2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

[Second Air Force]

We spent a number of days in our home state of Nebraska, primarily to attend the yearly McCook Army Air Field reunion/open house. There are, understandably, fewer and fewer WWII veterans attending but we still enjoy having the Memorial Service at the airfield that served as a training facility for B-24 and B-29 Bombardment Groups and Air Service Groups.

The first photo is of the flag placement ceremony at stones denoting each unit that either trained or was based at McCook during the War. Master Sergeant Hugo Lorenzen (Retired), who was stationed at McCook in 1945 as a B-29 electrician, is placing the flags. The second photo is our State Historical Marker that is located on the main street of the airfield.

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

Later I'll post some more photos of some of the Second Air Force fields that still dot the countryside in my home area.

[No.1]

I hear for McCook, wait for more images

[0viking0]

Later I'll post some more photos of some of the Second Air Force fields that still dot the countryside in my home area.

Bring'em on

[Second Air Force]

Ok, here is another installment. I should mention that the photo of the Memorial Service needs a little explanation. Our Society directors many years ago had a scale set of runways and taxiways poured around the flagpoles. These are an exact replica of the original runway system at McCook, almost all of which has been destroyed and turned back into farm ground as it was before September of 1942 when the field was developed. Our Historical Society group owns three of the hangars and private owners own the other two. McCook is the last 2AF base in Nebraska and Kansas that still retains all five WWII hangars, though we have lost the flying field.

Here are a couple of pictures of some of the air bases we took during the weekend. I apologize for the quality of the photos, and especially for the dead bugs on the windscreen in the later pictures.

First is Great Bend, Kansas. This served almost entirely as a B-29 training station and was a big part of the "Battle of Kansas", the preparation and modification of the 58th Wing's Superfortresses in the winter of 1943/44. Great Bend is still an active municipal airport but has lost many of the original buildings. Two B-29 hangars have been torn down in only the last few years.

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

Next is a low approach to McCook's runway 30. As can be seen, there is virtually nothing remaining of the 7,000 foot runway. There is a short stub of the runway that is not visible in this photo. The first hangar you see is the Sub-Depot, building #202, and the other four are in the trees. McCook personnel trained B-24 and later B-29 Bomb Groups as stated earlier.

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

[Second Air Force]

To continue with our Second Air Force airfield tour, here are some more photos:

First is Kearney AAF, seen as we lined up for runway 18. Kearney was the training base for the 100th Bomb Group in preparation for 8th Air Force service. After the 100th left the field performed some crew training duties and then became a Processing Center for B-17s heading to Europe. Many, many freshly trained crews and brand new Fortresses processed through here just before going to the combat zones of the MTO and ETO. In late '44 the station quit processing B-17s and began to process B-29s and their crews in preparation for their trips to the Pacific. If you do research on combat B-17s you'll often see Kearney in the assigned station list.

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

Next is Grand Island, landing on runway 17. GI  served as a Phase Training field for B-17 and B-29 Bomb Groups. Grand Island was also a headquarters field for part of the huge 2AF Bombardment Training scheme.

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

Harvard Army Air Field served as a Phase Training station for all three four-engined bombers used by the U.S. in WWII. First the Fortresses of the 447th Group, then B-24s, and finally the B-29s and their crews trained here. After the War the state of Nebraska took possession of the field and removed most of the runway system. This is the remaining portion of that system shown from the south lining up with runway 35. (I apologize for the bugs on the windscreen--that one was juicy!)

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

[No.1]

Nice aerial images mate And thank you for additional info

[Sall]

Very nice story.

[Second Air Force]

I've got a good bit of the manuscript finished for a book about the Nebraska airfields. Many hours of research and visiting with some of the men and women who served on the bases.

[Second Air Force]

Continuing with the aerial tour of 2AF airfields, here is Fairmont. This was also the home to several B-24 and B-29 units. The 393rd Bomb Squadron of the 16th Group was taken from here and reassigned to Wendover AAF to form the tactical unit of the 509th Composite Group. Fairmont, like Harvard, is now a State-run airport with four of the five hangars still in use and some of the original runway/taxiway system.

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

Next is Bruning AAF. This is (to me at least) a very interesting station and illustrates how wasteful war is in terms of material. The field was built and a couple of B-24 units trained here. The 449th actually finished their training here and then went to the MTO. Not too long after, the AAF decided that the runways were of such poor quality that bombers should not operate here and the field was reassigned to train P-47 pilots. In December of 1944, after less than two years of service, the field was inactivated and never used by the Air Forces again. It became a State airfield for a time and now is used as a feedlot for cattle. A short stretch of 17/35 was still useable a number of years ago but has now been inactivated.

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

The final field on this "tour" is Herington, Kansas. Herington was a very, very important staging/processing station for B-24s and B-29s. About 2/3rds of all B-29s and crews that went to the Pacific were processed through Herington. An interesting side note is that the Lady Be Good Liberator and her crew both processed through here. If any of y'all have ever watched Hogan's Heroes on T.V., John Banner (Sgt. Schultz) was a sergeant in Signal Suppy at Herington.

2AF Training Airfields Mini-Tour

[Sall]

Thanks for all this information mate! Very nice story!

[Letipapa]

Great!  
What a pity that this stations were not totally preserved. It's a history and should be kept for generations. I thought that only in Serbia and other former Yugoslavia republics and former eastern block countries such things happens, but it seems that it is the case everywhere. If not some preservation groups, it would be lost everything.
So, keep the tradition

[Second Air Force]

Hi, Letipapa!

Many of the airfields that were constructed in the States for training purposes were considered as temporary facilities. Most of the smaller buildings at the Second Air Force stations were designed with a practical lifespan of only a three to five years. The lion's share of the hangars at most of the Heavy and Very Heavy Bombardment training stations were wooden and also not expected to be around for a long time. The runways, taxiways, and parking aprons were poured concrete with no reinforcing rods or mesh, also considered temporary.

The Army was able to close down some stations in late 1944 (saving the taxpayers a lot of money in the process) and the rest of the temporary fields were put on Standby status by December of '45. After that many of the buildings were sold at auction and dismantled or moved to farms, cities, etc. for other uses. Some airfields became civilian airports and some reverted back to farming.

As to saving the historical structures still remaining, the local governments here act much as you stated about your part of the world--much has been lost over the years as "liability" issues are used as excuses to tear down what remains. I suppose the general public would rather not think about military installations as being of any special historic value. That leaves those of us who care about that side of history to do what we can.

Scott

[Letipapa]

Yes, this is understandable, but, you know, I always wish if there would be much more than it really is or lefts. Anyhow we need to struggle to preserve as much as possible. I wish you many successes in this.

[Second Air Force]

I totally agree with you. We're trying to save what we can and other people around the U.S. have also worked hard to preserve military installations that still remain. It can be frustrating to watch the destruction after the buildings and concrete survived for almost seventy years, though.