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123-557: Modesto City–County Airport was the nation's first municipally-owned airport, opening in 1918. At first, the airport southeast of, downtown Modesto was only 82 acres (33 ha); it moved in 1929 to the current location. On February 20, 1941, the city council voted to lease more land in order to obtain $ 185,000 in improvements by the Federal New Deal agency the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Over

246-511: A Bombardier CRJ-200 operated by SkyWest from SCK. This service was discontinued in early 2020 due to COVID-19. Stockton Metropolitan Airport is home to the Stockton Field Aviation Museum, a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving Stockton 's rich aviation history. The museum has a special emphasis on WWII aviation and the equipment that was used by the people who designed, built, maintained and flew

369-933: A segregated basis. A flight training center was set up at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama . Despite the handicap—caused by the segregation policy—of not having an experienced training cadre as with other AAF units, the Tuskegee Airmen distinguished themselves in combat with the 332nd Fighter Group . The Tuskegee training program produced 673 black fighter pilots, 253 B-26 Marauder pilots, and 132 navigators. The vast majority of African-American airmen, however, did not fare as well. Mainly draftees , most did not fly or maintain aircraft. Their largely menial duties, indifferent or hostile leadership, and poor morale led to serious dissatisfaction and several violent incidents. Women served more successfully as part of

492-585: A "disturbing failure to follow through on orders". To streamline the AAF in preparation for war, with a goal of centralized planning and decentralized execution of operations, in October 1941 Arnold submitted to the WDGS essentially the same reorganization plan it had rejected a year before, this time crafted by Chief of Air Staff Brig. Gen. Carl A. Spaatz . When this plan was not given any consideration, Arnold reworded

615-476: A Chief of Air Staff and three deputies. This wartime structure remained essentially unchanged for the remainder of hostilities. In October 1944 Arnold, to begin a process of reorganization for reducing the structure, proposed to eliminate the AC/AS, Training and move his office into OC&R, changing it to Operations, Training and Requirements (OT&R) but the mergers were never effected. On 23 August 1945, after

738-538: A Zone of Interior "training and supply agency", but from the start AAF officers viewed this as a "paper" restriction negated by Arnold's place on both the Joint and Combined Chiefs, which gave him strategic planning authority for the AAF, a viewpoint that was formally sanctioned by the War Department in mid-1943 and endorsed by the president. The Circular No. 59 reorganization directed the AAF to operate under

861-566: A blueprint. After war began, Congress enacted the First War Powers Act on 18 December 1941 endowing President Franklin D. Roosevelt with virtual carte blanche to reorganize the executive branch as he found necessary. Under it, on 28 February 1942, Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9082 , based on Marshall's recommendation and the work of McNarney's committee. The EO changed Arnold's title to Commanding General, Army Air Forces effective 9 March 1942, making him co-equal with

984-470: A change of mood at the War Department, and of dubious legality. By November 1941, on the eve of U.S. entry into the war, the division of authority within the Army as a whole, caused by the activation of Army GHQ a year before, had led to a "battle of memos" between it and the WDGS over administering the AAF, prompting Marshall to state that he had "the poorest command post in the Army" when defense commands showed

1107-457: A complex division of administrative control performed by a policy staff, an operating staff, and the support commands (formerly "field activities" of the OCAC). The former field activities operated under a "bureau" structure, with both policy and operating functions vested in staff-type officers who often exercised command and policy authority without responsibility for results, a system held over from

1230-609: A controversial move, the AAF Technical Training Command began leasing resort hotels and apartment buildings for large-scale training sites (accommodation for 90,000 existed in Miami Beach alone). The leases were negotiated for the AAF by the Corps of Engineers, often to the economic detriment of hotel owners in rental rates, wear and tear clauses, and short-notice to terminate leases. In December 1943,

1353-429: A deleterious effect on operational training and threatened to overwhelm the capacity of the old Air Corps groups to provide experienced cadres or to absorb graduates of the expanded training program to replace those transferred. Since 1939 the overall level of experience among the combat groups had fallen to such an extent that when the demand for replacements in combat was factored in, the entire operational training system

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1476-720: A general autonomy within the War Department (similar to that of the Marine Corps within the Department of the Navy ) until the end of the war, while its commanders would cease lobbying for independence. Marshall, a strong proponent of airpower, understood that the Air Force would likely achieve its independence following the war. Soon after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, in recognition of importance of

1599-486: A major portion of the former cantonment area including housing, storage facilities, and a sewage disposal plant, were leased to U.S. Army's Stockton General Depot located to the south in nearby Lathrop. The City of Stockton and the County of San Joaquin resumed operating the former Stockton Municipal Airport on December 16, 1946, under a joint (interim) license. On the 1,044.18 acres of leased land (950 acres of which comprise

1722-698: A major reorganization and consolidation on 29 March 1943. The four main directorates and seventeen subordinate directorates (the "operating staff") were abolished as an unnecessary level of authority, and execution of policies was removed from the staffs to be assigned solely to field organizations along functional lines. The policy functions of the directorates were reorganized and consolidated into offices regrouped along conventional military lines under six assistant chiefs of air staff (AC/AS): Personnel; Intelligence; Operations, Commitments, and Requirements (OC&R); Materiel, Maintenance, and Distribution (MM&D); Plans; and Training. Command of Headquarters AAF resided in

1845-570: A multiplicity of branches and organizations, reduced the WDGS greatly in size, and proportionally increased the representation of the air forces members on it to 50%. In addition to dissolving both Army General Headquarters and the chiefs of the combat arms , and assigning their training functions to the Army Ground Forces, War Department Circular 59 reorganized the Army Air Forces, disbanding both Air Force Combat Command and

1968-580: A perception of resistance and even obstruction then by the bureaucracy in the War Department General Staff (WDGS), much of which was attributable to lack of funds, the Air Corps later made great strides in the 1930s, both organizationally and in doctrine. A strategy stressing precision bombing of industrial targets by heavily armed, long-range bombers emerged, formulated by the men who would become its leaders. A major step toward

