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80-429: FPC Montgomery is located on the grounds of Maxwell Air Force Base , in northwest Montgomery, Alabama. The majority of inmates at the camp serve time for white-collar , drug-related , or immigration crimes and do not have a history of violence, and most are on sentences under 10 years and have a personal history making them fit for camp placement. †Inmates who were released from custody prior to 1982 are not listed on

160-476: A building at 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, adjacent to the Executive Mansion , part of a complex of four matching brick Georgian/Federal style buildings for Cabinet departments with War in the northwest, Navy in the southwest and to the other side: State to the northeast and Treasury in the southeast. The War Department building was supplemented in the 1850s by a building across the street to

240-525: A campus that is as modern and up-to-date as those of any other in the U. S. armed forces. Construction of Maxwell's Academic Circle, Air University's primary education complex, began in the 1950s. Its centerpiece was the Air University Library, eventually one of several major libraries on a military installation. Over the years, other activities were established or relocated to Maxwell AFB, to include Headquarters, Civil Air Patrol – USAF ;

320-702: A civilian with such responsibilities as finance and purchases and a minor role in directing military affairs, headed the War Department throughout its existence. The War Department existed from August 7, 1789 until September 18, 1947, when it split into the Department of the Army and the Department of the Air Force. The Department of the Army and Department of the Air Force later joined the Department of

400-611: A flagpole hidden by the tall sugarcane and was killed instantly. On the recommendation of his former commanding officer, Major Roy C. Brown, the Montgomery Air Intermediate Depot, Montgomery, Alabama , was renamed Maxwell Field. In 1923, it was one of three U.S. Army Air Service aviation depots. Maxwell Field repaired aircraft engines in support of flying training missions such as those at Taylor Field , southeast of Montgomery. Maxwell Field, as most Army air stations and depots developed during World War I,

480-500: A major role in the eventual establishment of permanent airmail service in the Southeast. By early 1928, the decision of basing a new Army Air Corps attack group had come down to Shreveport, Louisiana , and Montgomery. Both cities vied for the federal money to be spent in their respective local areas, but Shreveport the more economically developed city than its counterpart Montgomery won the day. In April 1928, Hill, via his contacts in

560-552: A military appropriations bill providing $ 200,000 for the construction of permanent buildings at Maxwell Field. This amendment did not have the approval of the War Department nor the Army Air Corps, but as a result of this massive spending on Maxwell Field, the War Department kept it open. Hill recognized that to keep Maxwell Field open, it needed to be fiscally or militarily valuable to the War Department. In September 1927, Hill met with Major General Mason M. Patrick , chief of

640-573: Is a United States Air Force (USAF) installation under the Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The installation is located in Montgomery, Alabama , United States. Occupying the site of the first Wright Flying School , it was named in honor of Second Lieutenant William C. Maxwell , a native of Atmore, Alabama . The base is the headquarters of Air University (AU), a major component of Air Education and Training Command (AETC), and

720-546: Is the U.S. Air Force's center for Joint Professional Military Education (PME). The host wing for Maxwell-Gunter is the 42d Air Base Wing (42 ABW). The Air Force Reserve Command 's 908th Flying Training Wing (formerly Airlift Wing) (908 AW) is a tenant unit and the only operational flying unit at Maxwell. The 908 AW and its subordinate [703d Helicopter Squadron (703 HS)[357th Airlift Squadron]] (357 AS) operates eight C-130H Hercules aircraft for theater airlift in support of combatant commanders worldwide. As an AFRC airlift unit,

800-602: Is zoned to Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) schools for grades K-8. The DoDEA operates Maxwell Air Force Base Elementary/Middle School. For high school Maxwell AFB residents are zoned to Montgomery Public Schools facilities: residents of the main base are zoned to George Washington Carver High School , while residents of the Gunner Annex are zoned to Dr. Percy L. Julian High School . Residents may attend magnet schools. United States Department of War The United States Department of War , also called

