Alamogordo Army Air Field

Type   106 Air Base
Historical Name of Location   Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States
Coordinates   32.852500000, -106.106389000

Contributor:

ww2dbaseThe airfield 6 miles (9.7 kilometers) west of Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States in the Tularosa Basin was originally planned for the British Overseas Training program, which was canceled during the airfield's construction. When it was completed, it was established as an US Army airfield. Between 1942 and 1945, it hosted more than 20 different air groups. Starting in 1943, it began hosting training operations. Later in the year, the Alamogordo Gasoline Storage and Pumping Station Annex was added under the command of the airfield commanding officer. In Apr 1945, before the end of WW2, the airfield was relieved of its training mission and had plans to become a permanent bomber operating base, but after the war it operated on a skeleton crew for some time. In Jul 1945, Operation Trinity, the test detonation of the world's first atomic weapon, took place in the northern sector of the Alamogordo Bombing Range (now the White Sands Missile Range). To cover up, the Alamogordo Army Air Field issued a press release noting that an ammunition dump exploded in an accident which caused no injuries. The atomic test remained a secret until after the destruction of Hiroshima, Japan on 6 Aug 1945. With the formation of the United States Air Force in Sep 1947, it was renamed the Holloman Air Force Base in Jan 1948, and it grew to encompass the White Sands Proving Ground (later New Mexico Joint Guided Missile Test Range, and then White Sands Missile Range). Under the USAF, it hosted a variety of units including tactical fighter wings, missile research groups, foreign (German and British) training units, and Aero-Medical Field Laboratory which launched a chimpanzee named Ham into suborbital flight. Holloman Air Force Base remains an active USAF base at the time of this writing in 2021.

ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia

Last Major Update: Dec 2021



Alamogordo Army Air Field Interactive Map

Photographs

Oppenheimer inspecting nuclear device “The Gadget” atomic device on 15 Jul 1945 as it being readied for the Trinity Test the following day, Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States.William Laurence and J. Robert Oppenheimer at the Trinity test site during a press visit, Sep 1945.William Laurence with one of his characteristically loud neckties and Major General Leslie Groves at the Trinity test site during a press visit, Sep 1945.
See all 6 photographs of Alamogordo Army Air Field

Alamogordo Army Air Field Timeline

6 Feb 1942 The construction of an airfield near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States began.
14 May 1942 Executive Order No. 9029 issued by Franklin Roosevelt established the Alamogordo Bombing and Gunnery Range near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States.
27 May 1942 The Alamogordo Field Training Station near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States was established.
10 Jun 1942 Alamogordo Army Air Field near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States was established.
21 Nov 1942 Alamogordo Army Air Field near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States was named a Second Air Force installation.
24 Mar 1944 417th Bombardment Squadron of 25th Bombardment Group of US Army Air Forces, operating B-18 Bolo bombers, was assigned to Alamogordo Army Air Field in New Mexico, United States.
25 Mar 1944 231st Army Air Force Base Unit was named the operating unit of Alamogordo Army Air Field near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States.
24 Aug 1944 4145th Army Air Force Base Unit was named the operating unit of Alamogordo Army Air Field near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States.
16 Apr 1945 Alamogordo Army Air Field near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States was relieved of its training mission and was assigned to Continental Air Forces to become a permanent B-29 bomber base.
16 Jul 1945 In Operation Trinity, the Americans successfully detonated an atomic bomb at Alamogordo Bombing Range in New Mexico, United States. The test blast created temperatures 10,000 times the surface temperature of the sun and was felt 200 miles away. The explosion was the equivalent of 20,000 tons of TNT and throws a column of fire and smoke 35,000 feet into the night sky. The authorities hid the blast by claiming that an ammunition dump had gone up.
30 Jan 1946 Alamogordo Army Air Field near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States was planned to be operated only by a skeleton crew, functioning only as a refuelling station and for emergency landings.
14 Nov 1947 Alamogordo Army Air Field near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States supported Alamogordo Guided Missile Test Base in the launching of the first Boeing Ground-to-Air Pilotless Aircraft.
13 Jan 1948 Alamogordo Army Air Field near Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States was renamed Holloman Air Force Base.




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Visitor Submitted Comments

1. KEV says:
19 Feb 2020 09:47:28 PM

The three McConnell brothers received B-24 transition training at Alamagordo right after their commissioning on 04 JAN 1943. McConnell AFB was named after two of them. One of them, Thomas Luverne McConnell was KIA on 10 JUL 1943 somewhere in the Guadalcanal area. Anyone know any details? Haven't been able to find the MACR on this.
2. Jeffrey C.TaylorAnonymous says:
19 Jul 2023 05:01:06 AM

I'm trying to find information on my father, Arthur W. Taylor. He was stationed at Alamogordo during WW 2

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Modern Day Location
WW2-Era Place Name Alamogordo, New Mexico, United States
Lat/Long 32.8525, -106.1064
Alamogordo Army Air Field Photo Gallery
Oppenheimer inspecting nuclear device
See all 6 photographs of Alamogordo Army Air Field


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