2091-639: A project by Amazon.com to test the idea of starting their own air cargo operation. The flight is operated daily to Airborne Airpark by Air Transport International on behalf of Amazon, now known as Prime Air utilizing a Boeing 767-300 aircraft. The trial flights from Wilmington, OH were originally operated into Oakland International Airport at the start of Project Aerosmith, but soon after operations were shifted over to Stockton airport. As of October 2, 2017, there were two daily flights operating from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport with one continuing on to Ontario International Airport while

2214-471: A proposal for creation of an air staff, unification of the air arm under one commander, and equality with the ground and supply forces. Arnold's proposal was immediately opposed by the General Staff in all respects, rehashing its traditional doctrinal argument that, in the event of war, the Air Corps would have no mission independent of support of the ground forces. Marshall implemented a compromise that

2337-988: A record: 51,587 passengers boarded. In June 2008, SkyWest Airlines (United Express) flights to Los Angeles ended, and, on June 4, 2014, the airline ended its flights to San Francisco, leaving the airport with no airline flights. In 2023, the Airport hosted the Commemorative Air Force Central California Valley Squadron which showcased planes from World War II. Additionally, Modesto Airport stopped commercial flights to San Francisco to Los Angeles but in 2023, they may decide to start doing commercial flights again. The airport has two runways : [REDACTED]  This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency Stockton Army Airfield Stockton Metropolitan Airport ( IATA : SCK , ICAO : KSCK , FAA LID : SCK )

2460-589: A separate air force came in March 1935, when the command of all combat air units within the Continental United States (CONUS) was centralized under a single organization called the "General Headquarters Air Force" . Since 1920, control of aviation units had resided with commanders of the corps areas (a peacetime ground forces administrative echelon), following the model established by commanding General John J. Pershing during World War I. In 1924,

2583-636: A small part of the Sharpe General Depot Troop Field Annex until a new National Guard Armory was built on State-owned land south of the site in 1952. On July 8, 1957, the City of Stockton transferred half of its interest in the Stockton Municipal Airport by Grant Deed, and San Joaquin County assumed administration over the airport (subject to certain reservations, restrictions and conditions according to

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2706-473: A standard of combat proficiency had barely surpassed the total originally authorized by the first expansion program in 1940. The extant training establishment, in essence a "self-training" system, was inadequate in assets, organization, and pedagogy to train units wholesale. Individual training of freshly minted pilots occupied an inordinate amount of the available time to the detriment of unit proficiency. The ever-increasing numbers of new groups being formed had

2829-412: A statement with visiting counterparts from Chengdu Shuangliu Airport , promising "strategic cooperation" between the two airports. The agreement mentions the possibility of air services between the two airports, but no such services currently exist or are planned. In February 2016, Amazon.com began daily chartered air cargo flights into Stockton Metropolitan Airport as part of their Project Aerosmith,

2952-458: A temporary, nonstandard, headquarters in August 1944. This provisional fighter wing was set up to separate control of its P-38 groups from its P-51 groups. This headquarters was referred to as "XV Fighter Command (Provisional)". Eight air divisions served as an additional layer of command and control for the vast organization, capable of acting independently if the need arose. Inclusive within

3075-547: A training installation under the West Coast Training Center (later Western Flying Training Command) headquartered at Santa Ana Army Air Base . Known sub-bases and auxiliaries of Stockton AAF were: In May 1944 all of the facility was consolidated into the 3033rd Army Air Forces Base Unit. Given the airfield's proximity to logistical facilities under the Army Air Forces and Army Service Forces ,

3198-405: Is 4,448 by 75 feet (1,356 x 23 m). It has one concrete helipad , H1, 70 by 70 feet (21 x 21 m). The airport also has a 44,355 sq. ft. terminal building, capable of holding almost 400 passengers in its hold room, as well as up to five aircraft at a time once upgrades of the apron are complete. The airport is also seeking to add customs facilities to attract new international flights to Mexico. In

3321-509: Is a joint civil-military airport three miles southeast of downtown Stockton , a city in San Joaquin County, California . It is owned by the County of San Joaquin. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems categorized it as a primary commercial service airport. Federal Aviation Administration records say it had 36,935 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008, 28,368 in 2009 and 50,632 in 2010. In

3444-471: The Air Transport Command made deliveries of almost 270,000 aircraft worldwide while losing only 1,013 in the process. The operation of the stateside depots was done largely by more than 300,000 civilian maintenance employees, many of them women, freeing a like number of Air Forces mechanics for overseas duty. In all facets of the service, more than 420,000 civilian personnel were employed by

3567-526: The Army Service Forces , but the AAF increasingly exerted influence on the curricula of these courses in anticipation of future independence. African-Americans comprised approximately six per cent of this force (145,242 personnel in June 1944). In 1940, pressured by Eleanor Roosevelt and some Northern members of Congress , General Arnold agreed to accept blacks for pilot training, albeit on

3690-624: The Quartermaster Corps and then by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , because of a lack of familiarity with Air Corps requirements. The outbreak of war in Europe and the resulting need for a wide variety of facilities for both operations and training within the Continental United States necessitated comprehensive changes of policy, first in September 1941 by giving the responsibility for acquisition and development of bases directly to

3813-690: The United States Air Force , James Robinson Risner and Charles E. Yeager . Air crew needs resulted in the successful training of 43,000 bombardiers , 49,000 navigators , and 309,000 flexible gunners, many of whom also specialized in other aspects of air crew duties. 7,800 men qualified as B-29 flight engineers and 1,000 more as radar operators in night fighters , all of whom received commissions. Almost 1.4 million men received technical training as aircraft mechanics, electronics specialists, and other technicians. Non-aircraft related support services were provided by airmen trained by

