100-636: The United States Marine Corps Forces Central Command is headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. The Marine Corps Force Central Command is responsible for all Marine Corps Forces in the United States Central Command , except for those assigned to the U.S. Special Operations Command , and Special Operations Command, Central Command . The Command's responsibility includes 20 countries and over 500 million people in regions including Arabian Sea , Red Sea , Persian Gulf , and part of
200-666: A 38th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron RB-50 returned fire on a Soviet MiG-15, while a 343d Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron RB-50 was shot down over the Sea of Japan 2 days after the Korean Armistice, while on 7 November 1954, an RB-29 was shot down near Hokkaido Island in northern Japan. By the time of 27 July 1953 Korean War cease-fire, SAC B-29s had flown over 21,000 sorties and dropped nearly 167,000 tons of bombs, with thirty-four B-29s lost in combat and forty-eight B-29s were lost to damage or crashes. SAC's first jet strategic bomber
300-447: A B-2 Spirit from the 509th Bomb Wing and F-22 Raptor aircraft from the 325th Fighter Wing . The former flyover was the first Super Bowl flyover to be telecast in high definition . As the home for USSOCOM , the unified combatant command that holds authority over the command and control of U.S.-based special operations forces, as well as the home of SOCCENT , the geographic command responsible for executing special operations in
400-641: A bomber gap grew after the 1955 Soviet Aviation Day and the Soviets rejected the " Open Skies " Treaty proposed at the Geneva Summit on 21 July 1955. US bomber strength peaked with "over 2,500 bombers" after production "of over 2,000 B-47s and almost 750 B-52s" (circa 1956, 50% of SAC aircraft & 80% of SAC bombers were B-47s). In an effort to concurrently enhance its reconnaissance capabilities, SAC also received several RB-57D Canberra aircraft in April 1956 , with
500-647: A flag officer , either an upper half or lower half rear admiral concurrently assigned as the USNAVCENT/US 5th Fleet Deputy Commander (DEPCOMUSNAVCENT/DEPCOMFIFTHFLT), and his staff when they were not forward deployed to the Persian Gulf region. In vacating the MacDill AFB facility, all USNAVCENT staff activities were consolidated at COMUSNAVCENT/COMFIFTHFLT headquarters in Manama, Bahrain . NAVCENT's facility at MacDill AFB
600-579: A "scathing" 1948 Lindbergh review of SAC operations in the air and at six SAC bases, General Kenney was removed as Commanding General on 15 October 1948 and replaced on 19 October 1948 by 8AF's commander, Lieutenant General Curtis LeMay . Upon LeMay's assumption of command, SAC had only 60 nuclear-capable aircraft, none of which possessed a realistic long range capability against the Soviet Union. LeMay proposed that SAC should be able to deliver 80% of its weapons in one mission. The B-29D, which had become
700-438: A California software and hardware company, had been awarded a $ 2.76 million U.S. government contract to create false online personas to counter the threat of terrorism and could possibly run their operation from MacDill AFB. In its 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Recommendations, DoD recommended to realign Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota . It would distribute the 319th Air Refueling Wing 's KC-135R aircraft to
800-749: A SAC numbered air force permanently stationed in Europe, having tactical and administrative control of the forward-deployed aircraft and units. Beginning in 1955, SAC also moved a portion of its bomber and aerial refueling aircraft to 24-hour alert status, either on the ground or airborne. By 1960, fully one third of SAC's bombers and aerial refueling aircraft were on 24-hour alert, with those crews and aircraft not already airborne ready to take off from designated alert sites at their respective bases within fifteen minutes. Bomber aircraft on ground alert were armed with nuclear weapons while aerial tanker aircraft were sufficiently fueled to provide maximum combat fuel offload to
900-493: A SAC Liaison Team was also located at the NORAD Command Post at Ent AFB , Colorado, and the two commands agreed that direct land line communications should connect SAC bases with NORAD's Air Defense Direction Centers . Also in the late 1950s, SAC continued to enhance its intelligence collection activities and develop innovative means of improving the survivability of its forces to surprise attack. From 1958 to about 1967,
1000-713: A command and morale plummeted. As a result, by the end of 1947, only two of SAC's eleven groups were combat ready. After the 1948 Bikini Atoll nuclear tests, the "Half Moon" Joint Emergency War Plan developed in May 1948 proposed dropping 50 atomic bombs on twenty Soviet cities, with President Harry S. Truman approving "Half Moon" during the June 1948 Berlin Blockade , (Truman sent B-29s to Europe in July). SAC also ordered special ELINT RB-29s to detect improved Soviet radars and, in cooperation with
1100-647: A lower echelon, SAC headquarters divisions included Aircraft Engineering, Missile Concept, and Strategic Communications. In 1992, as part of an overall post-Cold War reorganization of the U.S. Air Force, SAC was disestablished as both a Specified Command and as a MAJCOM , and its personnel and equipment redistributed among the Air Combat Command (ACC), Air Mobility Command (AMC), Pacific Air Forces (PACAF), United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE), and Air Education and Training Command (AETC), while SAC's central headquarters complex at Offutt AFB , Nebraska
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#17330854976921200-616: A new SAC installation specifically designed to accommodate the B-36 Peacemaker . Fort Dix AAF , New Jersey (later McGuire AFB ); Spokane AAF , Washington (later Fairchild AFB ); and Wendover Field , Utah (later Wendover AFB ) were also transferred to SAC between 30 April and 1 September 1947. Following the establishment of the USAF as a separate service, SAC bases in the United States consisted of: Those bases subsequently added to SAC in
