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25-551: The airfield was acquired by lease from various owners beginning in 1940, and was constructed by the 841st Aviation Engineers Battalion in 1943. It was initially called a "T/O training field,supporting the main base of the Army Air Force School of Applied Tactics at Orlando Army Air Base . Bushnell had a 6,000-foot hard-surface runway and a 4,000-foot NNE/SSW steel plank landing mat runway but had no radio facilities, no gasoline, and no hangars. The 6,000-foot runway

50-526: A close air support school unit, the 415th Bombardment Group was added. The fighter school unit from 23 March 1943 was the 50th Fighter Group . Night Fighter training initially began with the 50th Group's 81st Fighter Squadron , but by 1943 was concentrated in the 481st Night Fighter Operational Training Group . However, the AAF was finding that standard military units like these groups, based on relatively inflexible tables of organization not well adapted to

75-806: A brief period in 1948, when it was part of Air Materiel Command ) until 1957. In 1957 the PGC was redesignated the Air Proving Ground Center and re-assigned to Air Research and Development Command (ARDC). The APGC continued its mission thereafter as part of the ARDC. From 27 October 1942, the School of Applied Tactics, later the AAF Tactical Center and then the AAF Center, was stationed at Orlando Army Air Base , Florida. The Centre

100-500: A combat simulation facility in Florida. Units and airfields were established throughout an 8,000-square-mile (21,000 km ) area of north central Florida designated a mock "war theater" stretching roughly from Tampa to Titusville to Starke to Apalachicola in which war games were conducted. AAFSAT also had a bombing range at Ocala AAF , a service center at Leesburg AAF , and an air depot at Pinecastle Army Air Field . Due to

125-609: A major reorganization of the Tactical Center and a change in the types of courses conducted by the institution, the Army Air Forces redesignated the "new" AAFSAT as the Army Air Forces School on 1 June 1945, while the Tactical Center dropped the "Tactical" from its name and became the AAF Center. Following the end of World War II, in preparation for its post-war educational operations, the AAF moved

150-589: A result, the responsibility for the development and change to tactics for Air Corps units was scattered among various Air Corps units. Moreover, no single element of the Air Staff or special committee was responsible for overseeing tactical doctrine for the Army's air elements. The field organizations primarily responsible for development of tactics and associated doctrine were the Army Air Force Board ,

175-683: The Army Air Forces Tactical Center . A "new" AAFSAT was organized as one of the center's subordinate units. The first group receiving AAFSAT training to deploy overseas was the 390th Bombardment Group in July 1943, based in England with the Eighth Air Force . By September 1945, the AAF Center had trained 54,000 personnel and the cadres of 44 bombardment groups . During 1943-1945 the AAF Tactical Center operated

200-1068: The European Theater of Operations in March 1944, the 481st Night Fighter Operational Training Group continued its mission, but transferred to Fourth Air Force in California in January 1944. The transition to the new organization took place on 14 April 1944. With a ground school at Orlando Army Air Base , Florida, presenting a two-week academic course, AAFSAT also taught a two-week field course utilizing eleven training airfields in Florida representing all conditions likely to be found in combat, from bare fields to prepared bomber air bases having 10,000-foot (3,000 m) runways . [REDACTED]  This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency Army Air Forces Proving Ground Command The Army Air Forces Proving Ground Command (AAF PGC)

225-615: The AAF School from Orlando to Maxwell Field, Alabama on 29 November 1945 and assigned it directly to Headquarters, AAF. Having lost its developmental function, the AAF Center moved to Eglin Field in March 1946 and became the Army Air Forces Proving Ground Command. The AAF Tactical Center medium and heavy bomber school unit from 31 October 1942 was the 9th Bombardment Group . In February 1943,

250-669: The Air Defense Board and, after April 1943, the AAF Equipment Board. Although the Board had been operating before AAFSAT was activated, it only became official in July, when the school became the AAF Tactical Center. It was reassigned from the center directly to Headquarters, AAF in October 1943.although the commandant of the center remained a member of the board. In October 1943, AAFSAT was reorganized and became

275-750: The Air Defense Board, the Fighter Command School and the Army Air Forces Proving Ground . In addition, the splitting of existing combat groups into cadres for new groups had become impracticable as the number of new groups increased. At the entry of the United States into World War II on 7 December 1941, the Army Air Forces (AAF) had expanded to 67 groups from a pre-1939 total of 15, but approximately half were paper units just forming. The entry into

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300-668: The Chemical Warfare Service Experimental Station. The airfield was used by the Dugway Proving Ground Mobile CWS Unit as a landing strip for the planes used in the field trials at Withlacoochee Bombing & Gunnery Range . Bushnell was also used by Boeing B-17s from Brooksville AAF , B-25 Mitchells from Montbrook AAF , P-47 Thunderbolts from Cross City AAF , P-38 Lightnings from Lakeland AAF , and B-26 Marauders from Drew Field near Tampa. It