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3936-457: The aircraft of our country's " Greatest Generation ". The museum hosts an annual Bomber Camp fundraiser, which allows participants to fly in WWII bombers ( B-17 and B-24 ) and drop concrete bombs from the air to a ground target. The airport covers 1,552 acres (628 ha ) at an elevation of 33 feet (10 m). It has two asphalt runways : 11L/29R is 10,249 by 150 feet (3,124 x 46 m) and 11R/29L

4059-634: The "Agreement" with the United States of America dated December 23, 1948 (Appendix A)). The end of the Korean War caused more mission changes at Sharpe General Depot and the Sharpe General Depot Troop Field Annex. Sharpe was selected as a location for Cold War storage of surplus military diesel locomotives . After application of lubricant preservatives, each locomotive was placed within an individual cocoon protected by an electrically operated, automatically controlled dehumidifying system. In 1958,

4182-605: The AAF created a reserve pool that held qualified pilot candidates until they could be called to active duty, rather than losing them in the draft. By 1944, this pool became surplus, and 24,000 were sent to the Army Ground Forces for retraining as infantry , and 6,000 to the Army Service Forces . Pilot standards were changed to reduce the minimum age from 20 to 18, and eliminated the educational requirement of at least two years of college. Two fighter pilot beneficiaries of this change went on to become brigadier generals in

4305-502: The AAF for the first time in its history, and then in April 1942 by delegation of the enormous task by Headquarters AAF to its user field commands and numbered air forces. In addition to the construction of new permanent bases and the building of numerous bombing and gunnery ranges, the AAF utilized civilian pilot schools, training courses conducted at college and factory sites, and officer training detachments at colleges. In early 1942, in

4428-468: The AAF reached a war-time peak of 783 airfields in the Continental United States. At the end of the war, the AAF was using almost 20 million acres of land, an area as large as Massachusetts , Connecticut , Vermont , and New Hampshire combined. By the end of World War II, the USAAF had created 16 numbered air forces ( First through Fifteenth and Twentieth ) distributed worldwide to prosecute

4551-590: The AAF. The huge increases in aircraft inventory resulted in a similar increase in personnel, expanding sixteen-fold in less than three years following its formation, and changed the personnel policies under which the Air Service and Air Corps had operated since the National Defense Act of 1920. No longer could pilots represent 90% of commissioned officers. The need for large numbers of specialists in administration and technical services resulted in

4674-529: The Air Corps expanded from 15 to 30 groups by the end of the year. On 7 December 1941 the number of activated combat groups had reached 67, with 49 still within the Continental United States. Of the CONUS groups (the "strategic reserve"), 21 were engaged in operational training or still being organized and were unsuitable for deployment. Of the 67 combat groups, 26 were classified as bombardment: 13 Heavy Bomb groups ( B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator ), and

4797-557: The Air Corps found entirely inadequate, naming Arnold as acting "Deputy Chief of Staff for Air" but rejecting all organizational points of his proposal. GHQ Air Force instead was assigned to the control of Army General Headquarters, although the latter was a training and not an operational component, when it was activated in November 1940. A division of the GHQ Air Force into four geographical air defense districts on 19 October 1940

4920-480: The Air Corps in October 1940 saw fifteen new general officer billets created. By the end of World War II, 320 generals were authorized for service within the wartime AAF. The Air Corps operated 156 installations at the beginning of 1941. An airbase expansion program had been underway since 1939, attempting to keep pace with the increase in personnel, units, and aircraft, using existing municipal and private facilities where possible, but it had been mismanaged, first by

5043-490: The Air Corps mission remain tied to that of the land forces. Airpower advocates achieved a centralized control of air units under an air commander, while the WDGS divided authority within the air arm and assured a continuing policy of support of ground operations as its primary role. GHQ Air Force organized combat groups administratively into a strike force of three wings deployed to the Atlantic , Pacific, and Gulf coasts but

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5166-597: The Air Corps still had only 800 first-line combat aircraft and 76 bases, including 21 major installations and depots. American fighter aircraft were inferior to the British Spitfire and Hurricane , and German Messerschmitt Bf 110 and 109 . Ralph Ingersoll wrote in late 1940 after visiting Britain that the "best American fighter planes already delivered to the British are used by them either as advanced trainers—or for fighting equally obsolete Italian planes in

5289-492: The Air Corps years. The concept of an "operating staff", or directorates, was modeled on the RAF system that had been much admired by the observer groups sent over in 1941, and resulted from a desire to place experts in various aspects of military aviation into key positions of implementation. However functions often overlapped, communication and coordination between the divisions failed or was ignored, policy prerogatives were usurped by

5412-458: The Air Corps". A lawyer and a banker, Lovett had prior experience with the aviation industry that translated into realistic production goals and harmony in integrating the plans of the AAF with those of the Army as a whole. Lovett initially believed that President Roosevelt's demand following the attack on Pearl Harbor for 60,000 airplanes in 1942 and 125,000 in 1943 was grossly ambitious. However, working closely with General Arnold and engaging

5535-596: The Air Corps, General Headquarters Air Force, and the ground forces' corps area commanders and thus became the first air organization of the U.S. Army to control its own installations and support personnel. The peak size of the AAF during World War II was over 2.4 million men and women in service and nearly 80,000 aircraft by 1944, and 783 domestic bases in December 1943. By " V-E Day ", the Army Air Forces had 1.25 million men stationed overseas and operated from more than 1,600 airfields worldwide. The Army Air Forces

5658-606: The Air Corps, which had been the statutory military aviation branch since 1926 and the GHQ Air Force, which had been activated in 1935 to quiet the demands of airmen for an independent Air Force similar to the Royal Air Force which had already been established in the United Kingdom . Although other nations already had separate air forces independent of their army or navy (such as the Royal Air Force and