1300-520: A result, the 1991 Defense Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) ordered that all flight-line activities cease at MacDill AFB by 1993. As a result of the BRAC decision, the F-16 training mission and the 56th Fighter Wing were moved without personnel or equipment to Luke Air Force Base , outside of Phoenix, Arizona , and was reassigned to Air Education and Training Command . In August 1992, just prior to
1400-550: A tenant activity until assuming control of Andrews Field in October 1946. SAC initially totaled 37,000 USAAF personnel. In addition to Bolling Field and, seven months later, Andrews Field, SAC also assumed responsibility for: SAC also had seven additional CAF bases transferred on 21 March 1946 which remained in SAC through the 1947 establishment of the U.S. Air Force as an independent service. Those installations included: On 31 March 1946,
1500-482: A three-star general, and United States Special Operations Command Central commanded by a two-star general or admiral. Port Tampa Cemetery “was one of several African American cemeteries in the area that had been forgotten or purchased for redevelopment,” according to a historical marker established within the base. In 2019, the Air Force received information about the existence of a former African-American graveyard on
1600-511: Is a joint command headquartered at MacDill AFB that deploys to provide en route, early entry, scalable command, control, communications and computer (C4) support to the geographical Unified Combatant Commands , the U.S. Special Operations Command , and other military commands and U.S. Government agencies as directed. On order, JCSE provides additional C4 services within 72 hours to support larger Commander, Joint Task Force/Commander, Joint Special Operations Task Force (CJTF/CJSOTF) headquarters across
1700-470: Is also home to the headquarters for two of the U.S. military's unified combatant commands : Headquarters, United States Central Command , and Headquarters, United States Special Operations Command . Both commands are independent from one another and each is commanded by a respective four-star general or admiral. Two additional subunified commands are also headquartered at MacDill AFB: Commander, United States Marine Corps Forces Central Command , commanded by
1800-537: Is another tenant unit at MacDill AFB. The 290 JCSS provides Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff -directed globally deployable, en route, and early entry communications support to geographic combatant commands , the United States Special Operations Command , individual U.S. armed services, other Department of Defense activities and combat support agencies, other U.S. Government agencies, and
1900-589: The 310th Airlift squadron inactivated. The squadron had operated three C-37A Gulfstream V and provided global special assignment airlift missions (SAAM) in support of the commanders of the unified combatant commands. As a result, with its primary mission now aerial refueling, the 6th Air Mobility Wing was re-designated as the 6th Air Refueling Wing. The flyover and Missing man formations for Super Bowl XXV , Super Bowl XXXV and Super Bowl XLIII , played at Raymond James Stadium , came from KC-135 aircraft from MacDill's 6th Air Mobility Wing, with additional flyovers by
2000-461: The Air Combat Command 's 6th Air Base Wing (6 ABW) stood up at MacDill AFB to operate the base and provide support services for the large and growing number of tenant units, as well as to provide services for transient air units. Later that year, the base served as the primary staging facility for Operation Uphold Democracy in Haiti . This staging was considered evidence of the quality and usefulness of
2100-880: The Air Mobility Command (AMC). Under its Title 32 USC "state" mission, the squadron reports to the Governor of Florida via the Assistant Adjutant General for Air (ATAG-Air) and The Adjutant General (TAG) of the Florida National Guard ./ The newest tenant command at MacDill AFB is the 598th Range Squadron (598 RANS), an Air Combat Command (ACC) unit that was activated at the MacDill AFB Auxiliary Field at Avon Park Air Force Range , Florida on 22 September 2015. The 598 RANS replaced Detachment 1, 23d Fighter Group , which had previously managed
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#17330854976922200-670: The Air National Guard : the 224th Joint Communications Support Squadron (224 JCSS) of the Georgia Air National Guard in Brunswick, Georgia, and the 290th Joint Communications Support Squadron (290 JCSS) of the Florida Air National Guard located in its own compound separate from JCSE at MacDill AFB. As mentioned above, the 290th Joint Communications Support Squadron (290 JCSS) of the Florida Air National Guard
2300-796: The Air University , and the Air Force Center . Strategic Air Command was originally established in the U.S. Army Air Forces on 21 March 1946 upon the redesignation of Continental Air Forces (CAF), the World War II command tasked with the air defense of the continental United States (CONUS). At the time, CAF headquarters was located at Bolling Field (later Bolling AFB ) in the District of Columbia and SAC assumed occupancy of its headquarters facilities until relocating SAC headquarters (HQ SAC) to nearby Andrews Field (later Andrews AFB ), Maryland as
2400-586: The B-50 in December 1945, was first delivered to SAC in June 1948. This was followed by SAC's first Convair B-36 Peacemaker bomber arriving at Kirtland AFB , New Mexico in September 1948. In November 1948, LeMay had SAC's headquarters and its command post moved from Andrews AFB , Maryland to Offutt AFB , Nebraska. At Offutt, the command moved into the "A Building", a three-story facility that had previously been used by
