Historic California
Posts, Camps Stations and Airfields
Marine Corps Air
Station, El Toro
MCAS El Toro
by M.L. Shettle, Jr.
In
May 1942, LCol. William J. Fox was directed by Washington to
select the sites for Marine Corps air stations in California.
Since Fox had a degree in civil engineering, he naturally sought
the most expeditious and inexpensive method. Therefore, Fox first
recommended building three stations at the existing airports
of El Centro, Mojave, and Santa Barbara, since the airfields
were in existence, or presently under improvement or construction
by the CAA. For the forth station, Fox altered his method by
suggesting building a station from scratch 40 miles southeast
of Los Angeles on a portion of the Irvine Ranch, seven miles
from the town of Santa Ana, Orange County. This choice was a
prudent selection as well, since the site had been previously
evaluated and surveyed for a naval blimp base. In 1928, the Navy
considered two fairly level well-drained parcels of the Irvine
Ranch for a West Coast blimp base. The owner of the property,
James Irvine, was not particularly eager to sell the property,
since the sites were the location of two of his most productive
bean fields. Irvine had inherited the 107,000-acre ranch from
his merchant father who had acquired the property from its Spanish
owners in 1860. The Irvine Ranch was originally two ranches:
Rancho San Joaquin owned by Jose Sepulveda and the Rancho Lomas
de Santiago owned by Theodosia Yorba - names familiar to Southern
Californians. Fortunately for Irvine, the Navy built the blimp
base at Sunnyvale that became Moffett
Field.
The Navy contacted Irvine shortly after
Pearl Harbor, in search of a blimp base to provide antisubmarine
patrols for the Los Angeles harbor. Irvine offered to lease various
parcels of his ranch, including the Santa
Ana airport (the Santa Ana airport became an Army airbase
during the war) at $1 a year for the duration of the war; however,
the Navy chose one of the two previously 1928 surveyed sites for
its blimp base. The other location was brought to Fox's attention
and he recommended it for a Marine air station. Irvine was paid
a total of $100,000 for the 4,000 acres of the two parcels. The
Navy and Marines normally named bases after the nearest post office.
Since the Navy previously named its base NAS
Santa Ana, the Marine air base was designated as El Toro for
the small nearby community that had a 1940 population of 130 people.
Ground was broken on August 3, 1942. The
prospective commanding officer, LCol. Theodore B. Millard, arrived
on September 23. Shortly thereafter, Millard was informed that
the first 30 Marines under his command had arrived at the train
station. Since vehicles had not yet been provided, Millard spent
the next several hours transporting his troops to the site in
his private automobile. The Marines had come prepared to set up
a tent city, but Millard managed to acquire the use of one of
the ranch's bunkhouses. Until messing was set up, the Marines
were fed by the ranch's chuck wagons. Initially, El Toro was constructed
to provide facilities for two Marine air groups. Symmetrical units
were constructed for each group that consisted of an administration
building, training building, parachute loft, a 19,500-sq.-ft.
hangar, and a messing facility. Enough two-story, 250-man barracks
were provided for the station's 3,500 Marines. In general, the
uildings were wood framed with redwood siding, concrete foundations
and concrete floors. The airfield was provided with three asphalt
concrete runways and underground gasoline storage tanks with a
capacity of 1.55 million gallons. An additional 1,000 acres were
acquired at Plano Trabuco for a bombing range. Construction proceeded
at a rapid rate. Some of the minor problems included leaky roofs
due to heavy rains that also turned the station into a quagmire
before the drainage system was completed. The biggest setback
to the project occurred when the cold storage building was set
on fire by workers applying tar to the roof.
The Base Headquarters squadron was organized
on November 4, 1942. LCol. Millard kept his Curtiss SNC at the
Orange County Army Air Field
with the traditional intention, as the Commanding Officer, of
making the first landing on the station. Millard was beaten to
the punch late in November when Maj. Edward Carmichael from Camp Kearney was forced to make an
emergency landing amongst the construction equipment. LCol. Millard
made the first "official landing" when the runways were
opened on December 1. The warm-up platforms were completed by
the end of the month. On January 1, 1943, Marine Base Defense
Group 41 and VMF-113 commissioned as regular operational flights
began. Also in January, VMF-224, VMSB-231, and VMSB-232, all of
which had served on Guadalcanal, arrived at El Toro for reorganization,
re-equipping, and training. On January 15, the hangars reached
completion. Five days later, all of the barracks, including the
BOQs, were ready for use.
On March 17, 1943, the station officially
commissioned with Marine, Navy, and civilian dignitaries present.
The ceremony was marred when 1Lt. Matthew H. Kennedy, a Guadalcanal
veteran, was killed during the aerial display. Kennedy was part
of a nine-plane demonstration when he crashed within 500 yds.
of a bus loaded with civilian sightseers.