880-584: The Air Corps Tactical School located at Langley Field , Virginia. Major Brown urged Hill to keep his name out of it because of the easily traceable insider information. Hill, frustrated with the lack of positive response from Generals Patrick and Fechet, moved up the chain of command and passed on the correspondence he had with General Fechet to Secretary of War Dwight Davis, Assistant Secretary of War for Air F. Trubee Davison , and Army Chief of Staff Charles P. Summerall . His request to them

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960-628: The Army Quartermaster Corps and they designed the overall layout of ACTS at Maxwell. Ford used an approach that clustered similar functions together. This technique provided plenty of open space and gave each cluster a distinct appearance. On September 17, 1931, the first ACTS training occurred at Maxwell Field. Forty-one students met at 8:40 a.m. in the operations office conference room for general instruction. Classes were divided into sections, with some pilots sent on check flights, while others were sent out to become familiar with

1040-517: The Cold War under the threat of nuclear annihilation, and by air power as applied during the Cold War's Korean and Vietnam conflicts. In the early twenty-first century, the emphasis shifted to air power's role in confronting international and transnational terrorism by both state-sponsored and non-state actors. AU grew materially from inadequate quarters, classrooms, and instructional technology into

1120-463: The Spanish–American War of 1898. This conflict demonstrated the need for more effective control over the department and its bureaus. Secretary of War Elihu Root (1899–1904) sought to appoint a chief of staff as general manager and a European-type general staff for planning, aiming to achieve this goal in a businesslike manner, but General Nelson A. Miles stymied his efforts. Root enlarged

1200-712: The War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army , also bearing responsibility for naval affairs until the establishment of the Navy Department in 1798, and for most land-based air forces until the creation of the Department of the Air Force on September 18, 1947. The Secretary of War ,

1280-575: The "State, War, and Navy Building" (now the Old Executive Office Building , and later renamed to honor General and President Dwight D. Eisenhower ), built in the same location as its predecessors. By the 1930s, the Department of State squeezed the War Department from its office space, and the White House also desired additional office space. In August 1939, Secretary of War Harry H. Woodring and Acting Chief of Staff of

1360-549: The 908th is operationally gained by the Air Mobility Command (AMC). Gunter Annex is a separate installation under the 42 ABW. Originally known as Gunter Field, it later became known as Gunter Air Force Station (Gunter AFS) when its runways were closed and its operational flying activity eliminated. It was later renamed Gunter Air Force Base (Gunter AFB) during the 1980s. As a hedge against future Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) closure actions, Gunter AFB

1440-609: The Air Corps Act of 1926 and the two major programs that dramatically transformed Army airfields. The Air Corps Act changed the name and status of the Army Air Service to the U.S. Army Air Corps and authorized a five-year expansion program. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, this program and its companion, the 1926 Army Housing Program, produced well-designed, substantial, permanent buildings and infrastructure at all Army airfields retained after World War I. Taking up

1520-597: The Air Corps Tactical School, Major John F. Curry. General Fechet, along with announcing his impending retirement, declared that the forty-one student officers could be future generals of the Air Corps. At a later luncheon, General Fechet also lauded Montgomery's attitude toward the Air Corps. The 1931-1932 faculty included Army Air Corps (AC), Army Infantry (Inf), Army Chemical Warfare Service (CWS), and Army Field Artillery (FA) instructors. Initially,

1600-836: The Air Force Reserve's 908th Tactical Air Support Group (908 TASG), which evolved into the present day 908th Airlift Wing; the Ira C. Eaker Center for Professional Development; the Air Force Financial Systems Operation office (SAF/FM); the Center for Aerospace Doctrine, Research and Education (CADRE); and the Air Force Historical Research Agency, a support organization and repository for air power scholars and AU students. In 1994, Air Force Officer Training School (OTS)

1680-627: The American South, and the last Republican state governments in the region ended. The Army comprised hundreds of small detachments in forts around the West, dealing with Indians, and in coastal artillery units in port cities, dealing with the threat of a naval attack. The United States Army, with 39,000 men in 1890 was the smallest and least powerful army of any major power in the late 19th century. By contrast, France had an army of 542,000. Temporary volunteers and state militia units mostly fought