2500-874: The C-45 Expeditor support aircraft, but by 1947 SAC had acquired an F-9C squadron consisting of twelve photo-reconnaissance variants of the B-17G Flying Fortress . An F-13 squadron, the F-13 later re-designated as the RB-29 Superfortress , was also established. SAC conducted routine aerial reconnaissance missions near the Soviet borders or near the 12-mile international waters limit, although some missions actually penetrated into Soviet airspace. The flight profiles of these missions—above 30,000 feet and in excess of 300 knots—made interception by Soviet air forces difficult until
2600-600: The Eighteenth Air Force of the Air Mobility Command . The 6 ARW is commanded by Colonel Edward Szczepanik. The Wing Command Chief is Chief Master Sergeant Raun Howell. MacDill Air Force Base, located in South Tampa, was constructed as MacDill Field, a U.S. Army Air Corps , later U.S. Army Air Forces , installation just prior to World War II. With the establishment of the U.S. Air Force as an independent service in September 1947, it became MacDill Air Force Base. During
2700-737: The Glenn L. Martin Company during World War II. Concurrent with the establishment of this new headquarters facility, Lemay also increased SAC Radar Bomb Scoring (RBS) runs the same year to 12,084. SAC also enhanced its organic fighter escort capability by initiating replacement of its World War II vintage piston-engine F-51D Mustang and F-82E Twin Mustang fighter aircraft with F-84G Thunderjets . In January 1949, SAC conducted simulated raids on Wright-Patterson AFB , Ohio. Assessments of these simulated raids by "...LeMay's entire command...were appalling", despite
2800-695: The VIII Bomber Command , which conducted the first European "heavy bomber" attack by the USAAF on 17 August 1942 ; the Ninth Air Force , which conducted the first Operation Crossbow "No-Ball" missions on 5 December 1943; the Twelfth Air Force ; and the Fifteenth Air Force , which executed bombing operations on 2 November 1943 during Operation Pointblank . The Operation Overlord air plan for
2900-552: The 1950s and 1960s, it was a Strategic Air Command (SAC) installation for B-47 Stratojet bombers. In the early 1960s, it transitioned to a Tactical Air Command (TAC) installation, briefly operating the F-84 Thunderstreak jet fighter before transitioning to the F-4 Phantom II . During the 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s, it operated F-4 Phantom II fighters under various fighter wings, followed by F-16 Fighting Falcons in
3000-667: The 1957 Gaither Commission identified, "...little likelihood of SAC's bombers surviving [a Soviet first strike] since there was no way to detect an incoming attack until the first [Soviet nuclear weapon] warhead landed." As a result, SAC's bombers and tankers began sitting armed ground alert at their respective bases on 1 Oct 57. In another organizational change during this time period, SAC's fighter escort wings were transferred to Tactical Air Command (TAC) during 1957 and 1958. Finally, during January 1958's Exercise Fir Fly , SAC "faker" aircraft (twelve B-47s) simulated bombing strikes against metropolitan areas and military installations in
3100-623: The 2015 defense budget called for MacDill AFB to add eight additional KC-135R aircraft to its extant sixteen KC-135Rs in FY2018. The 6 AMW would also increase manning by approximately 300 personnel. These additional KC-135R aircraft would come from other Air Force, Air Force Reserve Command and Air National Guard units transitioning to the KC-46A Pegasus aerial refueling aircraft and the timeline would be contingent on those other units completing their transition and achieving operational capability with
United States Marine Corps Forces Central Command - Misplaced Pages Continue
3200-452: The 306th Bombardment Wing's transfer to McCoy AFB , and SAC continued to maintain a tenant presence at MacDill through the 1980s, using their alert facility as a dispersal location for B-52 and KC-135 aircraft. But for all practical purposes, the 1960s marked MacDill's transition from a bomber-centric SAC base to a fighter-centric TAC installation. Under TAC, MacDill AFB remained a fighter base for almost 30 years, but other changes went on in
3300-427: The 51st Air Force Base Unit, SAC also monitored radioactive fallout from Soviet atomic testing on Novaya Zemlya . In terms of overall Air Force basing and infrastructure, SAC continued to acquire an ever-increasing share of USAF infrastructure and the USAF associated budget. In 1947, before the USAF was established as an independent service, construction commenced on Limestone AAF , Maine (later renamed Loring AFB ),
3400-558: The 6 ABW was renamed the 6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW) on 1 October 1996 and transferred from ACC to the Air Mobility Command (AMC). In January 2001, the 310th Airlift Squadron (310 AS) was activated at the base, flying the CT-43A and EC-135Y , the former aircraft providing executive transport to the commander of United States Southern Command in Miami and the latter aircraft providing executive transport and airborne command post capabilities to
3500-537: The 6th Air Mobility Wing (6 AMW) at MacDill AFB, FL (four aircraft) and several other installations, increasing the number of KC-135R aircraft assigned to the 6 AMW from twelve to sixteen aircraft . Concurrent with this BRAC decision, the 6 AMW would also host a Reserve association with the Air Mobility Command-gained 927th Air Refueling Wing (927 ARW) of the Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC),
3600-436: The A Building at Offutt AFB to Building 500 in 1957. The underground nuclear bunker had 24-inch thick walls and base floor, 10-inch thick intermediate floors, and 24-to-42-inch thick roof. It also contained a war room with six 16-foot data display screens and the capacity to sustain up to 800 people underground for two weeks. The below ground bunker portion of the headquarters complex also contained an IBM 704 computer, which
