Mare Island Naval Shipyard Airfield
38°05′20″N 122°16′19″W / 38.089°N 122.272°W
| Mare Island Naval Shipyard Airfield | |
|---|---|
| Vallejo, California | |
 Curtiss JN-4 Jenny taking off from Mare Island Naval Shipyard Airfield, with the Marine Barracks (Building M37) in background | |
| Type | Military airfield |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | United States Navy |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1922-1937 |
| Events | USS Langley support |
Mare Island Naval Shipyard Airfield was a post-World War 1 US Navy airfield that opened in 1922 and closed in 1937 at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in the city of Vallejo, California. The airfield was located at 13th Street & Flagship Drive on the naval base, just west of the Marine Barracks (Building M37). The airfield had a single unpaved runway for day use only. Common aircraft at the airfield were Vought FU, Vought VE-7 and Curtiss JN-4 Jenny.[1]
The Airfield was established as a support base for the first US Navy aircraft carrier, USS Langley, which had her origin at Mare Island. The first turbo-electric-powered ship of the US Navy, collier USS Jupiter, was built at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in 1912 and was later converted into the first US aircraft carrier, USS Langley, at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Virginia during 1920-1922. As converted, Langley could hold up to 34 planes, but her planes need to be removed to Mare Island Naval Shipyard Airfield whenever she was at the Shipyard for repairs. Her first overhaul at Mare Island Naval Shipyard was in 1925, when her flight deck was lengthened by 23 feet and her complement of airplanes was increased to two full squadrons (36 aircrafts) on deck with six more stored below. Her last visit to Mare Island Naval Shipyard was between October 1936 and February 1937, when she was converted to a seaplane tender.[2]
The Airfield was also used for some training. The Mare Island Naval Shipyard Airfield closed in 1937 when nearby Naval Air Station Alameda was picked to be the Navy's main support base for aircraft carriers in San Francisco Bay.[1]
See also[edit]
- California during World War II
- American Theater (1939–1945)
- United States home front during World War II
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields: Oakland area". www.airfields-freeman.com.
- ^ Johnson, Frank (December 2022). "USS Langley: The U.S. Navy's Covered Wagon". Warfare history network. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
- Airports in the San Francisco Bay Area
- United States Naval Air Stations
- History of the San Francisco Bay Area
- Defunct airports in California
- Military Superfund sites
- Military facilities in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Closed installations of the United States Navy
- 1922 establishments in California
- 1937 disestablishments in California