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1760-580: The Army Air Corps (later, U.S. Air Force 's) first tactical center until the imminence of American involvement in World War II forced a suspension of classes in June 1940 that resulted in permanent closure of the school. One of the school's notable achievements was its development of two aerial acrobatic teams: the "Three Men on a Flying Trapeze", put together by then-Captain Claire L. Chennault in 1932, and

1840-499: The Army Air Corps, and his assistant, Brigadier General James E. Fechet , to discuss the placement of an attack group at Maxwell Field. Both made it clear that Maxwell Field was too close to Montgomery and was not a suitable location for an attack group. In fact, they asked Hill as "a friend of the Air Corps" not to "embarrass" the Corps by asking that the group be placed there. They warned that if he persisted, they would "very much oppose"

1920-469: The Army Air Forces gained virtual independence in every way from the rest of the army. After World War II, the Department of War abandoned Marshall's organization for the fragmented prewar pattern while the independent services continually parried efforts to reestablish firm executive control over their operations. The National Security Act of 1947 split the War Department into the Department of

2000-785: The Army George C. Marshall moved their offices into the Munitions Building , a temporary structure built on the National Mall during World War I. In the late 1930s, the government constructed the War Department Building (renamed in 2000 as the Harry S Truman Building ) at 21st and C Streets in Foggy Bottom , but upon completion, the new building did not solve the space problem of the department, and

2080-527: The Army and the Department of the Air Force, and the Secretary of the Army and Secretary of the Air Force served as operating managers for the new Secretary of Defense. In the early years, between 1797 and 1800, the Department of War was headquartered in Philadelphia ; it moved with the other federal agencies to the new national capital at Washington, D.C. , in 1800. In 1820, headquarters moved into

2160-595: The Board of War and Ordnance in 1776, operated by members of Congress. A second board was created in 1777, the Board of War, to operate separately from Congress. The Congress of the Confederation eventually replaced the system of boards with the Department of War. Only five positions were created within the department upon its creation: the Secretary at War, an assistant, a secretary, and two clerks. Shortly after

2240-565: The Bureau of Prisons website. 32°23′35″N 86°21′31″W  /  32.3930°N 86.3585°W  / 32.3930; -86.3585 This Alabama building or structure article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a United States prison is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Maxwell Air Force Base Maxwell Air Force Base ( IATA : MXF , ICAO : KMXF , FAA LID : MXF ), officially known as Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base ,

2320-573: The Department of State ultimately used it. Coming into office with World War II raging in Europe and Asia, Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson faced with the situation of the War Department spread through the overcrowded Munitions Building and numerous other buildings across Washington, D.C., and suburban Maryland and Virginia . On July 28, 1941, Congress authorized funding for a new Department of War building in Arlington, Virginia , which would house

2400-551: The Department of War. Many agencies still fragmented authority, burdening the chief of staff with too many details, making the whole Department of War poorly geared toward directing the army in a global war. General Marshall described the chief of staff then as a "poor command post." President Roosevelt brought in Henry L. Stimson as Secretary of War; after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor , Stimson supported Marshall in reorganizing

2480-621: The Eastern Flying Training Command was inactivated and was consolidated into the Central Flying Training Command at Randolph Field , Texas . Air University , an institution providing continuing military education for Army Air Forces personnel, was established at Maxwell in 1946, prior to the U.S. Air Force becoming an independent service the following year. Today, it remains the main focus of base activities at Maxwell. Maxwell Field

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2560-688: The Navy under the United States Department of Defense in 1949. The Department of War traces its origins to the committees created by the Second Continental Congress in 1775 to oversee the Revolutionary War . Individual committees were formed for each issue, including committees to secure ammunition, to raise funds for gunpowder, and to organize a national militia. These committees were consolidated into