An additional squadron, VMTB-131, formed
on May 1. On June 7, W. J. Fox, now a full colonel, returned from
duty as C. O. of the airbase on Guadalcanal and relieved Col.
Millard as El Toro's C.O. Fox had just recovered from injuries
received in a night bombing attack on Guadalcanal. The next month,
El Toro dispatched its first squadrons to the South Pacific as
VMF-224, VMSB-231, and VMSB 232 completed training. In place of
these squadrons, VMF-114 and VMSB-245 commissioned.
In July 1943, construction commenced on
a barracks for women Marines. In mid-1943, El Toro began the mission
of training replacement pilots and crews. Replacement pilots and
crewmen were sent to existing squadrons that had lost personnel
due to crashes, illnesses, and other miscellaneous reasons. For
this purpose, a Fighter Training Unit (FTU) and a Scout Bomber
Training Unit (SBTU) were formed. A similar Torpedo Bomber Training
Unit was formed at Santa Barbara. In August, personnel had grown
to 6,831 military and 553 civilians. By October, the FTU had 165
officers and 500 enlisted assigned with 36 Corsairs and 24 Wildcats.
The SBTU had 278 officers and 500 enlisted with 118 Dauntlesses.
Interestingly, 48 of the Dauntlesses carried the designation A-24,
the Army's version of the aircraft. Apparently these aircraft
were produced for the Army, but the Army had no need for them
and turned them over to the Marines who used them for stateside
training. At the same time, additional aircraft present showed
VMF-114 with 29 Corsairs and 24 Wildcats, newly arrived VMSB-142
with 25 SBD-5s, VMSB-245 with 30 SBD-5s, VMTB-131 with 17 TBM
Avengers, and the Headquarters quadron 41 with 48 aircraft, mostly
SNJs. The number of aircraft at El Toro totaled 348. Meanwhile,
in September and October, VMF-113, VMF-114, and VMTB-133 completed
training and transferred to the South Pacific. By the end of 1944,
100 women Marines were on board operating Link trainers and Gunairstructors,
teaching recognition, and running a plant nursery to landscape
the base.
At the first of 1944, an $18 million project
began to essentially double the size of the base. To accommodate
the expansion, El Toro's property was expanded to 4,000 acres.
Improvements included two additional runways, additional aircraft
ramps, a new control tower, an Assembly and Repair Facility, a
2,000-seat auditorium, additional barracks, and other support
structures. In February 1944, El Toro was designated as the major
supply point for Marine air stations in California - a mission
previously accomplished by NAS San
Diego. Part of the new construction project created the required
additional storage space. A major reorganization occurred on March
1, 1944. MBDAG 46 was commissioned to administer and supervise
replacement training. The FTU and the SBTU disbanded with their
personnel and aircraft organized into individual squadrons. At
this time, El Toro was almost entirely devoted to the training
of fighter and scout-bomber replacement pilots. The scout-bomber
squadrons began receiving the Curtiss SB2C-lA Helldivers. These
aircraft were non-carrier capable aircraft built for the Army
as the A-25. When the Army decided it did not want the aircraft,
most were given to the Marines for use in training. By September
1944, 155 SB2C-lAs were in use by the replacement training squadrons
and another 119 were in a storage pool. Peak utilization of the
station occurred in the fall of 1944 with over 500 aircraft on
board. In October, torpedo bomber squadrons joined the fighter
and scout bomber units. VMTB-144 and VMTB-454 began training for
the Marine escort carrier program and VMTB-943 trained replacement
pilots. On December 12, Capt. Paul Mullen flew a Japanese Zero
from San Diego to El Toro for a flight demonstration. While the
Zero was at El Toro, the C.O., Col. Fox had the pleasure of flying
the aircraft. The scout bomber units began receiving the SBF and
the SBW versions of the SB2C. Built by the Canadian manufacturers,
Fairchild and Canadian Car and Foundry, the U. S. Navy ordered
the aircraft for the British. When the British later decided they
did not want the Helldiver, the Navy took delivery of the SBFs
and SBWs. At the end of December the num ber of aircraft present
was down to 237.
Into 1945, El Toro continued the training
of fighter, scout-bomber, and torpedo-bomber pilots. At the end
of March, 266 aircraft were on hand including 21 Convair OY Sentinel
artillery spotters in a temporary storage pool. In May, VMF-217
arrived from the South Pacific for reorganization and training
for escort carrier duty. By June, the training of Grumman F6F
Hellcat replacement pilots had begun. The Navy needed the Corsairs
for anti-Kamikaze duty on board Essex Class carriers and
gave the Marines the Hellcat for the escort carrier program. In
July, VMTB-453 was formed for escort carrier duty. The war ended
with almost 400 aircraft pre sent. From a former bean field, El
Toro had grown to a station of 4,000 acres, 9.2 miles of roads,
660,000-sq. yd. of runways and taxiways, 139,281 sq. yd. of aircraft
ramps, a 10-mile water system, and a 10-mile sewer system.