3700-498: The Air Force Reserve Command's 927th Air Refueling Wing relocated from Selfridge Air National Guard Base , Michigan, to MacDill AFB, where it became an associate wing to the 6 AMW, also flying KC-135R aircraft. In late 2003/early 2004, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command vacated its Tampa "rear headquarters" at MacDill AFB, a complex that was established in the early 1990s following the first Gulf War and commanded by
3800-936: The Air Staff to allow SAC to approve nuclear targets, and he continued refusing to submit war plans for JCS review, which the JCS eventually came to accept (of 20,000 candidates in 1960, SAC designated 3,560 as bombing targets—mostly Soviet air defense: airfields and suspected missile sites.) Although experimented with prior to World War II, SAC refined aerial refueling to a fine art. SAC's in-flight refueling mission began in July 1952 when its 31st Fighter-Escort Wing refueled sixty F-84G Thunderjets from Turner AFB , Georgia to Travis AFB , California non-stop with fuel from twenty-four KB-29P Superfortresses modified into aerial tankers. Exercise FOX PETER ONE followed with 31st FEW fighters being refueled Hickam AFB en route to Hawaii. On 15 March 1953,
3900-565: The B-26 aircraft proved hard to fly and land by many pilots due to its short wings, high landing speeds, and fighter-plane maneuverability. Improvements to the Block 10 version of the aircraft, known as the B-26B-10, added six feet of additional wingspan and upgraded engines that eliminated most of these problems. Deliveries of the new Boeing B-47A Stratojet to the Air Force and SAC began in December 1950, and
4000-596: The Baltic. Since it was designed as a medium bomber, SAC's B-47 Stratojet traded speed for range. Because of this shorter range, and in order to better enable the B-47 fleet to reach its target sets in the Soviet Union, SAC routinely deployed its US-based B-47 wings to overseas forward operating bases in North Africa, Spain and Turkey. This program, in effect from 1957 to 1966, was known as "Reflex" with Sixteenth Air Force (16AF),
4100-738: The Central Asian States as well as the Horn of Africa, and Operation Iraqi Freedom . The Marine Corps did not have a service component command at the Central Command headquarters until 1990. During the Gulf War , the Commanding General of I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) was also titled as Commander, Marine Corps Forces Central Command (MARCENT). In 1992, the Marine Corps gave this role to
United States Marine Corps Forces Central Command - Misplaced Pages Continue
4200-584: The Central Command area of responsibility, MacDill has been used to conduct psychological operations, also referred to as Military Information Support Operations (MISO) including propaganda and information warfare. According to Reuters , a facility within MacDill "remains the Pentagon’s clandestine propaganda factory." In early 2011, several news outlets, primarily in the United Kingdom, reported that Ntrepid ,
4300-517: The Commander of U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Pacific , though the title was only to be used as needed. In 1996 a Marine Liaison Office was opened at CENTCOM headquarters, MacDill Air Force Base , being known as MARCENT, and in 1999 this office was upgraded to Headquarters Marine Corps Forces Central Command. At this point the Deputy Commander of MARFORPAC was responsible for overseeing MARCENT. In 2001,
4400-499: The Commander of MARFORPAC formally took on the role of leading MARCENT. Having one officer commanding both the Central Command and Pacific Command service components was too much, and in 2005 the Marine Corps gave the role of MARCENT commander to the Commanding General of I MEF. The decision to create a free standing MARCENT headquarters was made as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continued. In 2012, Lieutenant General Robert Neller became
4500-768: The Commanding General remained in California, while his MARCENT staff primarily resided at MacDill AFB with an additional forward element at Naval Support Activity Bahrain in Manama, Bahrain. In 2012, the COMUSMARCENT and CG I MEF billets were broken into separate billets and COMUSMARCENT took up full-time residency in MARCENT's headquarters facility at MacDill AFB, upgrading the facility to a 3-star headquarters. Also in late 2004/early 2005, Naval Reserve Center Tampa vacated its obsolescent waterfront location in downtown Tampa, consolidated with
4600-575: The Indian Ocean. The terrain ranges from mountain ranges with elevations of more than 24,000 feet and desert areas below sea level and temperatures ranging from below freezing to 130 °F (54 °C). The region contains the major maritime trade routes which link the Middle East, Europe, Asia and the Western Hemisphere. The Command regularly deploys marines aboard U.S. Navy amphibious ships to
4700-692: The KC-46. Until mid-2017, MacDill AFB also hosted the Aircraft Operations Center (AOC) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ). Commissioned officers of the NOAA Corps and NOAA civil servants fly " Hurricane Hunter " missions in NOAA's WP-3D Orion and Gulfstream IV aircraft, as well as other research missions in these and other assigned fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft. With
4800-471: The MacDill runway and flight line, even in light of the high civilian air traffic levels in the Tampa Bay area from nearby Tampa International Airport , St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport , and Peter O. Knight Airport . With further congressional prodding and lobbying, MacDill was chosen as the site for a KC-135 air refueling mission. With the arrival of 12 KC-135R tankers and the 91st Air Refueling Squadron from Malmstrom Air Force Base , Montana,
4900-427: The Regular Navy. Under the command of an active duty full-time support (FTS) U.S. Navy Captain , NOSC Tampa provides administrative support for all Navy Reserve personnel assigned to both local independent Navy Reserve units at NOSC Tampa and to the various joint and service commands and activities at MacDill AFB, CGAS Clearwater and Marine Corps Reserve Center Tampa. The Joint Communications Support Element (JCSE)