325-550: The area. The outline of the former fighter & bomber runways are still barely apparent in aerial photos. There does not appear to be any remains of any airfield buildings. In 1988, a property owner suffered chemical burns on his legs while digging a water well. Suspecting mustard gas, the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation and the United States Army began an investigation into the source of

350-455: The contamination. Officials found aviation fuel that had been used for an experimental pump for bombers in the groundwater. In 1988, interested builders had to sign an affidavit affirming their knowledge of contaminated ground water. [REDACTED]  This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency Army Air Force School of Applied Tactics The Army Air Forces Tactical Center

375-730: The school also developed as a tactical doctrine development center, assuming the functions formerly assigned the Air Corps Tactical School . In June 1946, the center became the Army Air Forces Proving Ground Command . As the threat of entry of the United States into World War II increased, the United States Army decided to close the Air Corps Tactical School in 1940 in order to use its experienced personnel at headquarters , and in expanded training and tactical units. As

400-569: The schools, all four would be consolidated at a single location. Orlando Army Air Base , Florida was chosen 1 November 1942, primarily because it was already the location of Fighter Command School, which would be subordinated to the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics (AAFSAT). The AAF determined this organization would conduct tactical development and training and provide tactical training for flyers who were preparing to deploy to theaters of operation. The commandant of AAFSAT

425-426: The training mission. Accordingly, it adopted a more functional system in the spring of 1944 in which each base was organized into a separate numbered unit. In preparation for this reorganization, the 9th Bombardment Group moved to Nebraska, where it was reassigned to Second Air Force to become a Boeing B-29 Superfortress unit. The 50th Fighter Group began to concentrate on training in preparation for deployment to

450-402: The war meant an immediate significant increase in the numbers of new combat groups, expanding to 269 groups by the end of 1943. Headquarters USAAF originally intended that four tactical schools be developed across the United States, one each for air defense, air service, air support and bombardment. However "to save administrative costs and physical outlay" and to facilitate coordination between

475-711: Was Brigadier General Hume Peabody, formerly the assistant commandant of the Air Corps Tactical School. The Fighter Command School became AAFSAT's Air Defense Department at once. The 91st Service Group at Fort Dix Army Air Field moved to Orlando and became the Air Service Department. 5th Interceptor Command moved from San Francisco and became the Interceptor Command School. The other two departments, Air Support and Bombardment were built up from scratch AAFSAT

500-510: Was a major command and military training organization of the United States Army Air Forces during World War II . It trained cadres from newly formed units in combat operations under simulated field conditions around which new combat groups would be formed. It was established as the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics (AAFSAT) in 1942 and redesignated the following year. In addition to its training function,

525-609: Was certified to the War Assets Administration (WAA) for disposal in 1946. The lands reverted to the owners & most land was put back into agricultural use, and was never reused as a civilian airfield. The chemical warfare activities conducted at Bushnell in World War II have caused it to be the site of environmental cleanup investigations in 2001. Today the areas of the two former airfields are still largely undeveloped, with some houses scattered around

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550-481: Was classed as a temporary field on standby basis in 1944, and was closed in 1945. Jurisdiction of the airfield was transferred to Air Technical Service Command (ATSC), whose mission was the transfer of any useful military equipment to other bases around the country. Under ATSC, the 20,000 steel mats which had made up the two runways at Bushnell were sold for scrap, but many found new life as miles of fences scattered across west-central Florida. The Bushnell AAF property

575-590: Was known as the "bomber runway", while the 4,000-foot strip was known as the "fighter runway". An aircraft parking area was apparently located at the southwest end of the bomber runway. Bushnell was used extensively in Chemical warfare trials. In 1943 the Dugway Proving Ground Mobile Chemical Warfare Service Unit arrived at Bushnell AAF to begin experiments on non-persistent chemical agents, setting up

600-609: Was organized into three directorates: Tactical Development, School Activities, and Demonstration Air Force, with three combat groups acting as both school units and demonstration air force units. The Directorate of School Activities was responsible for the four functional departments. The school officially opened 12 November 1942. An important component was the Army Air Forces Board, which supervised developmental projects. This board also assigned developmental projects to AAFSAT's departments, and had two subordinate boards,

625-684: Was the primary testing command of the United States Army Air Forces (1946-47), and then the United States Air Force (1947-57). In March 1946, the Army Air Forces Center was redesignated the AAF PGC, adding the responsibilities of a similarly named organization in June, when it moved to Eglin Field , Florida. It became the Army Air Forces ' (later the United States Air Force 's) primary testing command (except for

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