5781-444: The Air Corps, while 82 per cent of enlisted members assigned to AAF units and bases had the Air Corps as their combat arm branch. While officially the air arm was the Army Air Forces , the term Air Corps persisted colloquially among the public as well as veteran airmen; in addition, the singular Air Force often crept into popular and even official use, reflected by the designation Air Force Combat Command in 1941–42. This misnomer

5904-496: The Army General Headquarters had the power to detach units from AFCC at will by creating task forces, the WDGS still controlled the AAF budget and finances, and the AAF had no jurisdiction over units of the Army Service Forces providing "housekeeping services" as support nor of air units, bases, and personnel located outside the continental United States. Arnold and Marshall agreed that the AAF would enjoy

6027-667: The Field Annex site and began the process of disposing of the Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex. Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex was vacated in 1973, ending the U.S. Army's presence on the field with all of the land and buildings reverting to San Joaquin County. A few original World War II structures still remain including the American Legion Sharpe General Depot Post 632 currently occupying a World War II era mess hall on

6150-557: The General Staff planned for a wartime activation of an Army general headquarters (GHQ), similar to the American Expeditionary Forces model of World War I , with a GHQ Air Force as a subordinate component. Both were created in 1933 when a small conflict with Cuba seemed possible following a coup d'état but was not activated. The activation of GHQ Air Force represented a compromise between strategic airpower advocates and ground force commanders who demanded that

6273-617: The German Luftwaffe ), the AAF remained a part of the Army until a defense reorganization in the post-war period resulted in the passage by the United States Congress of the National Security Act of 1947 with the creation of an independent United States Air Force in September 1947. In its expansion and conduct of the war, the AAF became more than just an arm of the greater organization. By

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6396-513: The Low Countries in May 1940, Roosevelt asked Congress for a supplemental appropriation of nearly a billion dollars, a production program of 50,000 aircraft a year, and a military air force of 50,000 aircraft (of which 36,500 would be Army). Accelerated programs followed in the Air Corps that repeatedly revised expansion goals, resulting in plans for 84 combat groups, 7,799 combat aircraft, and

6519-527: The Middle East. That is all they are good for." RAF crews he interviewed said that by spring 1941 a fighter engaging Germans had to have the capability to reach 400 mph in speed, fight at 30,000–35,000 feet, be simple to take off, provide armor for the pilot, and carry 12 machine guns or six cannons, all attributes lacking in American aircraft. Following the successful German invasion of France and

6642-543: The Office of Chief of the Air Corps (OCAC), eliminating all its training and organizational functions, which removed an entire layer of authority. Taking their former functions were eleven numbered air forces (later raised to sixteen) and six support commands (which became eight in January 1943). The circular also restated the mission of the AAF, in theory removing from it responsibility for strategic planning and making it only

6765-607: The Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex property located at Building 372, 1700 Northrop Street. Although the active duty Regular Army departed the airport location following the closure of the Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex, the airport continues to retain a military presence in the form of both ground and Army Aviation activities of the California Army National Guard . These facilities include a National Guard Armory, Field and Combined Support Maintenance Shops, and an Army Aviation Support Facility (AASF) just south of

6888-574: The Sharpe General Depot received a Fourth Echelon Air Maintenance Support mission on U.S. Army aircraft within the Sixth U.S. Army Area. The Site then served as home to the Sixth U.S. Army Aircraft Field Maintenance Activity operated by Detachment 3, 6932nd Service Unit. This unit provided maintenance support to U.S. Army rotary and fixed-wing liaison aircraft in the Sixth U.S. Army area and occupied Buildings 1000, 1001, and 1003. The site also

7011-788: The Site, followed by units of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 58th Field Depot in July. By 1967, the Headquarters Commandant of the Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex had the responsibility to command troops assigned to Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex. This included the supervision of all attached and tenant units, Special Services, Annex Services, Education Center, Officers Open Mess and Non-commissioned Officers Club, including support for Army Reserve, Army National Guard and transient units. In January 1966, an Army clothing store

7134-542: The Supply and Maintenance Command. This brought about another name change when Sharpe General Deport became Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex. On July 11, 1964, Stockton Municipal Airport was officially renamed the Stockton Metropolitan Airport, reflecting its changing role as a civil airport. Thirty new military family housing units were also built in 1964 at Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex, resulting in

7257-605: The U.S. Army was officially named the Stockton General Depot Field Annex , then renamed Sharpe General Depot Field Annex in 1948, when Stockton General Depot was redesignated as Sharpe General Depot . The U.S. Army, with the exception of the Sharpe General Depot Field Annex, left Stockton Field by January 31, 1948; the same date that the City of Stockton and the County of San Joaquin jointly assumed administration over

7380-699: The United States . The AAF was a component of the United States Army , which on 2 March 1942 was divided functionally by executive order into three autonomous forces: the Army Ground Forces , the United States Army Services of Supply (which in 1943 became the Army Service Forces ), and the Army Air Forces. Each of these forces had a commanding general who reported directly to the Army Chief of Staff . The AAF administered all parts of military aviation formerly distributed among

7503-545: The WAACs and WACs as AAF personnel, more than 1,000 as Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs), and 6,500 as nurses in the Army Air Forces, including 500 flight nurses. 7,601 "Air WACs" served overseas in April 1945, and women performed in more than 200 job categories. The Air Corps Act of July 1926 increased the number of general officers authorized in the Army's air arm from two to four. The activation of GHQAF in March 1935 doubled that number to eight and pre-war expansion of

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7626-430: The air forces and to avoid binding legislation from Congress, the War Department revised the army regulation governing the organization of Army aviation, AR 95–5. Arnold assumed the title of Chief of the Army Air Forces , creating an echelon of command over all military aviation components for the first time and ending the dual status of the Air Corps and GHQ Air Force, which was renamed Air Force Combat Command (AFCC) in