5000-602: The SAC deputy commander, Major General McMullen, having instructed all bomber units to improve their effectiveness. To motivate crews and improve operational effectiveness command-wide, SAC established a competition, the first so-called "Bomb Comp" in 1948. Winners of this inaugural event were the 43rd Bombardment Group (unit) and, for aircrew award, a B-29 team from the 509th Bombardment Group . Given its global operating environment, SAC also opened its own survival school at Camp Carson , Colorado in 1949, later moving this school to Stead AFB , Nevada in 1952 before transferring
5100-515: The Soviet's 1948 introduction of the MiG-15 jet fighter. Project Nanook , the Cold War's first Top Secret reconnaissance effort, used the first RB-29 missions for mapping and visual reconnaissance in the Arctic and along the northern Soviet coast. Later missions were Project LEOPARD along the Chukchi Peninsula , followed by Projects RICKRACK, STONEWORK, and COVERALLS. In 1946, the US possessed only nine atomic bombs and twenty-seven B-29s capable at any one time of delivering them. Furthermore, it
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#17330854976925200-424: The State of Florida. The squadron deploys modular, scalable support to large Joint and Combined War-fighting Command and Control (C2) headquarters nodes. Under its Title 10 USC "Federal" mission, the 290 JCSS is associated with the U.S. Transportation Command 's Joint Enabling Capabilities Command (JECC) and the Joint Communications Support Element (JCSE). As a USAF organization, the 290 JCSS is operationally gained by
5300-417: The United States included: In addition to bases under its operational control, SAC also maintained tenant wings at several bases under the control of other USAF MAJCOMs. These non-SAC bases with SAC tenants included: SAC also often maintained a tenant presence at former SAC bases that the command subsequently transferred and relinquished to other MAJCOMs, to include but not limited to: SAC transferred to
5400-403: The United States Air Force on 26 September 1947, concurrent with the latter's establishment as a separate military service. Units directly under SAC HQ included the 8AF and 15AF, as well as the 311th Air Division , 4th Fighter Wing , 82nd Fighter Wing , 307th Bomb Wing , and two reconnaissance units, the 311th Reconnaissance Wing and the 46th Reconnaissance Squadron . The 56th Fighter Wing
5500-425: The United States as a cost-savings measure. MacDill AFB figured prominently in this; the Tampa area had seen substantial increases in commercial air traffic at the two international airports within 10 nautical miles of MacDill, creating hazardous conditions for F-16 training, and the noise associated with the high-performance jets was deemed unsuitable for high-density residential areas such as those around MacDill. As
5600-478: The United States defended by Air Defense Command's 28th Air Division . After SAC's 1st Missile Division was activated on 18 March 1957, SAC HQ established the Office of Assistant CINCSAC (SAC MIKE) at the Air Force Ballistic Missile Division in California on 1 January 1958. SAC MIKE was responsible for missile development liaison, the intermediate range Jupiter and Thor missiles having been transferred to SAC for alert in 1958. Beginning on 1 February 1958,
5700-425: The United States during World War II included General Carl Spaatz 's European command, United States Strategic Air Forces in Europe (USSTAF), consisting of the 8AF and 15AF, and the United States Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific (USASTAF) and its Twentieth Air Force (20AF). The U.S. Army Air Forces ' first mission in the Strategic Bombing Campaign in the European Theater during World War II included
5800-518: The United States military's strategic nuclear forces from 1946 to 1992. SAC was also responsible for strategic reconnaissance aircraft ; airborne command posts; and most of the USAF's aerial refueling aircraft. SAC primarily consisted of the Second Air Force (2AF), Eighth Air Force (8AF) and the Fifteenth Air Force (15AF), while SAC headquarters (HQ SAC) included Directorates for Operations & Plans, Intelligence, Command & Control, Maintenance, Training, Communications, and Personnel. At
5900-495: The United States. This format would continue through successive SAC Bombing and Navigation Competitions through the remainder of the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Commencing in the late 1950s, in addition to representation from every SAC wing with a bombing and/or air refueling mission, later SAC competitions would also include participating bomber and aerial refueling units from the Royal Air Force 's Bomber Command and (after 30 April 1968) its successor, RAF Strike Command . It
6000-646: The [deterrence] stick". Initial SAC B-29 successes against North Korea in the summer of 1950 were countered by subsequent Soviet MiG-15 fighter-interceptors, and SAC's 27th Fighter Escort Wing began escorting the bombers with F–84 Thunderjets. Ground-directed bombing (GDB) was subsequently used for close air support (CAS) missions after three SAC radar bomb scoring (RBS) squadron detachments (Dets C, K, & N) arrived at Pusan in September 1950. In 1951, SAC "began to eliminate its combat groups", transferring medium bombardment groups "to Far East Air Forces (FEAF) Bomber Command for combat." In 1951, LeMay convinced
6100-503: The aircraft entered service in May 1951 with the 306th Bombardment Wing. The 809th Air Division (809th AD) took over host unit responsibilities for MacDill AFB on 16 June 1952. In June 1952, the 305th upgraded to the all-jet Boeing B-47B Stratojet. Although control of MacDill AFB would pass from SAC to TAC in the early 1960s, SAC continued to maintain a periodic presence at MacDill in the form of dispersal alert operations of B-52 and KC-135 aircraft from other SAC bombardment wings, using
