Historic California Posts, Camps,
Stations and Airfields
San Clemente Island
Range Complex
(Naval Auxiliary
Air Station, San Clemente Island; Naval Auxiliary Landing Field,
San Clemente Island)
NALF San Clemente
Island
Naval Auxiliary Air Station,
San Clemente Island by M.L. Shettle, Jr.
San Clemente Island, located 75 miles west
of San Diego, is 25 miles long and two to five miles wide. The
56 sq. mi. island received its present name when sighted by the
Spanish explorer Vizcaino on November 25, 1602, Saint Clement's
Day. During the 1800s and the early 1900s, the island, used for
sheep grazing, was also frequented by fisherman and smugglers.
San Clemente, under the jurisdiction of the Navy, had a fleet
training facility at Wilson Cove. A small crushed rock and shell
air strip, built in 1933, was also used by the Marines. These
two facilities were connected by a six-mile macadam road. In late
1938, a project began to improve the existing airfield. The WPA
and a civilian contractor built a 3000-ft. and a 2000-ft. runway
plus a hangar. The runways were available for use in December
1939. The remainder of the project reached completion in July
1941.
In January 1942, a Marine scouting squadron
with 19 Vought SB2U Vindicators and one J2F Grumman Duck operated
from the airfield. The next month another project commenced to
extend the runways and make additional improvements. In March,
a 200-man Army detachment set up two radar stations on the island.
Two months later, the Marines returned for flight operations with
the establishment of an antiaircraft machine gun training unit.
The Marines utilized J2F Ducks for target towing.
In February 1943, the Navy commissioned
NAAF San Clemente Island. The location was evaluated for blimp
operations and deemed, at that time, to be unsuitable due to strong
and unpredictable winds. In March, the Bureau of Ordnance came
to the station for a two month period to test 1600-lb. bombs.
VJ-7 supported the project with two PBY-5As. In July, the Navy
formed a Combat Information Center (CIC) - Team Training Unit.
The unit's syllabus consisted of a three-week course training
589 officers and 1914 men during its existence. The next month,
this unit trained the first of seven ARGUS units. ARGUS was a
shore-based radar unit that provided the CIC mission for island
bases. Airborne radar targets for training were provided by VJ-7
with two PBY-5As and 12 SBDs.
In January 1944, Seabees built two permanent
radar installations on the island. The next month, the Navy upgraded
San Clemente to an NAAS. Beginning in April, fighter components
of VC squadrons started using the station for gunnery training.
A total of 10 groups of 10 to 15 FM-2s, supported by San Diego's
CASU 5, trained at the base during 1944. In June, the Navy established
a Special Projects School for Air that taught radio and radar
countermeasures. The School utilized 15 SNBs and trained 44 teams
during the war.
In early 1945, the Navy rebuilt the runways.
On April 15, an Airborne Early Warning Training Unit began operations
from the station. In June, this unit operated one SNJ, three TBM-3Es,
and nine TBM 3Ws. Also that month, LTA began operations at San
Clemente, as blimps from Santa Ana
and Del Mar averaged three landings
a week.
San Clemente, had three asphalt runways
-- the longest 5,000 ft. On the northern tip of the island was
Castle Field, a dirt strip used for emergencies. In March 1944,
station personnel numbered 117 officers and 749 men with barracks
for 100 officers and 600 men. The station usually had a J2F Duck,
but in mid-1944 also had a GH ambulance plane.
Following the war, San Clemente became an ALF to San Diego and
remains so to this day. The Navy has since abandoned the WW II
station site and built an 8,000-ft. runway at the former Castle
Field. In 1961, the Navy named the facility Frederick Sherman
Field in honor of the three-time winner of the Navy Cross and
carrier task group commander during World War II.
San Clemente Island Range
Complex by
globalsecurity.com
The San Clemente Island Range Complex (SCIRC)
consists of San Clemente Island (SCI) land, air and sea training
ranges and designated operational areas to the south and west
of SCI which are controlled by a single command and control system
on SCI. The range and operations area on San Clemente Island is
owned entirely by the Navy and accommodates naval surface fire
support, air-to-ground ordnance delivery operations, and special
operations. Its location near San Diego is critical for efficient
use of training dollars.
The San Clemente Island is the only surface
fire support range on the West Coast. And with the planned closing
in 2003 of the bombing range at Vieques, San Clemente Island will
become the Navy's last ship-to-shore live-fire range. Training
on the island has increased 25% since the terrorist attacks of
September 2001. The Department of Defense began construction in
July 2002 of a a $21-million simulated US embassy compound to
train troops in rescuing Americans.