2640-668: The Skylarks in 1935. In 1940, it was announced that the installation was to be converted into a pilot-training center. On 8 July 1940 the Army Air Corps redesignated its training center at Maxwell Field, Alabama as the Southeast Air Corps Training Center . The Southeast Air Corps Training Center at Maxwell handled flying training (basic, primary and advanced) at airfields in the Eastern United States. An Air Force Pilot School (preflight)

2720-538: The United States Department of Defense. On the same day this act was signed, Executive Order 9877 assigned primary military functions and responsibilities with the former War Department split between the Department of the Army and Department of the Air Force. In the aftermath of World War II, the American government (among others around the world) decided to abandon the word 'War' when referring to

2800-697: The United States Military Academy at West Point, New York and established the United States Army War College and the General Staff. He changed the procedures for promotions and organized schools for the special branches of the service. He also devised the principle of rotating officers from staff to line. Concerned about the new territories acquired after the Spanish–American War, Root worked out

2880-589: The War Department building with its records and files was consumed by fire. The United States Military Academy at West Point and the Army Corps of Engineers were established in 1802. The Department of War was reduced in size following the end of the Quasi-War in 1802, but it was subsequently expanded in the years leading up to the War of 1812 . To accommodate this expansion, sub-departments were created within

2960-574: The War Department constituted and redesignated the school as the 74th Flying Training Wing handling pre-flight training. During following years, Maxwell was home to six different schools that trained U.S. military aviators and their support teams for wartime service. As World War II progressed, the number of required pilot trainees declined, and the Army Air Forces decided not to send more aircrew trainees to Maxwell Field. The following known sub-bases and auxiliaries were constructed to support

3040-511: The War Department for $ 1,650,075 for immediate spending at Maxwell Field. Hill's request was justified by increased enrollment at the Air Corps Tactical School and the desperate need for employment for the local Montgomery population. At the start of October 1933 bids opened for four construction projects that were to start immediately; 1933-1934 construction at Maxwell Field later employed an average of more than 500 workers. The Air Corps Tactical School opened July 15, 1931. The school evolved into

3120-624: The War Department into placing the attack group in Montgomery. In May 1928 General Benjamin Foulois , General Fechet's assistant, during an inspection visit with Third Army commander General Frank Parker to Maxwell Field mentioned that the Air Corps Tactical School would be moving from Langley Field to a still undecided location. During his stay General Foulois met with local Chamber of Commerce chairman Jesse Hearin and Maxwell Field post commandant, Major Walter R. Weaver . Hearin and Weaver touted

3200-543: The War Department, found out that Montgomery would not be getting the attack group. Flexing his congressional muscle, Hill persuaded Assistant Secretary Davidson and now chief of the Air Corps Major General Fechet to hold off the official announcement until Montgomery had a second look by the War Department. During the interim Montgomery leaders had set forth actions to acquire over 600 acres (2 km ) for Maxwell Field's expansion in hopes of wooing

3280-848: The army under the War Powers Act of 1941 . He divided the Army of the United States (AUS) into three autonomous components to conduct the operations of the War Department: the Army Ground Forces (AGF) trained land troops; the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) developed an independent air arm; and the Services of Supply (later Army Service Forces ) directed administrative and logistical operations. The Operations Division acted as general planning staff for Marshall. By 1942,

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3360-403: The attack group to be placed at Maxwell Field. He argued that because of the permanent buildings scheduled to be built, it would be fiscally advantageous for the placement of the attack group at Maxwell Field. Hill's arguments were an extension of ones that had been presented to him by Major Roy S. Brown, former commandant of Maxwell Field from 1922 to 1925. In 1927, Major Brown was the commander of

3440-637: The attack group. In July 1928, word "via rumor" of the decision for the establishment of an attack group came out that Shreveport was indeed the victor of the final decision. In December 1928, after much debate and political maneuvering it was announced officially by the Assistant Secretary of War that Shreveport would be getting the attack group and that the Army Air Corps Tactical School (ACTS) would be coming to Maxwell Field. The move to Maxwell Field from Langley Field