Following the war, the Marines used El Toro
for the decommissioning of squadrons and demobilization of personnel.
In October 1946, the headquarters of the Commander of Marine Air
West Coast moved to El Toro from Miramar. El Toro was scheduled
to close by May 31, 1947, but the plan changed. Miramar closed
instead and El Toro was selected to be the center for Marine aviation
on the West Coast. The station's runways were extended for jet
operations. In 1949, the First Marine Air Wing and the command
unit, Aircraft, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific arrived at El Toro
and were consolidated.
The Korean War brought considerable activity
as El Toro became the jumping off point for units headed for combat.
The 1st MAW moved to the Pacific. In 1951, the Marines established
an MCAF for helicopters at the former NAS Santa Ana. In 1970,
the helicopter base was redesignated as MCAS Tustin. In 1958,
Navy and Marine aviation went through a major reorganization.
With the closing of MCAS Miami, the Third Marine Air Wing moved
to El Toro where the wing remained for the next 40 years. The
Vietnam War brought a growth of activity as El Toro once again
became the debarkation point for Southeast Asia. Thousands of
Marines from Camp Pendleton and El Toro departed for Vietnam on
military and commercial transports.
During an airshow in 1985, an SNJ crashed
into the base chapel, completely destroying the structure and
killing the aircraft's two occupants. The mid-1980s also saw the
beginning of the El Toro Aviation Museum. Meanwhile, the urban
growth of Orange County began encroaching on El Toro and Tustin.
What began as isolated bases in an agricultural area were slowly
but surely being surrounded by a sea of subdivisions. Anti-noise
legal suits would ultimately lead to the closure of both bases.
The situation became so bad that people had to sign airport-noise
disclosure forms before purchasing homes. Finally, the 1993 Defense
Base Realignment and Closure Commission or BRACC recommended the
closing of El Toro and Tustin. The recommendation finally came
to pass on July 2, 1999. The majority of El Toro units, including
the museum, have moved to Miramar. The citizens are now engaged
in a legal battle as to the use of the bases. The Orange County
government wants to make El Toro into an international airport,
but this proposal is embroiled in more legal disputes.
MCAS El Toro's Outlying Fields
MCOLF Camp Pendleton
Following the United States entry into the
war, the Marines began looking for a site for a divisional training
camp on the West Coast. In February 1942, the 122,798-acre Rancho
Santa Margarita y Las Flores was chosen. The camp was named in
honor of MGen. Joseph H. Pendleton who died in San Diego on February
4th. Located 40 miles north of San Diego at Oceanside, the ranch
had 17 miles of coastline for amphibious training. Construction
began in April. Camp Pendleton bore a similar resemblance to Camp
Lejeune in size, layout, and purpose. Unlike Camp Lejeune, constructed
to permanent specifications of brick, steel, and concrete, Camp
Pendleton, considered a temporary facility, was built to minimum
standards of wood-frame construction. Camp Pendleton was officially
dedicated on September 25, 1942 with President Franklin D. Roosevelt
in attendance.
To permit the training of ground troops
with aviation units, an airfield, consisting of one 6,000 by 400-ft.
runway, an operations building, and a 50,000 gal. aviation gasoline-storage
facility was provided. Quonset hut type barracks were later added.
The airfield opened for operations in November 1942 as an outlying
field to El Toro. In February 1944, the airfield became an OLF
of MCAF Gillespie. Although squadrons undoubtedly operated from
the field for training and exercises, it was not until early 1944
that records indicate squadrons assigned to the field. VMO-5,
a Convair OYs artillery spotting squadron, trained with the 5th
Marine Division from April to September. VMF-323 was also present
with 21 Corsairs and one SBD from May to June. From July to December,
a detachment of VMF-471 was aboard with as many as 31 Corsairs
and three SBDs at one time. In addition, VMO-1 trained with the
4th Marine Division beginning in December 1944 and VMO-6 trained
with the 6th Marine Division in January 1945. In early 1945, MAG
35 began using the field for parking of spare Curtiss R5C and
Douglas R4D transports due to overcrowding at El
Centro.
Located only 75 miles south of Los Angeles,
the motion picture industry made several Marine movies at Camp
Pendleton beginning with Guadalcanal Diary in 1942. Over the years,
additional productions filmed here included Tarawa, Sands of Iwo
Jima, The Flying Leathernecks, as well as the television series
Black Sheep Squadron.
In September 1944, Camp Pendleton was designated
as a permanent establishment. Following the war, the Camp's airfield
once again became an OLF of El Toro. In the mid-1980s, the airfield
was modernized with permanent structures resulting in the commissioning
of MCAS Camp Pendleton on March 24, 1987. Two helicopter squadrons
moved here when Tustin closed. Today, the station is home to MAG
39 and its ten helicopter squadrons. A reserve helicopter squadron
is also stationed here. Camp Pendleton is home to the 1st Marine
Division.