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#17330854976926200-522: The aircraft initially based at Turner AFB , Georgia. In 1957, these aircraft were forward deployed to Rhein-Main Air Base , West Germany, in order to conduct reconnaissance missions along the borders of the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact nations. However, an unintended consequence of this deployment was that Hawker Hunter fighters of the Royal Air Force stationed in the United Kingdom and in continental Europe often intercepted these classified RB-57 missions as they returned to Rhein-Main AB from over
6300-442: The airfields at Santa Clara, Los Banos, and San Julien. On 10 January 1970, the 1st Tactical Fighter Wing was reassigned without personnel or equipment to MacDill. In 1972, the 1st TFW standardized all of its aircraft with the common wing tail code "FF". In 1980, the new Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force was activated, and in 1983, it became United States Central Command . Also in 1987, United States Special Operations Command
6400-658: The anticipated increase in KC-135R aircraft and the need for additional maintenance hangar space, the Air Force informed NOAA in 2016 that they would no longer be able to host the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center, its aircraft, and the 110 NOAA personnel in Hangar 5 and its adjacent operations building at MacDill AFB. In May 2017, NOAA began relocation to a new facility at Lakeland Linder International Airport , northeast of MacDill AFB, completing same in June 2017. MacDill historically hosted an annual air show and "open house" enjoyed by thousands of spectators each year. There were no shows in 2002 and 2003 due to security concerns following
6500-423: The attacks on the United States of 11 September 2001 and the initiation of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003. The 2006 show was also canceled due to security concerns on base, but was reinstated in 2008. It was cancelled again in 2013 due to defense budget constraints, but was reinstated again in 2014 as a biennial event. AirFest 2016 was the first-ever airshow to feature a live webcast of the performers, including
6600-471: The background. On 17 April 1962, the 15th Tactical Fighter Wing was activated at MacDill and assigned to 9th Air Force. Initially equipped with the F-84F Thunderjet, in 1964 the 15th TFW subsequently upgraded to the tail-coded McDonnell-Douglas F-4C Phantom II. In 1970, U.S. Strike Command was renamed United States Readiness Command. They were to also press napalm and rocket attacks against surface-to-air missile sites at Mariel and Sagua La Grande, as well as
6700-422: The base repurposed for a tactical mission with fighter aircraft. In response to the crisis, the United States Strike Command was also established at MacDill as a crisis response force; it was one of the first unified commands, a command that draws manpower and equipment from all branches of the U.S. military. In 1962, MacDill AFB was transferred from SAC to TAC. Bomber aircraft remained home-based at MacDill until
6800-612: The bombers. Concurrent with this increased alert posture and in order to better hone strategic bombing skillsets, the 1955 SAC Bombing and Navigation Competition was characterized by radar bomb scoring (RBS) runs on Amarillo, Denver , Salt Lake City, Kansas City, San Antonio and Phoenix; and the 1957 competition (nicknamed "Operation Longshot") had three targets: Atlanta , Kansas City, and St. Louis. This use of RBS with simulated target areas utilizing mobile and fixed bomb scoring sites adjacent to major cities, industrial areas, military installations and dedicated bombing ranges throughout
6900-444: The commanders of USCENTCOM and USSOCOM at MacDill. New C-37A aircraft were delivered starting in 2001, and the CT-43 and EC-135s were subsequently removed from service. The 310th's primary mission is dedicated airlift support for the commanders of USCENTCOM, USSOCOM, and USSOUTHCOM. With the addition of the 310 AS, the wing was given its current designation as the 6th Air Mobility Wing (6 AMW). In April 2008, pursuant to BRAC action,
7000-432: The community on how to best document the site and pay respect to the people buried there. MacDill AFB was originally established in 1939 as Southeast Air Base, Tampa . It is named in honor of Colonel Leslie MacDill (1889–1938). The B-26 earned the slogan "One a day in Tampa Bay" due to the number of early-model B-26 aircraft that ditched or crashed into the Tampa Bay waters surrounding MacDill Field. Early models of
7100-421: The extant SAC Alert Facility at MacDill. These operations continued until the early 1980s. The first attempt to close MacDill AFB was made in 1960, when the impending phaseout of SAC's B-47 bombers caused it to be listed as surplus and slated for closure. However, the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 highlighted the base's strategic location and its usefulness as a staging area. As a result, the cuts were stayed and
7200-755: The fall of 1945, with the Simpson Board tasked to plan, "...the reorganization of the Army and the Air Force...". In January 1946, Generals Eisenhower and Spaatz agreed on an Air Force organization composed of the Strategic Air Command, the Air Defense Command , the Tactical Air Command , the Air Transport Command and the supporting Air Technical Service Command , Air Training Command ,
7300-433: The first dedicated head of MARCENT at MacDill AFB, fully focused on the Middle East. MacDill Air Force Base MacDill Air Force Base ( MacDill AFB ) ( IATA : MCF , ICAO : KMCF , FAA LID : MCF ) is an active United States Air Force installation located 4 miles (6.4 km) south-southwest of downtown Tampa, Florida . The "host wing" for MacDill AFB is the 6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW), assigned to