3520-580: The cause of Maxwell Field was freshman Congressman J. Lister Hill , a World War I veteran who served with the 17th and 71st U.S. Infantry Regiments. He, as well as other Montgomery leaders, recognized the historical significance of the Wright Brother's first military flying school and the potential of Maxwell Field to the local economy. In 1925 Hill, a member of the House Military Affairs Committee, affixed an amendment to

3600-621: The civilian leadership of their military. One vestige of the former nomenclature is the names of the service was colleges: the Army War College, the Naval War College , and the Air War College , which still train U.S. military officers in battlefield tactics and the strategy of war fighting. The date "MDCCLXXVIII" and the designation "War Office" are indicative of the origin of the seal. The date (1778) refers to

3680-540: The department and the army fell to Secretary Knox, while direct field command of the small Regular Army fell to President Washington. In 1798, Congress authorized President John Adams to create a second provisional army under the command of former President Washington in anticipation of the Quasi-War , but this army was never utilized. The Department of War was also responsible for overseeing interactions with Native Americans in its early years. On November 8, 1800,

3760-453: The department, with each one led by a general staff officer . These sub-departments were reformed into a modern system of bureaus by Secretary of War John C. Calhoun in 1818. Secretary Calhoun created the Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1824, which served as the main agency within the War Department for addressing the issues regarding Native Americans until 1849, when Congress transferred it to

3840-522: The effort. However, General Patrick not wanting to alienate the new and up and coming Congressman (who was also a member of the House Military Affairs Committee) sought to appease Hill by offering to create an observation squadron at Maxwell Field. Hill welcomed the gesture; however, the creation of an observation squadron fell short of the long term on-going mission sought by Hill for Maxwell Field. Hill continued to argue for

3920-689: The entire department under one roof. When construction of the Pentagon was completed in 1943, the Secretary of War vacated the Munitions Building and the department began moving into the Pentagon. The United States Secretary of War, a member of the United States Cabinet, headed the War Department. The National Security Act of 1947 established the National Military Establishment , later renamed

4000-407: The establishment of a government under President George Washington in 1789, Congress reestablished the War Department as a civilian agency to administer the field army under the president (as commander-in-chief ) and the secretary of war. Retired senior General Henry Knox , then in civilian life, served as the first United States Secretary of War . When the department was created, the president

4080-426: The feasibility of Maxwell Field and the Montgomery area for the placement of the attack group at Maxwell Field. However, General Foulois guided the conversation towards the impending movement of the Air Corps Tactical School and he favored Maxwell Field for the new home. Hearin immediately worked up an option on another one thousand acres (4 km²) for the Air Corps Tactical School should Montgomery not be favored with

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4160-418: The field would have been a serious blow to the local Montgomery economy. The field remained open into the early 1920s only because the War Department was slow in closing facilities. After this initial reprieve, the War Department announced in 1922 that facilities on the original closure list would indeed close in the very near future. City officials were not surprised to hear that Aviation Repair Depot remained on

4240-637: The flying school: On 31 July 1943, the Southeast Air Corps Training Center was redesignated as the Eastern Flying Training Command. Also in July, the Army Air Forces announced a specialized school for pilots of four-engine aircraft. The first B-24 Liberator landed at the field later that month and in early 1945, B-29 Superfortress bomber training replaced the B-24 program. Training at Maxwell continued until 15 December 1945, when

4320-543: The general staff on the pattern of his American Expeditionary Force (AEF) field headquarters, which he commanded. The general staff in the early 1920s exercised little effective control over the bureaus, but the chiefs of staff gradually gained substantial authority over them by 1939, when General George C. Marshall assumed the office of Army Chief of Staff . During World War II , General Marshall principally advised President Franklin D. Roosevelt on military strategy and expended little effort in acting as general manager of

4400-615: The general staff to few members before America entered World War I on April 6, 1917. President Woodrow Wilson supported Secretary of War Newton D. Baker , who opposed efforts to control the bureaus and war industry until competition for limited supplies almost paralyzed industry and transportation, especially in the North. Yielding to pressure from Congress and industry, Secretary Baker placed Benedict Crowell in charge of munitions and made Major General George W. Goethals acting quartermaster general and General Peyton C. March chief of staff. Assisted by industrial advisers, they reorganized