7749-473: The air forces, commands and divisions were administrative headquarters called wings to control groups (operational units; see section below). As the number of groups increased, the number of wings needed to control them multiplied, with 91 ultimately activated, 69 of which were still active at the end of the war. As part of the Air Service and Air Corps, wings had been composite organizations, that is, composed of groups with different types of missions. Most of

7872-400: The airport (Stockton Record 1964). Sharpe General Depot Field Annex was formed from two parcels of land adjacent to the southwest portion of the current Stockton Metropolitan Airport. Sharpe General Depot Field Annex was operated by the U.S. Army as a separate, self-contained military post under Sharpe General Depot. With the rapid expansion of depot operations and facilities that occurred with

7995-470: The airport now under license) there were approximately 175 buildings, including 50 airport-related structures which were included in the above described license. The buildings were primarily the Quartermaster 700-series and 800-series type construction with concrete foundations, wood floor, composition roof, and wood lap siding. On January 29, 1947, the 71.36-acres of former Stockton Field retained by

8118-412: The airport was unable to secure a customs facility. Federal officials saw no need for such facility as they already existed in larger airports like Sacramento, Oakland, Fresno, San Francisco and San Jose with global capabilities. Local officials filed an appeal and Congressman Richard Pombo also persuaded officials to approve a facility. Federal officials then reconsidered and approved the plans. Despite

8241-500: The airport, it was renamed Modesto City–County Airport. In October 1974 Harry Sham Field was added to the name to honor the airport manager that served from 1949 to 1968. Scheduled passenger flights started in 1946 when United Airlines opened its new terminal and began the Valley Queen service. United served Modesto with Douglas DC-3s, Convair 340s and Douglas DC-6s and began Boeing 737-200 flights in 1968. United dropped Modesto in

8364-481: The annual addition to the force of 30,000 new pilots and 100,000 technical personnel. The accelerated expansion programs resulted in a force of 156 airfields and 152,125 personnel at the time of the creation of the Army Air Forces. In its expansion during World War II, the AAF became the world's most powerful air force. From the Air Corps of 1939, with 20,000 men and 2,400 planes, to the nearly autonomous AAF of 1944, with almost 2.4 million personnel and 80,000 aircraft,

8487-958: The approval, San Joaquin County Supervisors decided against financing the project In June 2015, the airport was seeking funding for construction of a temporary customs inspection station at the airport, to allow for possible service on Mexican airlines Volaris and Aeromexico . In June 2006 Allegiant Air began round trip non-stop flights to Las Vegas and this service continues at the present time. On October 26, 2007, Allegiant Air began flights to Phoenix–Mesa and on July 1, 2010, to Long Beach; however, both routes were then discontinued. On October 28, 2011, Allegiant Air began twice weekly MD-80 flights from Stockton to Palm Springs but then discontinued this service as well. On November 18, 2012, Allegiant Air began flying twice weekly Boeing 757-200 nonstop flights from Stockton to Honolulu. This service has since been cancelled. The Boeing 757

8610-471: The capacity of the American automotive industry brought about an effort that produced almost 100,000 aircraft in 1944. The AAF reached its wartime inventory peak of nearly 80,000 aircraft in July 1944, 41% of them first line combat aircraft, before trimming back to 73,000 at the end of the year following a large reduction in the number of trainers needed. The logistical demands of this armada were met by

8733-430: The capitulation of Japan, realignment took place with the complete elimination of OC&R. The now five assistant chiefs of air staff were designated AC/AS-1 through -5 corresponding to Personnel, Intelligence, Operations and Training, Materiel and Supply, and Plans. Most personnel of the Army Air Forces were drawn from the Air Corps. In May 1945, 88 per cent of officers serving in the Army Air Forces were commissioned in

8856-708: The closure of older family housing units at the site. In the last months of 1965, support to Army Aviation expanded again as a result of the U.S. Army's role in Southeast Asia. As the Vietnam War continued, so did Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex's mission. Sharpe became the Army Material Command's key west coast installation and the Army's chief provider of supplies for United States military personnel in Vietnam. Cocoons were removed from fourteen of

8979-518: The commanders of GHQ Air Force and the Air Corps, Major Generals Frank M. Andrews and Oscar Westover respectively, clashed philosophically over the direction in which the air arm was moving, exacerbating the difficulties. The expected activation of Army General Headquarters prompted Army Chief of Staff George C. Marshall to request a reorganization study from Chief of the Air Corps Maj. Gen. Henry H. Arnold resulting on 5 October 1940 in

9102-573: The commanding generals of the new Army Ground Forces and Services of Supply , the other two components of the Army of the United States . The War Department issued Circular No. 59 on 2 March that carried out the executive order, intended (as with the creation of the Air Service in World War I) as a wartime expedient to expire six months after the end of the war. The three components replaced

9225-700: The conduct of all aspects of the air war in every part of the world, determining air policy and issuing orders without transmitting them through the Army Chief of Staff. This "contrast between theory and fact is...fundamental to an understanding of the AAF." The roots of the Army Air Forces arose in the formulation of theories of strategic bombing at the Air Corps Tactical School that gave new impetus to arguments for an independent air force, beginning with those espoused by Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell that led to his later court-martial . Despite

9348-625: The creation of the Air Service Command on 17 October 1941 to provide service units and maintain 250 depots in the United States; the elevation of the Materiel Division to full command status on 9 March 1942 to develop and procure aircraft, equipment, and parts; and the merger of these commands into the Air Technical Service Command on 31 August 1944. In addition to carrying personnel and cargo,

9471-634: The creation of the Army Air Forces, caused an immediate reassessment of U.S. defense strategy and policy. The need for an offensive strategy to defeat the Axis Powers required further enlargement and modernization of all the military services, including the new AAF. In addition, the invasion produced a new Lend lease partner in Russia, creating even greater demands on an already struggling American aircraft production. An offensive strategy required several types of urgent and sustained effort. In addition to

