Oregon World War II Army Airfields were the airfields built or repurposed 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...

 for training pilots and aircrews of United States Army Air Force (USAAF) fighters and bombers in Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

.

Most of these airfields were under the command of Second Air Force

Second Air Force

The Second Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Education and Training Command . It is headquartered at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi....

 or the Army Air Forces Training Command

Air Training Command

Air Training Command is a former major command of the United States Army Air Forces and United States Air Force. ATC came into being as a redesignation of the Army Air Forces Training Command on July 1, 1946...

 (AAFTC) (predecessor of the current-day 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...

 Air Education and Training Command

Air Education and Training Command

Air Education and Training Command was established July 1, 1993, with the realignment of Air Training Command and Air University. It is one of the U.S. Air Force's ten major commands and reports to Headquarters, United States Air Force....

). However the other USAAF support commands (Air Technical Service Command (ATSC); Air Transport Command (ATC) or Troop Carrier Command) commanded a significant number of airfields in a support roles.

It is still possible to find remnants of these wartime airfields. Many were converted into municipal airports, though some were returned to agriculture and several were retained as 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...

 installations and were front-line bases during the Cold War

Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

. Hundreds of the temporary buildings that were used survive today, and are being used for other purposes.

Major airfields

Second Air Force

• Corvallis AAF, Corvallis
  Corvallis, Oregon
  Corvallis is a city located in central western Oregon, United States. It is the county seat of Benton County and the principal city of the Corvallis, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Benton County. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 54,462....
  
  

II Fighter Command

Also known as Corvallis NAAS/MCAAF (temp transfer to Navy/Marine Corps)

Now: Corvallis Municipal Airport

Corvallis Municipal Airport

Corvallis Municipal Airport , is a public airport located four miles south of the city of Corvallis in Benton County, Oregon, USA. The site was built during World War II for bomber training and the original hangar is still being used today. The airport offers full service and self serve fuel:...

 

• Portland AAB, Portland
  Portland, Oregon
  Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
  
  

44th Army Air Force Base Unit

Now: Portland International Airport

Portland International Airport

Portland International Airport is a joint civil-military airport and the largest airport in the U.S. state of Oregon, accounting for 90% of passenger travel and more than 95% of air cargo of the state. It is located within Portland's city limits just south of the Columbia River in Multnomah...

 

Joint use AAF/Navy/Civil Airport

Redmond AAF, Redmond

Redmond, Oregon

Redmond is a city in Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. Incorporated on July 6, 1910, the city is located on the eastern side of Oregon's Cascade Range, in the High Desert, and is considered the geographical heart of Central Oregon...

Sub-base of Portland AAF

Now: Roberts Field Airport 

Also several auxiliary fields (Aurora Flight Strip

Aurora State Airport

Aurora State Airport is a public airport located one mile northwest of the central business district of Aurora, a city in Marion County, Oregon, United States. It is owned by the Oregon Department of Aviation.Although most U.S...

, Eugene Municipal Airport

Eugene Airport

Eugene Airport , also known as Mahlon Sweet Field, is a public airport located 7 miles northwest of Eugene, in Lane County, Oregon. Owned and operated by the City of Eugene, it is the fifth-largest airport in the Pacific Northwest, providing commercial air service to a six-county region in...

)

Air Technical Service Command

• Madras AAF, Madras
  Madras, Oregon
  Madras is a city in Jefferson County, Oregon, United States. Originally called The Basin after the circular valley the city is located in, it is unclear as to whether Madras was named in 1903 for the cotton fabric called "Madras" that originated in the Madras area in India, or from the city of...
  
  

Now: Madras Municipal Airport (was City-County Airport)

• Medford AAF, Medford
  Medford, Oregon
  Medford is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2010 US Census, the city had a total population of 74,907 and a metropolitan area population of 207,010, making the Medford MSA the 4th largest metro area in Oregon...
  
  

Joint use with US Navy

Now: Medford Jackson County Airport 

• Pendleton Field AAF, Pendleton
  Pendleton, Oregon
  Pendleton is a city in Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. Pendleton was named in 1868 by the county commissioners for George H. Pendleton, Democratic candidate for Vice-President in the 1864 presidential campaign. The population was 16,612 at the 2010 census...
  
  

Spokane Air Service Command

470th Army Air Force Base Unit

Joint use with US Navy

Now: Pendleton Regional Airport 

• Salem AAF, Salem
  Salem, Oregon
  Salem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood...
  
  

Now: McNary Field Airport 

See also

• Lists of Oregon-related topics

External links