San Clemente Island (SCI) is the southernmost
of the eight California Channel Islands. It lies 55 nautical miles
(nm) south of Long Beach and 68 nm west of San Diego. The island
is approximately 21 nm long and is 4-1/2 nm across at its widest
point. Since 1934, the island has been owned and operated by various
naval commands. More than a dozen range and operational areas
are clustered within a 60 mile radius of the island. The Commander-in-Chief,
Naval Forces, Pacific (CINCPACFLT) is the major claimant for the
island, and Naval Air Station, North Island (NASNI) is responsible
for its administration.
The San Clemente Island Range Complex (SCIRC)
is the cornerstone of the tactical training ranges supporting
the Southern California Operations Area (SOCAL OPAREA). SOCAL
supports the largest concentration of naval forces in the world.
The SCI land, air, and sea ranges provide the U.S. Navy, U.S.
Marine Corps, and other military services space and facilities
which they use to conduct readiness training and test and evaluation
activities. SCI's distance from the mainland and its complete
Navy ownership make the island and its surrounding area ideal
for fleet training, weapon and electronics system testing, and
research and development activities.
This integrated set of ranges and operational
areas covers approximately 2,620 square nautical miles (nm) and
is located 68 nm west of San Diego. The command and control system
and supporting infrastructure emanate from SCI which is approximately
21 nm (39 km) long and 4 and one-half nm (8.3 km) at its widest
point. The SCIRC consists of more than six dozen ranges and operational
areas. The extent of these areas range from the ocean floor to
an altitude of 80,000 feet.
San Clemente Island has been operated by
Navy as a tactical training range and testing area for over 70
years. Tactical training ranges and operational areas provide
space and facilities where U.S. military forces can conduct exercises
in a safe, controlled environment. The SCIRC is the cornerstone
of tactical training in the Southern California region. The primary
purpose of the Complex is to provide readiness training for units
and personnel who deploy overseas to meet the national strategy
of forward presence and global engagement. Among the evolving
needs that precipitated the proposed action are the need for more
training in: littoral warfare, including mine counter-measures;
electronic warfare; missile firing; operations in the shore bombardment
area (SHOBA), amphibious operations; and Naval Special Warfare.
Increased need for test and evaluation activities is also anticipated.
The island’s military value had for
a number of years been recognized by the Navy. They made plans
to establish a fighter-aircraft training base and, after the Blair
and Murphy sheep ranching lease expired, began construction. In
1935 the Navy moved civilian workmen out to the prospective naval
base to build barracks, roads, and a pier at Wilson Cove. Following
commencement of WWII hostilities, the Navy in 1942, accelerated
use of the Shore Bombardment Area (SHOBA) at the southern end
of the island for fleet training. In 1949 Naval Ordnance Test
Station (NOTS), China Lake, began using the island as a test and
evaluation range on an occasional basis.
San Clemente Island is home to the San Clemente
Island Loggerhead Shrike, which is listed as an endangered species
pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. Due in part to successful
conservation efforts, the population has grown from 13 to 42 birds
in the wild and 64 birds in a captive breeding population at a
cost of $2.5 million annually. The Navy's successful stewardship
of the Loggerhead Shrike has had a direct impact on training.
To protect the Shrike from fires during the seven-month fire season
and to comply with the Endangered Species Act, the Navy has decreased
one live round impact area by 90 percent and another by 67 percent,
reducing the types of missions for which forces can train. The
Navy has also eliminated use of illumination rounds and all surface
fire support training at night. Moreover, during Shrike breeding
season, the shore bombardment range is closed four days a week
to permit biologists to surveil the Shrike. As the Shrike population
recovers, nesting areas are expanding into the only two fire-impact
areas.
To reduce the use of diesel fuel and prevent
harmful emissions, the Naval facility on San Clemente Island installed
three 225-kilowatt wind turbines. From February 1998 to April
2000, the turbines produced two million kWhs, approximately 13
percent of the island’s total electricity needs. In FY99,
the turbines helped the installation decrease consumption of 141,757
gallons of No. 2 diesel fuel, and avoided 18,450 pounds of carbon
monoxide emissions. In the future, the turbines should provide
15 percent or more of the island’s electricity, further reducing
diesel fuel use and emissions.
San Clemente Island and the waters surrounding
the island are used and visited by a variety of organizations,
including military, civilian government, contractors, environmentalists,
civic organizations, fishing vessels, pleasure craft, and others.
Air Resorts has two contracts with the U.S.