MCOLF Chino
The Army and the Navy rarely see eye to
eye on any subject. During WW II, this included primary training.
While the Navy performed primary training "in house,"
the Army utilized civilian contractors to complete the task. Contract
Pilot School (CPS) operators built facilities with government
loans and employed civilian pilot instructors. Army aircraft were
used and a few Army representatives oversaw the operation. The
Army reckoned this method was cheaper. In the long run, however,
taxpayers paid for the facilities built by the contractors, so
it is debatable if this method was more economical over all. The
Cal-Aero Corporation of Glendale, California established a CPS
at Chino, 27 miles north northeast of El Toro, in 1940. In October
1944, the school closed. The facility was then taken over by the
Defense Plant Corporation (DPC), an institution of the Federal
government, for the storage and disposal of surplus Army aircraft.
In December 1944, the Marines were given permission to use Chino
for landing practice. One officer and 20 men were housed here
to provide air traffic control and refueling. Chino was far from
an ideal site. The field was crowded with surplus Army aircraft
whose numbers reached 1,500. In addition, the Marines were not
allowed to install a catapult and arresting gear system necessary
for carrier training, so in April 1945, the Marines moved to Hemet.
Today, Chino is a general aviation airport and home to the Planes
of Fame Museum. Of the Museum's 150 aircraft collection, 30 are
flyable World War II warbirds including the world's only airworthy
Japanese Zero.
MCOLF Hemet
In September 1940, a CPS operated by the
Ryan School of Aeronautics, an affiliate of the Ryan Aircraft
Co., began training at Hemet, 40 miles east of El Toro. When the
school closed in December 1944, 6,629 of the 8,907 cadets who
started the pro gram were completed - a 74% graduation rate. In
April 1945, the DPC loaned Hemet to the Marines for an OLF of
El Toro. Seabees installed a catapult and arresting gear system
for carrier training. The detachment of Marines at Hemet numbered
about 60. In October 1945, Hemet was closed and the men returned
to El Toro. Today, Hemet is a general aviation airport.
The Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) El
Toro was officially closed in 1999. MCAS El Toro was a master
jet air station supporting the operations and combat readiness
of Pacific Fleet Maine Forces. MCAS El Toro provided materials
and support for aviation activities of the United States marine
Corps (USMC).
MCAS El Toro is located in a semiurban agricultural
area in Southern California. The station is situated about 8 miles
southeast of the city of Santa Ana and 12 miles northeast of the
city of Laguna Beach. Most of the land northwest of MCAS El Toro
is used to grow oranges and other agricultural crops. Land to
the south and northwest of the station have been developed as
commercial, light industrial , and residential.
Marine Corps Air Station MCAS El Toro consists
of approximately 4,700 acres in central Orange County adjacent
to the convergence of Interstate Freeways I-5 and I-405 and the
Eastern Transportation Corridor Most of the MCAS El Toro site
is in unincorporated territory over which the County of Orange
has direct land use planning and development authority The southernmost
portion of the MCAS El Toro site approximately 342 acres south
of the existing Burlington Northern and Santa Fe railroad tracks
which border the base is within the incorporated boundary of the
City of Irvine. El Toro has two 10,000 ft. and two 8,000 ft. runways.
During World War II combat pilots received
their training at MCAS El Toro. The construction of MCAS El Toro
began in July 1942 on a parcel of land purchased from The Irvine
Company. The facility was initially built as a wartime expedient
air station for the purpose of aircraft squadron formation and
unit training prior to overseas combat deployment. It was commissioned
on 17 March 1943. The station includes runways, aircraft maintenance
and training facilities, housing, shopping facilities, and other
support facilities. The Department of the Navy's Marine Corps
began construction of the air station on 2,319 acres of land.
An additional 2,379 acres were acquired between 1944 and 1977
to bring MCAS to its present size of 4,741 acres.
In 1945, Congress made it the permanent
West Coast Marine Corps Air Station. In 1950 MCAS El Toro was
selected for development as a Master Jet Air Station and the permanent
center of Marine aviation on the west coast of the United States.
Its mission was to support the operations and combat readiness
of Fleet Marine Forces. In 1955 the Third Marine Aircraft Wing
Headquarters relocated to El Toro from Miami Florida to become
the primary tenant. After 1971 the Marine Air Reserve under the
command of the 4th Marine Air Wing conducted reserve training
operations at El Toro.
The station became one of 15 Department
of Defense installations assigned as "Model Installations",
to act as a test site to reduce bureaucracy and inefficiency.
In 1985, El Toro was awarded the Commander in Chief's Award for
Installation Excellence for its efforts in improving the quality
of life aboard the station. In 1986, the station received the
award again, the only installation to receive the award twice.