7400-445: The focus of the nation's nuclear strike capability, to the extent that Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Publication 1259/27 on 12 December 1946 identified that, "...the 'air atomic' strategic air force should only come under the orders of the JCS." In addition to the strategic bombing mission, SAC also devoted significant resources to aerial reconnaissance. In 1946, SAC's reconnaissance aircraft inventory consisted of F-2 photo variants of
7500-625: The following additional installation was also assigned to SAC: Under the first SAC Commander in Chief , General George C. Kenney , initial units reporting to the Strategic Air Command headquarters on 21 March 1946 included the Second Air Force , the IX Troop Carrier Command and the 73d Air Division . Fifteenth Air Force was assigned to SAC on 31 March (15th AF's 263rd Army Air Force Base Unit —with SAC's radar detachments —transferred
7600-458: The former Naval Reserve Center St. Petersburg adjacent to Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater , and relocated to a newly constructed facility on the south side of MacDill AFB. In 2006, this facility was renamed Navy Operational Support Center Tampa, concurrent with the shift in name of the U.S. Naval Reserve to the U.S. Navy Reserve and its greater integration into the Fleet and shore establishment of
7700-545: The full spectrum of operations. JCSE is commanded by a U.S. Army Colonel and consists of a Headquarters Support Squadron (HSS), a Communications Support Detachment (CSD), three active-duty joint communications squadrons: the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Joint Communications Squadrons, and the 4th Joint Communications Squadron, the 4th being a U.S. Army Reserve squadron. All are located on the JCSE compound at MacDill AFB. JCSE also includes two additional joint communications support squadrons from
7800-551: The grounds of the base from the Tampa Bay History Center . Archival city records indicated that there was a segregation era burial site for Black families between 1840 and 1920. A non-intrusive archaeological survey using ground penetrating radar and cadaver dogs found evidence of a cemetery by a contractor hired by the base. On 19 January 2024, Air force officials announced that potentially 121 unmarked graves had been discovered. The search continues along with outreach to
7900-480: The headline act of the United States Air Force Thunderbirds . Strategic Air Command Strategic Air Command ( SAC ) was a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile components of
8000-416: The help of local Representative Bill Young (R-FL), the flight-line closure order for MacDill was rescinded and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration transferred from their former aircraft operations center at Miami International Airport to Hangar 5 at MacDill AFB to use the base and its flight line as their new home station for weather reconnaissance and research flights. On 1 January 1994,
8100-524: The landfall of Hurricane Andrew in southern Florida, the 31st Fighter Wing (31 FW) and the Air Force Reserve 's 482d Fighter Wing , both based at Homestead AFB , executed an emergency hurricane evacuation of all of their flyable F-16C and F-16D aircraft, with the bulk of those aircraft temporarily staging at MacDill. Given the level of destruction at Homestead AFB, these fighter aircraft remained at MacDill for several months thereafter. In 1993, with
8200-642: The latter of which would be realigned and relocated from Selfridge ANGB , Michigan to MacDill AFB. Under the Reserve Associate arrangement, both the 6 AMW and the 927 ARW would share the same KC-135R aircraft, while the 927 ARW would turn over their KC-135R aircraft to the 127th Wing (127 WG) of the Michigan Air National Guard at Selfridge ANGB. The 927 ARW began relocation from Selfridge ANGB to MacDill AFB in 2007 and formally established itself at MacDill in April 2008. Long range USAF plans in
8300-534: The mid-1980s to early 1990s. MacDill became an Air Mobility Command installation in 1996 and home to the 6th Air Refueling Wing, its 310th Airlift Squadron flying the C-37A, and its 50th Air Refueling Squadron and 91st Air Refueling Squadron flying the KC-135. The 6 ARW is further augmented by the Air Force Reserve Command 's 927th Air Refueling Wing and 63d Air Refueling Squadron also flying KC-135s. MacDill AFB
8400-504: The more robust billeting, messing and aircraft maintenance support capabilities at MacDill AFB. This combination of facilities between MacDill AFB and the APAFR provides extensive, diversified and convenient training airspace and ranges with unique training capabilities for military air, ground and air-to-ground training. The squadron's higher headquarters , the 23d Fighter Group , is located at Moody Air Force Base , Georgia. In September 2019,
8500-421: The postwar Army Air Forces. Radar Bomb Scoring became the preferred method of evaluating bomber crews, with the last of 888 simulated bomb runs scored against a bombing site near San Diego , California during 1946, subsequently increasing to 2,449 bomb runs by 1947. In the wake of the successful employment of air-dropped nuclear weapons against Hiroshima and Nagasaki to effectively end World War II, SAC became
8600-540: The range and additional facilities at MacDill AFB. The 598 RANS operates both the Avon Park Air Force Range (APAFR) and the 23rd Wing Deployed Unit Complex (DUC) located at MacDill AFB. The DUC is a separate flight line facility on the west side of MacDill AFB for transient military flight crews, maintenance crews and fighter and attack aircraft utilizing the APAFR. This permits visiting squadrons to have ready access to APAFR while concurrently taking advantage of
8700-530: The region, organised as Marine Air Ground Task Forces . There have been Marines stationed at the Central Command since September 1982, but Marine Central Command only came into existence in 1990, in preparation for Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in Southwest Asia. The Command has partaken, through Marine Corps Forces Pacific, Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Pakistan, operations in