Navy: F11626-93-D-0032 and F11626-94-D-0018. Under one contract,
Air Resorts has operated the non-TCAS equipped CV-440 aircraft
from Pt. Mugu Naval Air Weapons Station (NAWS), California to
San Nicholas Island Navy Outlying Field (NOLF), California. On
the other contract, the aircraft have operated from North Island
Naval Air Station (NAS), California to San Clemente Island Naval
Auxiliary Landing Field (NALF), California. The usual alternate
for the San Nicholas route is Pt. Mugu, and for San Clemente,
it is Navy North Island.
The first airstrip on San Clemente Island
was located in the center of the island. Its date of construction
is unknown. The earliest reference to the airfield which has
been located is The Airport Directory Company's 1937 Airports
Directory (courtesy of Bob Rambo). It described "San Clemente
Island Aux" as having two 1,600' "sandy loam"
runways.
A program to improve the airfield was
begun in 1938. The Works Progress Administration & a contractor
built two runways (3,000' & 2,000') and a hangar. The construction
was completed by 1941.
With the outbreak of WW2, a Marine scouting
squadron began operating from the airfield in 1942 with 19 Vought
SB2U Vindicators & a single Grumman J2F Duck. That same year
another construction project commenced to extend the runways,
and an Army detachment activated two radar stations on the island.
The airfield was commissioned as Naval Auxiliary Air Facility
San Celemente Island in 1943.
The station was evaluated for blimp operations
but was deemed unsuitable due to the island's strong & unpredictable
winds. It was used for bomb testing, radar training, fighter
gunnery training, and electronic countermeasures.
In 1945, in spite of the previous negative
evaluation for blimp suitability, blimps from Santa Ana &
Del Mar began averaging three landings at San Clemente per week.
The WW2-era airfield eventually had three
paved runways (the longest was 5,000'), and a concrete ramp south
of the runways.A hangar was located on the ramp, with several
buildings to the south. The 1945 Mojave AAF Chart (courtesy of
Chris Kennedy) depicted San Clemente as having a control tower.
"San Clemente OLF (Navy)" was
depicted on the 1953 San Diego-San Francisco Flight Chart (courtesy
of Scott O'Donnell), which described the field as having a 5,000'
hard-surfaced runway. "San Clemente OLF" was listed
among active airfields in the "Aerodromes" table on
the 1955 San Diego Sectional Aeronautical Chart (courtesy of
John Voss). It described the field as having three "oil
seal treated" runways (the longest being 5,000'). Strangely,
although this airfield was included in the table of active airfields,
"San Clemente OLF" was listed among active airfields
in the "Aerodromes" table on the 1955 San Diego Sectional
Aeronautical Chart (courtesy of John Voss). It described the
field as having three "oil seal treated" runways (the
longest being 5,000'). Strangely, although this airfield was
included in the table of active airfields, the remarks say simply,
"Closed".
In 1961, the original airfield was replaced
with the construction of the much larger San Clemente Naval Auxiliary
Landing Field on the northern end of the island. A preliminary
study was carried out in the same year by the Naval Ordnance
Test Station, China Lake, for a major renovation of the old landing
field. This study included renovation and/or enlargement of a
number of the berthing, messing, administrative, utility, and
aircraft support facilities. Apparently this was never done,
and the old airfield remained inactive.
In 1971, a civilian group headed by Congressman
Anderson and the Marine Parks and Harbor Association attempted
to obtain civilian yachting access to Pyramid Cove. This group
suggested that the Navy could move their bombardment range to
San Nicolas Island. It also recommended that the old airfield
could be renovated for civilian aircraft use, while possibly
including a restaurant at the terminal. This attempt was unsuccessful.
Fleet Composite Squadron 3 inaugurated
their new island operations and support facilities in 1971. VC-3
launched jet target drones for surface ship target practice from
the old deactivated airfield. VC-3 has since been deactivated,
and it is not known if the old airfield is still used for any
drone operations, or anything else.
The remains of the airfield consists of
three paved runways (the longest is 5,200'), and a concrete ramp
south of the runways. The primary runway is in better shape than
the smaller runways, which are barely perceptible. The foundations
of former buildings are apparent on & around the ramp, along
with some small buildings which remain standing.
Only a single runway (the east/west runway)
is depicted on the 1977 USGS topo map, labeled "Landing
Strip". The airfield is not depicted at all (even as an
abandoned airfield) on 2002 aeronautical charts.
This Naval Auxiliary Landing Field is
located on an uninhabited island off the coast of Los Angeles.