9594-448: The development and manufacture of aircraft in massive numbers, the Army Air Forces had to establish a global logistics network to supply, maintain, and repair the huge force; recruit and train personnel; and sustain the health, welfare, and morale of its troops. The process was driven by the pace of aircraft production, not the training program, and was ably aided by the direction of Lovett, who for all practical purposes became "Secretary of

9717-469: The direct control of Headquarters Army Air Forces. At the end of 1942 and again in the spring of 1943 the AAF listed nine support commands before it began a process of consolidation that streamlined the number to five at the end of the war. These commands were: "In 1943 the AAF met a new personnel problem, to which it applied an original solution: to interview, rehabilitate, and reassign men returning from overseas. [To do this], an AAF Redistribution Center

9840-620: The directorates, and they became overburdened with detail, all contributing to the diversion of the directorates from their original purpose. The system of directorates in particular handicapped the developing operational training program (see Combat units below), preventing establishment of an OTU command and having a tendency to micromanage because of the lack of centralized control. Four main directorates—Military Requirements, Technical Services, Personnel, and Management Control—were created, each with multiple sub-directorates, and eventually more than thirty offices were authorized to issue orders in

9963-447: The dormant struggle for an independent United States Air Force. Marshall had come to the view that the air forces needed a "simpler system" and a unified command. Working with Arnold and Robert A. Lovett , recently appointed to the long-vacant position of Assistant Secretary of War for Air, he reached a consensus that quasi-autonomy for the air forces was preferable to immediate separation. On 20 June 1941, to grant additional autonomy to

10086-571: The end of World War II, the Army Air Forces had become virtually an independent service. By regulation and executive order, it was a subordinate agency of the United States Department of War (as were the Army Ground Forces and the Army Service Forces) tasked only with organizing, training, and equipping combat units and limited in responsibility to the continental United States. In reality, Headquarters AAF controlled

10209-555: The establishment of an Officer Candidate School in Miami Beach, Florida , and the direct commissioning of thousands of professionals. Even so, 193,000 new pilots entered the AAF during World War II, while 124,000 other candidates failed at some point during training or were killed in accidents. The requirements for new pilots resulted in a massive expansion of the Aviation Cadet program, which had so many volunteers that

10332-682: The famous iconic " Why We Fight " series, as an animated map graphic of equal prominence to that of the Army and Navy. The Air Corps at the direction of President Roosevelt began a rapid expansion from the spring of 1939 forward, partly from the Civilian Pilot Training Program created at the end of 1938, with the goal of providing an adequate air force for defense of the Western Hemisphere. An initial "25-group program", announced in April 1939, called for 50,000 men. However, when war broke out in September 1939

10455-445: The fastest growing activity at the airport; in 2001, Modesto was the base for at least eight corporate jets. In mid-2006, United Express/SkyWest Airlines added four flights a day to/from LAX and a flight to SFO, to total five flights a day to San Francisco. Passenger counts had continued to grow. In 2002, passenger counts averaged 3,035 per month; over the first six months of 2007, passengers averaged 7,739 per month. In 2007, Modesto set

10578-582: The final class completed training and Stockton AAF was transferred from the control of the Western Flying Training Command to the Air Transport Command . With this transfer, the 3033rd AAFBU was redesignated as the 591st AAFBU. In October 1946 Stockton AAF was declared surplus. As 1,044.18 acres were in the process of being transferred to the War Assets Administration for disposal, 71.36 acres, consisting of

10701-466: The force array. In the first half of 1942 the Army Air Forces expanded rapidly as the necessity of a much larger air force than planned was immediately realized. Authorization for the total number of combat groups required to fight the war nearly doubled in February to 115. In July it jumped to 224, and a month later to 273. When the U.S. entered the war, however, the number of groups actually trained to

10824-1061: The former Field Annex site. The Army National Guard aviation presence accounts for the airports continued designation as a joint civil-military airport. The main aviation units at the airport are Headquarters and Headquarters Company and Company A of the 3rd Battalion, 140th Aviation Regiment, operating the CH-47 Chinook and the UH-72 Lakota . United Airlines served Stockton from 1946 until 1980; it had Stockton's first jet flights, in late 1968. Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) and successor USAir operated from 1971–72 to 1980 and from 1984 to 1991. The original Frontier Airlines , followed by Continental Airlines , flew from Stockton to Denver Stapleton International Airport from 1980 to 1988. Southwest Airways and successors Pacific Air Lines , Air West and Hughes Airwest , served Stockton from 1955 until about January 1979. Commuter turboprop airline flights ended in 1995. America West Express ,

10947-660: The ground forces by March 1942. In the spring of 1941, the success in Europe of air operations conducted under centralized control (as exemplified by the British Royal Air Force and the German Wehrmacht 's military air arm, the Luftwaffe ) made clear that the splintering of authority in the American air forces, characterized as " hydra -headed" by one congressman, had caused a disturbing lack of clear channels of command. Less than five months after

11070-513: The increase in soldiers now stationed at Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex, the site now provided many additional services such as laundry, dry cleaning, and medical facilities. In the early 1970s, the need for soldiers garrisoning Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex decreased as military positions were converted to Department of the Army Civil Service positions. Due to the shift in staffing, Sharpe Army Depot determined that it no longer required

11193-400: The major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and de facto aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II (1941–1947). It was created on 20 June 1941 as successor to the previous United States Army Air Corps and is the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force , today one of the six armed forces of

11316-492: The months preceding World War II , the U.S. Army entered into the first of many lease agreements with the City of Stockton (on August 15, 1940) to build and operate an Army training facility at Stockton Municipal Airport. Stockton Army Airfield was initially garrisoned by the 68th Air Base Group (Special) under the Air Corps Advanced Flying School. Between 1940 and 1945, Stockton Field served as