8800-573: The same date directly under HQ SAC ), while the IX Troop Carrier Command was inactivated the same date and its assets redistributed within SAC. With postwar demobilization still underway, eight of the ten assigned bomb groups were inactivated before the Eighth Air Force was assigned to SAC on 7 June 1946. Despite the pressures of demobilization, SAC continued the training and evaluation of bomber crews and units still on active duty in
8900-531: The school to the Air Training Command in 1954. SAC also created Emergency War Plan 1–49 (EWP 1–49), which outlined the means for delivering 133 atomic bombs, "...the entire stockpile...in a single massive attack..." on 70 Soviet cities over a 30-day period. The first Soviet atomic bomb test occurred on 29 August 1949 and the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) subsequently identified SAC's primary objective
9000-676: The strategic bombing of both Germany and German military forces in continental Europe prior to the 1944 invasion of France used several Air Forces, primarily those of the USAAF and those of the Royal Air Force ( RAF ), with the command of air operations transferring to the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force on 14 April 1944. Planning to reorganize for a separate and independent postwar U.S. Air Force had begun by
9100-455: Was a sub-post of nearby Westover AFB . A 3-story nuclear bunker located on Bare Mountain, Massachusetts , The Notch was built with three-foot thick walls, 1.5 foot thick steel blast doors, and 20 feet underground to protect 350 people for 35 days. The Notch was shut down as a SAC facility in 1970 when 8th Air Force was relocated to Barksdale AFB , Louisiana. Despite this investment in "hardened" headquarters and command and control facilities,
9200-468: Was activated at MacDill AFB, occupying the former facilities of USREDCOM. At Super Bowl XVIII and again at Super Bowl XXV , both played at Tampa Stadium , 56th Tactical Training Wing aircraft performed the flyover and missing man formation after the national anthem . By the early 1990s and the end of the Cold War , the U.S. was looking to downsize the military and eliminate a large number of bases in
9300-504: Was concurrently transferred to the newly created United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), which was established as a joint Unified Combatant Command to replace SAC's Specified Command role. In 2009, SAC was reactivated and redesignated as the Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). AFGSC eventually acquired all USAF bomber aircraft and the intercontinental ballistic missile force. The Strategic Air Forces of
9400-408: Was described as the "Western Pentagon," specifically a, "...four-story, reinforced concrete and masonry office building..." above ground and a "...segregated, adjacent three-story below ground command post." This was the description of what would become Building 500 at Offutt AFB and the new headquarters complex built expressly for SAC, with construction commencing in 1955. SAC headquarters moved from
9500-554: Was later determined that an attack by the 509th Composite Bomb Group during the 1947 to 1948 time frame would have required at least five to six days just to transfer custody of the bombs from United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) sites to SAC and deploy the aircraft and weapons to forward operating bases before launching nuclear strikes. Postwar budget and personnel cuts had an insidious effect on SAC as its Deputy Commander, Major General Clements McMullen, implemented mandated force reductions. This continued to wear down SAC as
9600-451: Was subsequently assigned to SAC on 1 October 1947. Following the establishment of the U.S. Air Force, most SAC installations on U.S. territory were renamed as "Air Force Base" during late 1947 and into 1948, while non-U.S. installations were renamed as "Air Base". In May 1948, in an exercise versus Air Defense Command 's "Blue" force, a SAC "Red" strike force simulated attacks on Eastern Seaboard targets as far south as Virginia. After
9700-428: Was subsequently turned over to the Deputy Commander, U.S. Marine Forces Central Command (DEPCOMUSMARCENT), and his staff. It would later become the overall Headquarters, U.S. Marine Forces Central Command , while the Commanding General for MARCENT (COMUSMARCENT) would remain a dual-hatted function of the Commanding General, I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) at Camp Pendleton , California. From late 2003 until 2012,
9800-461: Was the swept-wing B-47 medium bomber, which first entered service in 1951 and became operational within SAC in 1953. The B-47 was a component of the October 1953 New Look strategy, which articulated, in part, that: " ...to minimize the threat ...the major purpose of air defense was not to shoot down enemy bombers—it was to allow SAC ...to get into the air [--and] not be destroyed on the ground [--to allow] massive retaliation ." Concern of
9900-656: Was to damage or destroy the Soviet Union's ability to deliver nuclear weapons. The JCS further defined SAC's secondary objective was to stop any Soviet advances into Western Europe, and its tertiary objective was the previous EWP 1–49 industrial mission. In July 1950, in response to combat operations on the Korean peninsula, SAC dispatched ten nuclear-capable bombers to Guam and deployed four B-29 bomber wings in Korea for tactical operations, although this action caused SAC commander LeMay to comment "...too many splinters were being whittled off
10000-489: Was used to develop monthly weather forecasts at targets, as well as for computing fuel consumption and fallout cloud patterns for planning strike routes and egress routes (e.g., determining the timing as to which targets to bomb first). In 1957, SAC also constructed The Notch , a facility alternatively known as the 8th Air Force Combat Operations Center (COC) and the Westover Communications Annex , since it
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