stabilizing floats. Performance was modest, because of its light engine...
seaplanes. Landing strips were constructed in 1943, thereby allowing for concurrent operation of shore based aircraft. Officers of the Free French Navy also trained in PBMs at NAS Banana River at this time. Various military related activities took place at NAS Banana River, including maritime patrol aviation operations against German U-Boats, air search and rescue operations, patrol bomber bombardier training, seaplane pilot training, and communications research. Other activities included a blimp squadron detachment, an Aviation Navigation Training School, and an experimental training unit termed Project Baker, a confidential program that developed and tested instrument landing equipment. NAS Banana River also hosted and a major aircraft repair and maintenance facility. Later in the war, a small detachment of German POWs from Camp Blanding
Camp Blanding
Camp Blanding Joint Training Center is the primary military reservation and training base for the Florida National Guard, both the Florida Army National Guard and certain non-flying activities of the Florida Air National Guard. The installation is located in Clay County, Florida near the city of...
worked at NAS Banana River on cleanup details. At its peak, the base complement included 278 aircraft, 587 civilian employees, and over 2800 officers and enlisted personnel.
Flight 19 probe
Three months after World War II, on December 5, 1945, NAS Banana River had an ancillary role in the disappearance of Flight 19Flight 19
Flight 19 was the designation of five TBM Avenger torpedo bombers that disappeared on December 5, 1945 during a United States Navy-authorized overwater navigation training flight from Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale, Florida. All 14 airmen on the flight were lost, as were all 13 crew members of a...
, a formation of five TBM Avenger torpedo bombers, which had departed NAS Fort Lauderdale
Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale
Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale was an airfield of the United States Navy just outside Fort Lauderdale, Florida. In 1942 the navy selected Merle Fogg Airport in Fort Lauderdale to expand into a naval air station for both pilot and enlisted aircrew training in Grumman TBF Avenger torpedo bombers...
, Florida on a routine over-water training mission. When the flight failed to return to home station, a search and rescue operation was undertaken by multiple air and naval units. After sunset on December 5, two PBM Mariner seaplanes from NAS Banana River, originally scheduled for their own training flights were diverted to perform square pattern searches in the area west of 29°N 79°W/29, -79. One of these aircraft, a PBM-5, Bureau Number (BuNo) 59225, took off at 19:27 Eastern Time from NAS Banana River, called in a routine radio message at 19:30 Eastern Time, and was never heard from again.
At 19:50, the tanker SS Gaines Mills reported seeing a mid-air explosion, then flames leaping 100 feet (30 m) high and burning on the sea for 10 minutes. The position was 28°35′N 80°15′W / 28.59, -80.25. Captain Shonna Stanley of the SS Gaines Mills reported searching for survivors through a pool of oil, but found none. The escort carrier USS Solomons
USS Solomons (CVE-67)
USS Solomons was a Casablanca class escort carrier of the United States Navy, the second ship to carry the name.She was converted from a Maritime Commission hull built by the Kaiser Shipbuilding Company of Vancouver, Washington. Her keel was laid on 19 March 1943. Soon thereafter, she was...
also reported losing radar contact with an aircraft at the same position and time. No wreckage of PBM-5 BuNo 59225 was ever found.
During investigation by a board of inquiry regarding the entire Flight 19 incident, attention was also paid to the loss of the NAS Banana River-based PBM. Several witnesses from both NAS Banana River and other PBM Mariner operating locations were questioned concerning occurrences of aviation gasoline (AvGas) fumes in the bilges of PBM series aircraft and associated no smoking regulations, which were reportedly well posted and rigidly enforced aboard all PBMs. Although the board's report is not a verbatim record and no accusations were made, there seems to be enough inference present to cause one to suspect that the board was aware of the PBM's nickname, "the flying gas tank". As such, it is possible that the PBM-5 was destroyed by either (a) an aircrewman violating the no smoking regulations in the aircraft or (b) a stray electrical spark in the lower aircraft hull that may have ignited AvGas fumes
Transition
NAS Banana River closed in September 1947 after a gradual deactivation and was placed in a caretaker status. In September 1948 the facility was transferred to the U.S. Air Force. Several of NAS Banana River's original structures, including runway segments, certain hangars, support buildings, seaplane parking areas and seaplane ramps into the Banana River remain part of modern-day Patrick Air Force Base.See also
- Naval Air StationNaval Air StationA Naval Air Station is a military airbase, and consists of a permanent land-based operations locations for the military aviation division of the relevant branch of their Navy...
- Original Melbourne Village HallOriginal Melbourne Village HallThe Original Melbourne Village Hall is a historic building currently located on Hall Road in Melbourne Village, Florida, United States. This building was built circa 1941 during World War II to serve as a military barracks at the Naval Air Station Banana River. After World War II, the U.S...
- Patrick Air Force BasePatrick Air Force BasePatrick Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base located between Satellite Beach and Cocoa Beach, in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It was named in honor of Major General Mason Patrick. An Air Force Space Command base, it is home to the 45th Space Wing...