11439-550: The name of the commanding general. Among the headquarters directorates were Technical Services, Air Defense, Base Services, Ground-Air Support, Management Control, Military Equipment, Military Requirements , and Procurement & Distribution. A "strong and growing dissatisfaction" with the organization led to an attempt by Lovett in September 1942 to make the system work by bringing the Directorate of Management Control and several traditional offices that had been moved to

11562-402: The new organization. The AAF gained the formal "Air Staff" long opposed by the General Staff, and a single air commander, but still did not have equal status with the Army ground forces, and air units continued to report through two chains of command. The commanding general of AFCC gained control of his stations and court martial authority over his personnel, but under the new field manual FM-5

11685-479: The operating staff, including the Air Judge Advocate and Budget Officer, back under the policy staff umbrella. When this adjustment failed to resolve the problems, the system was scrapped and all functions combined into a single restructured air staff. The hierarchical "command" principle, in which a single commander has direct final accountability but delegates authority to staff, was adopted AAF-wide in

11808-961: The operational command was designated by the Roman numeral of its parent numbered air force. For instance, the Eighth Air Force listed the VIII Bomber Command and the VIII Fighter Command as subordinate operational commands. Roman numbered commands within numbered air forces also included "support", "base", and other services commands to support the operational units, such as the VIII Air Force Service and VIII Air Force Composite Commands also part of Eighth Air Force during its history. The Tenth and Fourteenth Air Forces did not field subordinate commands during World War II. Fifteenth Air Force organized

11931-420: The outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950, Sharpe General Depot Field Annex's name was changed to Sharpe General Depot Troop Field Annex to reflect its support mission. During this period, the site was used primarily for family housing, recreational, and other support facilities for Sharpe General Depot. One of the tenants was the 164th Field Artillery Battalion of the California Army National Guard , who occupied

12054-524: The proposal the following month which, in the face of Marshall's dissatisfaction with Army GHQ, the War Plans Division accepted. Just before Pearl Harbor, Marshall recalled an Air Corps officer, Brig. Gen. Joseph T. McNarney , from an observer group in England and appointed him to chair a "War Department Reorganization Committee" within the War Plans Division, using Arnold's and Spaatz's plan as

12177-875: The regional affiliate of America West Airlines , started Canadair CRJ-200 flights to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in 2000, but dropped them in 2001 and vacated the terminal in 2003. Past passenger jet service include United Airlines , which operated Boeing 727-200s and 737-200s . Before its merger with USAir, PSA flew Boeing 727-100s , 727-200s , 737-200s , McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s and BAe 146-200s . Before its acquisition by Republic Airlines , Hughes Airwest operated McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s . USAir flew BAe 146-200s after its acquisition of PSA. Continental Airlines (before its merger with United Airlines) and Frontier Airlines operated Boeing 737-200s and 737-300s. Pacific Express flew BAC One-Elevens . Aeromexico had expressed interest in starting service in 2006 to Guadalajara and Morelia, but

12300-442: The rejection of Arnold's reorganization proposal, a joint U.S.-British strategic planning agreement ( ABC-1 ) refuted the General Staff's argument that the Air Corps had no wartime mission except to support ground forces. A struggle with the General Staff over control of air defense of the United States had been won by airmen and vested in four command units called "numbered air forces", but the bureaucratic conflict threatened to renew

12423-488: The rest Medium and Light groups ( B-25 Mitchell , B-26 Marauder , and A-20 Havoc ). The balance of the force included 26 Pursuit groups (renamed fighter group in May 1942), 9 Observation (renamed Reconnaissance ) groups, and 6 Transport (renamed Troop Carrier or Combat Cargo ) groups. After the operational deployment of the B-29 Superfortress bomber, Very Heavy Bombardment units were added to

12546-524: The role of the Army Air Forces, Arnold was given a seat on the Joint Chiefs of Staff , the planning staff that served as the focal point of American strategic planning during the war, in order that the United States would have an air representative in staff talks with their British counterparts on the Combined Chiefs . In effect the head of the AAF gained equality with Marshall. While this step

12669-570: The second returns to Cincinnati. These aircraft are both leased and operated by Atlas Air . Atlantic Aviation is the sole fixed-base operator for general aviation services at Stockton Airport. Atlantic provides both Jet-A and Avgas for the entire airport – including Amazon Air and Allegiant, as well as leased hangar space. On August 16, 2019 United Express began service to LAX , where travelers were able to connect to other United destinations, as well as destinations served by other Star Alliance air carriers. There were two daily flights using

12792-452: The site soon became a logistical hub for the U.S. Army in general and the Army Air Forces in particular. This resulted in an increased number of transport aircraft passing through Stockton Field. Military warehouse facilities included 46 miles (74 km) of tracks connected to the adjacent Southern Pacific and Western Pacific Railroads for delivery and distribution of a daily average of 200 railcars of military supplies. On March 2, 1945,

12915-438: The stockpiled diesel locomotives. Twelve of the locomotives were sent to other military bases while two remained at Sharpe to accept delivery and expedite distribution of a daily average of thirty carloads of military supplies. Rail movements represented approximately 38 percent of all freight handled at the base. In April 1966, the first units of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 56th Quartermaster Depot began to arrive at

13038-494: The war, plus a general air force within the continental United States to support the whole and provide air defense. The latter was formally organized as the Continental Air Forces and activated on 15 December 1944, although it did not formally take jurisdiction of its component air forces until the end of the war in Europe. Half of the numbered air forces were created de novo as the service expanded during

13161-461: The war-time Army Air Forces. The AAF was willing to experiment with its allotment from the unpopular Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAACs) and became an early and determined supporter of full military status for women in the Army ( Women's Army Corps or WACs). WACs serving in the AAF became such an accepted and valuable part of the service they earned the distinction of being commonly (but unofficially) known as "Air WACs". Nearly 40,000 women served in