It originally existed as Castle Field,
a World War II-era dirt strip used for emergencies. The 1948
San Diego Sectional Chart (courtesy of Chris Kennedy) described
"Castle (Navy)" as having a 2,000' unpaved runway.
The new paved runway was built in 1961
to replace the old San Celemente airfield in the center of the
island. The new airstrip & support facilities were built
on the northern end of the island. This new $14 million air facility
was originally built for the Regulus II missile operations, but
was curtailed when that program was canceled.
In 1971, carrier deck lighting was installed
at the airfield, which greatly increased the importance &
utilization of the field. Since then, Navy & Marine Corps
squadrons have used the island to practice carrier landings.
Navy, Marine and Air Force planes also conduct ground control
approach & normal landing training.
The airspace over the island is contained
within a Warning Area.
The airfield at San Clemente consists
of a single concrete runway (5/23, 9,300' long), a parallel taxiway,
concrete ramp and a part-time control tower.
San Clemente Island Naval
Ocean System Center Facility (2005)
by Justin Rughe
The San Clemente Island Range Complex
(SCIRC) consists of San Clemente Island (SCI) land, air and sea
training ranges and designated operational areas to the south
and west of SCI, which are controlled by a single command and
control system on SCI. The range and operations area on San Clemente
Island is owned entirely by the Navy and accommodates naval surface
fire-support, air-to-ground ordnance delivery operations, and
special operations.
The San Clemente Island is the only surface
fire-support range on the west coast. With the planned closing
in 2003 of the bombing range at Vieques, Puerto Rico, San Clemente
Island will become the Navy's last ship-to-shore live-fire range.
Training on the Island has increased 25% since the terrorist
attacks of September 11, 2001. The Department of Defense began
construction in July 2002 of a $21-million simulated U.S. embassy
compound to train troops in rescuing Americans.
San Clemente Island (SCI) is the southernmost
of the eight California Channel Islands. It lies 55 nautical
miles (nm) south of Long Beach and 68 nm west of San Diego. The
Island is approximately 21 nm long and is 4½ nm across
at its widest point. Since 1934, the Island has been owned and
operated by various Naval commands. More than a dozen range and
operational areas are clustered within a 60-mile radius of the
Island. The Commander-in-Chief, Naval Forces, Pacific (CINCPACFLT)
is the major claimant for the Island, and Naval Air Station,
North Island (NASNI) is responsible for its administration.
The San Clemente Island Range Complex
(SCIRC) is the cornerstone of the tactical training ranges supporting
the Southern California Operations Area (SOCAL OPAREA). SOCAL
supports the largest concentration of Naval forces in the world.
The SCI land, air, and sea ranges provide the U.S. Navy, U.S.
Marine Corps, and other military services space and facilities,
which they use to conduct readiness training and test and evaluation
activities. SCI's distance from the mainland and its complete
Navy ownership make the Island and its surrounding area ideal
for fleet training, weapon and electronics system testing, and
research and development activities.
This integrated set of ranges and operational areas covers approximately
2,620 square nautical miles. The command and control system and
supporting infrastructure emanate from SCI. The SCIRC consists
of more than six dozen ranges and operational areas. The extent
of these areas ranges from the ocean floor to an altitude of
80,000 feet.
San Clemente Island has been operated
by the Navy as a tactical training range and testing area for
over 70 years. Tactical training ranges and operational areas
provide space and facilities where U.S. military forces can conduct
exercises in a safe, controlled environment. The SCIRC is the
cornerstone of tactical training in the Southern California region.
The primary purpose of the complex is to provide readiness training
for units and personnel who deploy overseas to meet the national
strategy of forward presence and global engagement. Among the
evolving needs that precipitated the proposed action are the
need for more training in: littoral warfare, including mine counter-measures;
electronic warfare; missile firing; operations in the shore bombardment
area (SHOBA), amphibious operations; and Naval Special Warfare.
Increased need for test and evaluation activities is also anticipated.
The Navy had for a number of years recognized
the Island's military value. In 1949 Naval Ordnance Test Station
(NOTS), China Lake began using the island as a test and evaluation
range on an occasional basis.
Air Resorts has two contracts with the
U.S. Navy. Under one contract, Air Resorts has operated the CV-440
aircraft from Pt. Mugu Naval Air Weapons Station (NAWS), California
to San Nicholas Island Navy Outlying Field (NOLF), California.
On the other contract, the aircraft have operated from North
Island Naval Air Station (NAS), California to San Clemente Island
Naval Auxiliary Landing Field (NALF), California. The usual alternate
for the San Nicholas route is Pt. Mugu, and for San Clemente,
it is Navy North Island.
