Webb Air Force Base, Texas

Webb Air Force Base

Webb Air Force Base , previously named Big Spring Air Force Base, was a United States Air Force facility of the Air Training Command (ATC) that operated from 1951 to 1977 in west Texas near Big Spring. It was a major training facility, and by 1969 almost 9,000 pilots had been trained at Webb. The last wing was the 78th Flying Training Wing (78 FTW).

History

Webb Air Force Base was activated as Big Spring Air Force Base on October 1, 1951, on the site of the former Big Spring Army Air Field, a World War II bombardier training school. Brought back into service because of the Korean War, the base was renamed in 1952 to memorialize 1st Lieutenant James L. Webb, a Big Spring native and World War II combat pilot, who was killed off the Japanese coast.

The original airfield had received its first class of cadets in September 1942. Pilots continued to be trained there until the surrender of Japan, when the cadets who agreed to remain in postwar service were transferred to Midland. The base was declared surplus and reverted to city control in 1945; it served as the Big Spring Municipal Airport for six years.

The 3560th Pilot Training Wing of the Air Training Command (ATC) was stationed at the base, and instruction of the first class began in April 1952. The base population soon passed the 2,000 mark.

In the early 1960s, with the introduction of the T-41 propeller aircraft and the T-37 and T-38 jet training aircraft, Webb became one of ATC's principal Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) bases. By the end of 1968, almost 9,000 pilots had been trained at Webb.

In 1956, the 331st Fighter Interceptor Squadron was transferred to Webb from Stewart Air Force Base in New York to defend the southern United States border on air intercept missions. In March 1967 the 331st was redesignated the 4760th Combat Crew Training Squadron and charged with training Royal Jordanian Air Force students. It was inactivated when the Jordanians were recalled because of the war with Israel in the summer of 1967. Webb was also the site of several annual summer Field Training encampments for college AFROTC (Air Force Reserve Officers Training Corps) cadets throughout the 1950s and most of the 1960s. In the early 1970s, the 3560th was redesignated the 78th Flying Training Wing (78 FTW). The 78 FTW is now the 78th Air Base Wing (78 ABW) at Robins AFB, Georgia.

In 1977, the end of the Vietnam War meant a marked decrease in the need for Air Force pilots. Webb was formally deactivated and the property it had occupied was turned over to the Big Spring Industrial Park.

The area currently serves as the general aviation airport for the City of Big Spring, known as Big Spring McMahon-Wrinkle Airport. In addition, three units of the Big Spring Correctional Center (a federal prison privately operated by Cornell Companies) are located on the base grounds (as well as FCI Big Spring, which is a separate facility and operated directly by the Bureau of Prisons).