MCAS El Toro was a showcase for Marine Corps aviation and a reserve
mobilization site.
Bachelor housing is provided for 3250 marines
in barracks on the main facility of El Toro Marine Corps Air Station.
Family housing for 1256 marines and 4000 dependents is provided
in housing facilities on the east side of Irvine Boulevard. There
are 2950 military personnel who work at the facility, but live
off station. MCAS employs 1750 civilian personnel, with the majority
of personnel living in the towns of Lake Forest (El Toro), Irvine,
Santa Ana, and Anaheim, California, between one mile and ten miles
from MCAS.
The station was used for aviation activities
for almost 50 years. Activities at the base have generated waste
oils, paint residues, hydraulic fluid, used batteries and other
wastes. In the past, there were few environmental rules and regulations
and disposal technologies were limited. During those times, some
wastes produced at station were disposed on the station. Recent
recognition that these waste products may be harmful to people
and the environment has resulted in new laws and regulations governing
disposal.
Soil and groundwater contamination at MCAS
El Toro is a result of several past operations that were accepted
practices. example, in the 1940s, aircraft refurbishing included
the use solvents during degreasing activities. Between 1943 and
1955, municipal-type solid waste was generated by station housing
(typical residential activities). Early disposal activities included
incineration. Later, solid waste disposal was conducted at cut-and-fill
landfill sites. Four landfills received solid waste, paint residues,
oily wastes, industrial solvents, and incinerator ash. Fire-fighting
training exercises were conducted at two burn pit areas and included
the use of various flammable liquids such as jet fuel, aviation
gasoline, and other waste liquids.
MCAS is situated in a semi-urban, agricultural
area of Southern California. The majority of the land immediately
surrounding MCAS is used to raise oranges, strawberries, asparagus,
and other agricultural crops. Portions of the station are leased
for nursery use and agriculture use. The University of California,
Irvine, has an agricultural field station directly north of MCAS.
Located just northeast of the MCAS is a large nursery where fruit
trees are grown. Until 10 years ago, the entire area surrounding
MCAS was agricultural land; since then, urbanization has brought
development closer to MCAS. New housing developments lie about
one-half mile to the northeast of Site 1. About one-half mile
northwest of the MCAS boundary are the main residential areas
of the city of Irvine. The land farther north and northeast of
MCAS in the Santa Ana Mountains and the San Joaquin Hills remains
essentially undeveloped
The closure of MCAS El Toro as a military
facility is a result of the federal 1993 Base Realignment and
Closure [BRAC] process. MCAS El Toro is one of 30 California military
bases placed on the closure list during or after 1988. The 1993
Base Realignment and Closure Committee (BRAC) slotted MCAS El
Toro for closure. The base was revisited with the 1995 BRAC and
slotted for closure in 1999. Operational closure of MCAS El Toro
was implemented in July 1999.
In addition to being part of the Installation
Restoration Program, MCAS El Toro is included on the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency’s National Priorities List of hazardous
waste sites requiring cleanup. The Marine Corps/Navy and state
and federal environmental regulatory agencies work in cooperation
as the Base Realignment and Closure Cleanup Team to ensure compliance
with environmental laws, rules, and regulations.
The County of Orange was designated by the
Department of Defense DOD Office of Economic Adjustment OEA as
the Local Redevelopment Authority LRA for El Toro on 05 April
1995. The LRA is responsible for planning the reuse of MCAS El
Toro. Under federal law and implementing regulations a three tiered
series of screening processes was undertaken in 1994-95 to identify
interest in obtaining buildings and property at closing military
installations. First priority was given to the DOD and other federal
agencies under the federal screening process. Property not granted
to the DOD and other federal agencies was then made available
to state local agencies and homeless service providers under the
state and local screening process. Under the screening process
state and local entities apply to a federal agency requesting
sponsorship for a public benefit conveyance of property at no
cost or a reduced cost.
Under the federal screening process for
MCAS El Toro units of the DOD and other federal agencies submitted
applications to the Department of the Navy DON requesting transfer
of property and facilities at MCAS El Toro. Requests from the
Department of Interior and FAA and a later request from the FBI
are expected to be granted by transfer of approximately 970 acres
of the base northeast of Irvine Boulevard from the DON directly
to these federal agencies. The County is not expected to request
or be involved in the conveyance of this area . A federal screening
request from the Air National Guard is proposed to be accommodated
on the site through a no cost lease with the LRA.
The question of how to use the 4,700 acres
of publicly owned land is one of the most controversial issues
facing Orange County today. The City of Irvine has a strong vested
interest in the conversion of the former MCAS El Toro site from
military use to civilian use because 4,298 acres of MCAS El Toro
are within the Sphere of Influence of the City of Irvine and 440
acres are already within the City’s boundaries.
