Twenty-one heavy bomb groups trained in Wendover including the 306th BG (first to daylight bomb Nazi Germany), the famed 100th BG (known as the bloody 100th due to aircraft losses) and the Flying Tigers 308th Bomb Group which served in China, Burma and India. On April 6, 1942, the first training unit arrived and found the area ideal for bombing and gunnery practice due to the terrain of the region and lack of large population centers. However, because of grazing commitments to local ranchers and farmers, only one and a half million acres were allocated. Initially the Air Corps desired some three million acres of land of which 90 percent was public domain. By 1940 a site was located at Wendover, and work began in November of that year. High on the Air Corps list was the construction of adequate bombing and gunnery ranges. The base was first conceived in 1939 when the Army Air Corps commenced an extensive expansion program. Wendover Air Force Base, located just south of the town of Wendover, Utah, played an important role in training heavy bombardment crews and ushering in the atomic age. Operations Building, Wendover Air Force BaseĬourtesy of Thomas Peterson, Historian, Historic Wendover Airfield Museum
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |