Moffett Federal Airfield Totally Explained

Everything about Moffett Field totally explained

Moffett Federal Airfield, also known as Moffett Field, is a joint civil-military airport located 3 miles (5 km) north of Mountain View, in Santa Clara County, California, USA. The airport is near the south end of San Francisco Bay, north of San Jose. Formerly a United States Navy facility, the former naval air station is now owned and operated by the NASA Ames Research Center. Tenant military activities include the 129th Rescue Wing of the California Air National Guard, operating the HC-130 Hercules, MC-130 Combat Shadow and HH-60 Pave Hawk aircraft, as well as the adjacent Onizuka Air Force Station and Headquarters for the 7th Psychological Operations Group of the U.S. Army Reserve. NASA also operates several aircraft from Moffett, including the ER-2, a civilian research version of the U-2.
By far the most famous and visible sites are hangars #1, #2, and #3, which dwarf the surrounding buildings. Hangar One is one of the most remarkable hangars in the world . Hangars #2 and #3 are significant more for their size than their unique styling or design. Hangar One is a Naval Historical Monument and the entire airfield is a United States Registered Historic District.
The NASA Ames site is home to several wind tunnels, including the Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel (a National Historic Landmark), and the National Full-Scale Aerodynamic Complex (NFAC).

History

In 1931, Mountain View and Sunnyvale acquired a 1,000 acre (4 km²) parcel of land bordering San Francisco Bay, then "sold" the parcel for $1 to the US government as a home base for the Navy airship USS Macon.
   The location proved to be ideal for an airport, since the area is often clear while other parts of the San Francisco Bay are covered in fog. This is due to the Coast Range to the west which blocks the cold oceanic air which is the cause of San Francisco fog.
   The base, originally named Airbase Sunnyvale CAL, was accepted by the U.S. Navy on February 12, 1931 and dedicated NAS Sunnyvale on April 12, 1933. After the death of Rear Admiral William A. Moffett, who is credited with the creation of the airfield, in the loss of the USS Akron on April 4, 1933, the Naval Air Station was renamed NAS Moffett Field on September 1, 1933.
   After the ditching of the Macon on February 12, 1935, and until 1941, the Navy transferred claimancy of Moffett Field to the War Department and the installation was under the control of the U.S. Army Air Corps. In 1941, control of the facility was returned to the Navy as NAS Moffett Field. From the end of World War II until its closure, NAS Moffett Field saw the development and use of several generations of land-based anti-submarine warfare and maritime patrol aircraft, including the Lockheed P2V Neptune and Lockheed P-3 Orion. Until the demise of the USSR and for some time thereafter, daily anti-submarine sorties flew out from Moffett Field to patrol along the Pacific coastline while Moffett's other squadrons and aircraft periodically deployed to other Pacific, Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf bases for periods of up to six months.
   In 1960, the nearby Air Force Satellite Test Center was created adjacent to NAS Moffett Field. Often referred to as "the Blue Cube," it's operational today as Onizuka Air Force Station.
   In August 1986 during the Moffett Field NAS Airshow the Italian demonstration team, Frecce Tricolori, performed as well as the German jet team, the Vikings, in front of the crowd.
   At its peak in the 1990s, NAS Moffett Field was the U.S. Navy's principal Pacific Fleet base for the P-3C operations. In addition to headquarters staffs for Commander, U.S. Patrol Wings Pacific Fleet (COMATWINGSPAC); Commader, Patrol Wing TEN (COMPATWING 10); and Commander, Reserve Patrol Wing Pacific / Patrol Wing FOUR (COMRESPATWINGPAC/COMPATWING 4), the air station also hosted the west coast P-3C Fleet Replacement Squadron, six additional active duty P-3C squadrons and a Naval Reserve P-3C squadron in addition to NASA and California Air National Guard aviation activities.
   Post-Cold War defense cutbacks and related Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) actions in the 1990s identified NAS Moffett Field for closure. The west coast Fleet Replacement Squadron, Patrol Squadron THIRTY-ONE (VP-31), was deactivated and its functions combined with its east coast counterpart, Patrol Squadron THIRTY (VP-30) at NAS Jacksonville, Florida. Several active duty P-3C squadrons, the Naval Reserve P-3C squadron and COMRESPATWINGPAC/COMPATWING 4 were also deactivated, while COMPATWINGSPAC, COMPATWING 10 (redesignated COMPATRECONWING 10) and the remaining squadrons transferred to NAS Whidbey Island, Washington.
   On July 1, 1994, NAS Moffett Field was closed as a military base and turned over to the NASA Ames Research Center. NASA Ames now operates the facility as Moffett Federal Airfield. Since being decommissioned as an active military installation, part of Moffett has been made accessible to the public, including a cordoned portion of the interior of the massive Hangar One. There were once balloon rides given on show days, and incidents of weather inside.
   Moffett Federal Airfield has moderate air traffic, with an average of 5-10 flights landing per day. Moffett is regularly used by the California Air National Guard, NASA, Lockheed Martin Space Systems (commercial satellite manufacturer), the Google founders for their private planes, Air Force One during presidential visits to the Bay Area as well as several other organizations.

Hangar One

Moffett Field's "Hangar One" (built during the Depression era for the USS Macon) and the row of World War II blimp hangars are still some of the largest unsupported structures in the country. The airship hangar is constructed on a network of steel girders sheathed with galvanized steel. It rests firmly upon a reinforced pad anchored to concrete pilings. The floor covers eight acres (32,000 m²) and can accommodate 10 football fields. The airship hangar measures 1,133 feet (343 m) long and 308 feet (93 m) wide. The building has aerodynamic architecture. Its walls curve upward and inward, to form an elongated dome 198 feet (60 m) high. The clam-shell doors were designed to reduce turbulence when the Macon moved in and out on windy days. The "orange peel" doors, weighing 200 tons (204.75 tonnes) each, are moved by their own 150 horsepower motors operated via an electrical control panel.
The airship hangar's interior is so large that fog sometimes forms near the ceiling. Additionally, the airplanes have had scientific equipment installed by NASA, to allow for experiments to be run in flight.
Community opposition to the use of the airfield for private purposes has blocked previous deals, including opening the field up to Federal Express and UPS in the 1990s. Only two other private groups - Lockheed Martin and a helicopter operator - have use of the airfield.

Assigned units

129th Rescue Wing, California Air National Guard

7th Psychological Operations Group Headquarters, United States Army ReserveFurther Information

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