Advocates for redevelopment of the facility
as an airport have cited the projected growth in regional air
traffic demand, and the increasing difficulty in providing efficient
surface transportation to existing airports (specifically LAX
and Ontario) as reasons for proceeding with the development of
El Toro as a civil airport. Opponents cited a combination of factors:
aircraft noise, regardless of the operational concept adopted;
incompatibility with the existing Long Beach airport, and most
frequently, inconsistent and misleading data from airport advocates
that imply that to accommodate noise concerns, the new airport's
traffic flow would be towards the east and north, a direction
of flight that ignores both terrain effects and the prevailing
westerly winds. Airline and pilots' organizations are on record
as considering east or north operations at El Toro unacceptable,
and some comments have endorsed an entire new airport layout,
with primary runways laid out northwest-southeast. Not surprisingly,
the issue of re-using El Toro is the basis of at least one lawsuit
in local courts.
The former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro
facility is under consideration for reuse as a commercial airport.
El Toro Air Base and surrounding no-home buffer zone contains
18,450 acres. With the closure and realignment of several military
bases in the ASA air carrier passenger and cargo services could
potentially be initiated at several other facilities. These include
in addition to MCAS El Toro the following: joint use of March
Air Force Base MAR in Riverside County, joint use of the Naval
Air Weapons Station Point Mugu PMG in Ventura County, San Bernardino
International SBI formerly Norton Air Force Base in San Bernardino
County, and Southern California Logistics Airport SCLA formerly
George Air Force Base in San Bernardino County.
Numerous studies over the past approximately
30 years have addressed the inadequacy of John Wayne Airport [JWA]
to handle the long term commercial aviation needs of Orange County.
In most of these studies MCAS El Toro was identified as a potential
civilian airport facility. However each of these studies concluded
that since El Toro would continue to be maintained as an active
military base and because of the historic and consistent opposition
by the Marine Corps to joint use of El Toro it would not be available
for any civilian aviation uses. Those studies also generally concluded
that JWA could never be developed to a level adequate to serve
all of the Orange County generated air transportation demand and
that no feasible alternative airport site to serve Orange County
could be identified and successfully implemented.
Implementation of the Proposed Project will
entail the reuse of two existing MCAS El Toro runways 16R 34L
and 7R 25L and the construction of two new runways 16L 34R and
7L 25R each of which will parallel its existing counterpart. Construction
of new runways is required because the centerline separation between
both pairs of existing parallel runways is 500 feet which is 200
feet less than the FAA standard for conducting simultaneous visual
operations by large aircraft. Because the separation distance
between the existing MCAS El Toro parallel runway pairs does not
meet current civilian airport standards for independent simultaneous
aircraft operations in clear weather conditions each new runway
will be constructed at an offset distance from its parallel twin
sufficient to meet FAA requirements for operation under these
conditions.
The Navy interest in the development of
this facility lies primarily in its potential effects at Marine
Corps Base (MCB) Camp Pendleton. An "all north" or "all
east" flow at El Toro could potentially be accommodated with
few effects on Camp Pendleton. However, examination of the competing
proposals for the airfield's use (with or without flight operations)
indicates that should air carrier operations be allowed, airlines
and pilots' organizations would force use of more optimum (and
presumably safer) westerly or southerly departure procedures.
Should a southerly departure be adopted it would impact the northern
parts of Camp Pendleton's airspace, and potentially impact the
SUA overlying the installation itself. This potential has been
identified by airport proponents, without any indication that
those proponents would accept status quo operations at Camp Pendleton
as a constraint to redevelopment of the airport.
Previously known as the community of El
Toro, the area now called the city of Lake Forest is less than
one-half mile from the southeastern boundary of MCAS. Its estimated
1990 population was 62,685. The population break-down consists
of 94.2 percent Caucasian, 7.0 percent Hispanic, 4.1 percent Asian/Pacific
Islander, 1.1 percent African-American, and 0.6 percent American
Indian. There are 16,508 persons less than 18 years old, and 46,177
persons 18 years and older. The median education is 13.9 years
of school. The median household income is $40,411 compared to
the median household income of all of Orange County of $40,248.
Approximately 48 percent of the households earn more than $50,000
per year. An estimated 71 percent of employed residents work in
"white-collar" jobs, 18 percent in "blue-collar"
jobs, 10 percent in services, and less than 1 percent in agriculture
and fishing. The 1990 unemployment rate was 3.1 percent.
The city of Irvine, located in central Orange
County, less than one mile west of MCAS, covers 43.6 square miles
and has a total population of 102,418 with a median age of 29.8
years. There are 29,445 persons less than 18 years old, 65,129
persons between 18 and 60 years old, and 7844 persons over 60
years old. Approximately 74 percent of the city's population is
Caucasian, 18 percent Asian/Pacific Islander, 6.3 percent Hispanic,
1.7 percent African-American, 0.19 percent American Indian, and
0.11 percent other. The median education is 14.4 years with 34.7
percent of all residents being college graduates. Over 19 percent
of the population falls into the $75,000 and above annual income
range. There was an estimated four percent unemployment rate in
1990.