13284-630: The war. Some grew out of earlier commands as the service expanded in size and hierarchy (for example, the V Air Support Command became the Ninth Air Force in April 1942), and higher echelons such as United States Strategic Air Forces (USSTAF) in Europe and U.S. Strategic Air Forces in the Pacific became necessary to control the whole. Within numbered air forces, operational commands were created to divide administrative control of units by function (eg fighters and bombers). The numbering of

13407-404: The wings of World War II, however, were composed of groups with like functions (denoted as bombardment , fighter , reconnaissance , training , antisubmarine , troop carrier , and replacement ). The six support commands organized between March 1941 and April 1942 to support and supply the numbered air forces remained on the same chain of command echelon as the numbered air forces, under

13530-513: The winter of 1979–80, after the deregulation of the airline industry. Pacific Express flew BAC One-Elevens to Modesto in the 1980s. On October 12, 1991, the Modesto City Council and Stanislaus Board of Supervisors rededicated the remodeled passenger terminal that was enlarged to 8,900 square feet (830 m). The remodeling project upgraded the building built by United Airlines. In the 1990s, corporate and business aviation became

13653-400: The year ending April 30, 2019, the airport had 82,714 aircraft operations, average 226 per day: 92% general aviation , 3% military, 2% air taxi , and 3% airline. 180 aircraft were then based at this airport: 120 single-engine, 20 military, 16 multi-engine, 20 jet, three helicopter , and one ultralight . Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces ( USAAF or AAF ) was

13776-408: The years it grew to its present size of 435 acres (176 ha). The airport started with a single runway; a second was added in the 1950s. During World War II the airport was Modesto Auxiliary Airfield (No 3) , and was an auxiliary training airfield for Stockton Army Airfield . It was named Modesto Municipal Airport. On May 25, 1955, when Stanislaus County and the City of Modesto became partners in

13899-622: Was a remarkable expansion. Robert A. Lovett, the Assistant Secretary of War for Air, together with Arnold, presided over an increase greater than for either the ground Army or the Navy, while at the same time dispatching combat air forces to the battlefronts. "The Evolution of the Department of the Air Force" – Air Force Historical Studies Office The German invasion of the Soviet Union , occurring only two days after

14022-542: Was also used on official recruiting posters (see image above) and was important in promoting the idea of an "Air Force" as an independent service. Jimmy Stewart , a Hollywood movie star serving as an AAF pilot, used the terms "Air Corps" and "Air Forces" interchangeably in the narration of the 1942 recruiting short " Winning Your Wings " . The term "Air Force" also appeared prominently in Frank Capra 's 1945 War Department indoctrination film " War Comes to America " , of

14145-581: Was concurrent with the creation of air forces to defend Hawaii and the Panama Canal . The air districts were converted in March 1941 into numbered air forces with a subordinate organization of 54 groups. The likelihood of U.S. participation in World War II prompted the most radical reorganization of the aviation branch in its history, developing a structure that both unified command of all air elements and gave it total autonomy and equality with

14268-457: Was created in June 1941 to provide the air arm greater autonomy in which to expand more efficiently, to provide a structure for the additional command echelons required by a vastly increased force, and to end an increasingly divisive administrative battle within the Army over control of aviation doctrine and organization that had been ongoing since the creation of an aviation section within the U.S. Army Signal Corps in 1914. The AAF succeeded both

14391-498: Was established on 7 August 1943, and given command status on 1 June 1944. as the AAF Personnel Distribution Command. This organization was ordered discontinued, effective 30 June 1946." The primary combat unit of the Army Air Forces for both administrative and tactical purposes was the group , an organization of three or four flying squadrons and attached or organic ground support elements, which

14514-502: Was never officially recognized by the United States Navy , and was bitterly disputed behind the scenes at every opportunity, it nevertheless succeeded as a pragmatic foundation for the future separation of the Air Force. Under the revision of AR 95–5, the Army Air Forces consisted of three major components: Headquarters AAF, Air Force Combat Command, and the Air Corps. Yet the reforms were incomplete, subject to reversal with

14637-464: Was small in comparison to European air forces. Lines of authority were difficult, at best, since GHQ Air Force controlled only operations of its combat units while the Air Corps was still responsible for doctrine, acquisition of aircraft, and training. Corps area commanders continued to exercise control over airfields and administration of personnel, and in the overseas departments, operational control of units as well. Between March 1935 and September 1938,

14760-532: Was the home of the 30th Engineer Group (Topographic) and the 521st Engineer Company (Topographic, Aviation). During 1959 and 1960, construction of a new airstrip, hangar and shop at Sharpe Army Depot curtailed the military's use of Stockton Airport. In June 1961, the Aircraft Field Maintenance Activity was transferred to Fort Ord , California. By July 1962, the Army Material Command was established with several sub-commands, including

14883-578: Was the largest aircraft ever to serve the airport with scheduled passenger flights. Allegiant Air flies one or two flights on average per day to Las Vegas. Allegiant also offers twice weekly flights to Phoenix Sky-Harbor International Airport. Allegiant had once offered non-stop service to Phoenix–Mesa with two weekly flights on Sundays and Thursdays, with San Diego on a seasonal basis, but has since discontinued both routes. Load factors for Allegiant are reported to be about 90 percent for their flights from Stockton. In August 2015, airport officials signed

15006-460: Was the rough equivalent of a regiment of the Army Ground Forces . The Army Air Forces fielded a total of 318 combat groups at some point during World War II, with an operational force of 243 combat groups in 1945. The Air Service and its successor the Air Corps had established 15 permanent combat groups between 1919 and 1937. With the buildup of the combat force beginning 1 February 1940,

15129-652: Was transferred from Sacramento Army Depot and reopened in Building T-88 at the Site. An AAFES Branch Exchange of the Presidio of San Francisco was also established in Building T-137. On-post housing at Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex was limited, causing 44 sets of "inadequate quarters" to be established at the site, whereby old barracks buildings were converted into "apartment-type quarters" with two apartments upstairs and two downstairs. To further accommodate

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