Over the last five decades, MCAS El Toro
has seen many changes: in aircraft, from the F4U Corsairs that
were flown in the stations early years, to today's F/A-18 Hornets,
KC-130 Hercules and CH-46 Sea Knights; in population, from its
original two officer and 32 enlisted to today's 5,000 Marines;
and in the addition of tenants, buildings and services over the
years, leading, finally, to the announced closure of the station
and squadrons' transition to Naval Air Station Miramar.
Located 50 miles south of Los Angeles in
the San Joaquin Valley, the site for construction of the air station
was found in July 1942 on the 107,000-acre Irvine Ranch. The station
was discovered by Col. William Fox, a member of the "Installation
Site Search Team" and future commanding officer of MCAS El
Toro.
Construction began in August, while crops
were still being harvested. By December, three asphalt runways
and a looping taxiway were complete. Over the course of that first
year, more than 27 miles of roadway were also added to what was
then believed to be a temporary wartime installation.
In a relatively short time, the 2,300-acre
section of bean fields and orange groves designated for government
use was converted from the production of agriculture to the production
of Marine combat pilots.
Colonel Theodore B. Millard, the station's
first commanding officer, reported for duty September 23, 1942,
to supervise the construction and eventually take command of the
new station.
Colonel Millard, who had been keeping his
aircraft at the Orange County Army Air Field near Santa Ana (not
the Orange County Fairgrounds), had planned to be the first to
land and take off from the new station. However he was beaten
to the punch by Major Edward W. Carmichael from NAS Miramar, who
made an emergency landing while the station was still under construction
in November.
On March 17, 1943, the station was formally
commissioned in the presence of southland civic and military dignitaries,
as flights of F4F Wildcat fighters and SBD Dauntless dive-bombers
made the first official flyover.
Before the commissioning, Walt Disney Studios
was asked to design a fitting insignia for the new station. The
studio combined the concept of an airplane and the station's name,
which is Spanish for "the bull," and came up with the
"flying bull" we see today. Its first appearance was
in the December 1944 issue of National Geographic.
During the last days of World War II, El
Toro gained prominence as an aircrew training facility and grew
to accommodate a full aircraft wing, and thus more aircraft like
the F6F Hellcat and one of the Marine Corps' favorites, the F4U
Corsair.
After W.W.II, El Toro was seriously considered
for closure. In 1946, however, Headquarters Marine Corps put El
Toro on its list of seven installations to be retained.
Shortly after, Major General Luis E. Woods,
commander of Marine Air Base West Coast, moved his headquarters
here from NAS Miramar. Not long after, the Marine squadrons from
Miramar followed the commanding general north.
The first jet squadron stationed at MCAS
El Toro, Marine Fighter Squadron 311, arrived in 1948 and flew
the TO-1 (F-80C) Shooting Star, the military's first stock production
jet fighter. An original Shooting Star is currently displayed
at the Jay W. Hubbard Aviation Museum at MCAS El Toro. Two years
later in March 1950, VMF-311 transitioned to the F9F Panther and
later that year departed for Korea.
Throughout the Korean War, El Toro continued
to train and prepare Marine Corps aviation units for duty overseas.
Two years after the end of combat operations in Korea in 1953,
the station saw another significant population increase when the
entire 3d Marine Aircraft Wing moved from southern Florida, where
it had been stationed since 1952.
Highlights since then include the 3d MAW's
participation in Vietnam and President Richard M. Nixon's repeated
visits to the "Western White House" in the late '60s
and early '70s. Also, during Operations Desert Shield, Desert
Storm and Restore Hope, MCAS El Toro served admirably as a strategic
jumping-off point for trans-Pacific flights and a VIP reception
area. Three years ago El Toro served as the primary support installation
for President Nixon's burial.
In August 1994, VMFA(AW)-121 and VMFA-134,
a reserve squadron from Marine Aircraft Group 46, were the first
F/A-18 squadrons to move to Miramar. Currently a total of seven
fighter squadrons have completed the transition.
Six CH-46 squadrons from MCAS Tustin have
relocated to MCAS El Toro.
El Toro Marine
Corps Air Station (2005)
by Justin Ruhge
El Toro was the largest of the five Marine
Corps Air Stations (MCAS) on the west coast. The others were
El Centro, Santa Barbara (Goleta), Mojave and Miramar. The Marine
Auxiliary Air Stations were Gillespie, Chino Field, Ontario,
and Ryan Field, Hemet.
Construction on the El Toro MCAS began
on August 3, 1942 at a site eight miles southeast of Santa Ana
at an elevation of 331 feet on 2,400 acres, which was planted
in beans. On the Irvine Ranch an additional 1,000 acres was available
at Plano Trabuco for dive-bombing target practice.
The first base commander was Lieutenant
Colonel Theodore B. Millard who reported on board on September
23, 1942. In October the site became the nucleus of Base Headquarters
Squadron 23 and 41. The men lived for a time in the bunkhouses
once used by Irvine Ranch cowboys.
By December 1942 the runways, taxiways,
and warm-up platforms for two symmetrical units were ready for
use and by the end of January 1943 men could move into barracks
or BOQs. Marine flyers recently in action against the Japanese
served as instructors. The station was commissioned on March
17, 1943.
In July 1943, construction began on barracks
for a contingent of WAVES and by August 1943 there were on board
6,831 military men and women and 553 civilians.
In early 1944 an $18 million improvement
program allowed a 100% expansion in structures and operations.
A new control tower, aircraft parking space, mess halls, bakery,
photography laboratory, a 2,000-seat auditorium, a major assembly
and repair plant, a major supply depot, roads, walks, additions
to the water and sewage systems, and other facilities were completed.
From a bean patch had grown an aerodrome including 52 structures,
9.2 miles of roads, 660,000 square yards of runways and taxiways,
139,281 square yards of warm-up platforms, 10 miles of water
system, and a 10-mile sewer system, all at a site now increased
to 4,000 acres.
Departments included operations, physical
conditioning, Link training, gunnery, supply, recognition, quartermaster,
ordnance, communications, aeronautical publications center, chaplain
and Red Cross. Types of planes included fighters, scout bombers,
torpedo bombers and observation craft. By January 1945 El Toro
was the largest of the Marine Corps activities within the Eleventh
Naval District in addition to the various auxiliary fields. On
October 30, 1946 the Commander, Marine Air West Coast, moved
his headquarters to El Toro from MCAS Miramar.
El Toro was to have been decommissioned effective May 31, 1947.
However in 1950 it was selected as the permanent center of Marine
aviation on the west coast and for Aircraft Fleet Marine Force,
Pacific. Throughout the Korean and Vietnam Wars, El Toro provided
a training, storage and distribution point for Marines on their
way to the battlefronts. A third Marine Air Wing (MAW) was formed
to support these expanded activities.
In 1960 El Toro had on board 8,000 men
and women Marines and 2,000 civilians. Its value was placed at
$72,347,892 and its payroll at an annual $58 million. During
the 1960s it was visited frequently by President Lyndon B. Johnson
and then by President Richard M. Nixon, when he was on his way
to his San Clemente "White House".
During the Vietnam War, Continental Air
Lines 707s and Air Force Stratolifters took off from El Toro
with ground troops bound for Vietnam and returned with those
leaving the war zone. During the evacuation of Vietnam in 1975,
one flight departed from El Toro each day of the year to bring
back refugees. By the mid-1970s El Toro had expanded to 4,700
acres and kept almost a hundred jets in the air each day.
In 1985 El Toro served as home for the
Third MAW and for MAG 46. The MAW had hundreds of aircraft and
5,000 Marines, the largest of the tenant commands. In addition,
El Toro was responsible for Sub Unit No. 1 at Marine Corps Air
Facility, Camp Pendleton.
El Toro Marine Base was closed in 1997
as a result of the decisions of the Base Closure and Realignment
Commission.
Extract, January
1945 US Army Air Forces Directory of Airfields
In
May 1942, LCol. William J. Fox was directed by Washington to
select the sites for Marine Corps air stations in California.
Since Fox had a degree in civil engineering, he naturally sought
the most expeditious and inexpensive method. Therefore, Fox first
recommended building three stations at the existing airports
of El Centro, Mojave, and Santa Barbara, since the airfields
were in existence, or presently under improvement or construction
by the CAA. For the forth station, Fox altered his method by
suggesting building a station from scratch 40 miles southeast
of Los Angeles on a portion of the Irvine Ranch, seven miles
from the town of Santa Ana, Orange County. This choice was a
prudent selection as well, since the site had been previously
evaluated and surveyed for a naval blimp base. In 1928, the Navy
considered two fairly level well-drained parcels of the Irvine
Ranch for a West Coast blimp base. The owner of the property,
James Irvine, was not particularly eager to sell the property,
since the sites were the location of two of his most productive
bean fields. Irvine had inherited the 107,000-acre ranch from
his merchant father who had acquired the property from its Spanish
owners in 1860. The Irvine Ranch was originally two ranches:
Rancho San Joaquin owned by Jose Sepulveda and the Rancho Lomas
de Santiago owned by Theodosia Yorba - names familiar to Southern
Californians. Fortunately for Irvine, the Navy built the blimp
base at Sunnyvale that became Moffett
Field.