4480-416: The land were signed and mailed to the War Department. On December 17, 1929, Congressman Lister Hill introduced a bill to appropriate $ 320,000 for the acquiring of 1,075 acres (4 km ) of land in Montgomery County as a part of an expansion program for Maxwell Field. This was a particularly bold move at the time by Hill because of the stock market crash. Effects of the crash had yet to take place; however,

4560-425: The late stages of the war, the department took charge of refugees and freedmen (freed slaves) in the American South through the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands . During the Reconstruction era , this bureau played a major role in supporting the new Republican governments in the southern states. When military Reconstruction ended in 1877, the U.S. Army removed the last troops from military occupation of

4640-431: The list, because 350 civilian employees had been laid off in June 1921. On November 8, 1922, the War Department redesignated the depot as Maxwell Field in honor of Atmore, Alabama native, Second Lieutenant William C. Maxwell. On 12 August 1920, engine trouble forced Lieutenant Maxwell to attempt to land his DH-4 in a sugarcane field in the Philippines . Maneuvering to avoid a group of children playing below, he struck

4720-423: The major decisions. In 1911, Secretary Henry L. Stimson and Major General Leonard Wood , his chief of staff, revived the Root reforms. The general staff assisted them in their efforts to rationalize the organization of the army along modern lines and in supervising the bureaus. The Congress reversed these changes in support of the bureaus and in the National Defense Act of 1916 reduced the size and functions of

4800-432: The newly founded Department of the Interior . The U.S. Soldiers' Home was created in 1851. During the American Civil War, the War Department responsibilities expanded. It handled the recruiting, training, supply, medical care, transportation and pay of two million soldiers, comprising both the regular army and the much larger temporary volunteer army. A separate command structure took charge of military operations. In

4880-545: The panic caused by the crash had certainly captured Montgomery's attention. On January 25, 1930, President Herbert Hoover asked Congress to re-appropriate an additional $ 100,000 for the main school building at Maxwell Field. President Hoover's policy was to speed public works to offset unemployment. In February 1930, Congressman Hill's resolution was passed in the House of Representatives and 80 acres (320,000 m ) were to be added to Maxwell Field for expansion purposes. George B. Ford and Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., were hired by

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4960-411: The principles of flying, including take-offs, balancing, turns, and landings. The Wright Flying School closed on May 26, 1910. The field served as a repair depot during World War I . In fact, the depot built the first plane made in Montgomery and exhibited it at the field on September 20, 1918. Repair activity at the depot was sharply curtailed at the end of the war. The Aviation Repair Depot's land

5040-495: The procedures for turning Cuba over to the Cubans, wrote the charter of government for the Philippines, and eliminated tariffs on goods imported to the United States from Puerto Rico. Root's successor as Secretary of War, William Howard Taft , returned to the traditional secretary-bureau chief alliance, subordinating the chief of staff to the adjutant general, a powerful office since its creation in 1775. Indeed, Secretary Taft exercised little power; President Theodore Roosevelt made

5120-404: The school's curriculum reflected the dominating influence of Brigadier General Billy Mitchell . Mitchell was a strong believer in the importance of gaining and maintaining air superiority during a conflict. He argued strongly for pursuit (e.g., "fighter") aircraft in combination with bombers and regarded enemy pursuit forces as the most serious threat to successful bombing operations and felt that

5200-442: The supply system of the army and practically wiped out the bureaus as quasi-independent agencies. General March reorganized the general staff along similar lines and gave it direct authority over departmental operations. After the war, the Congress again granted the bureaus their former independence. The Commission on Training Camp Activities addressed moral standards of the troops. In the 1920s, General John J. Pershing realigned

5280-405: The surrounding countryside to become familiar with emergency landing field locations. On the morning of September 22, 1931, opening exercises of the Air Corps Tactical School were held. On September 24, the Air Corps Tactical School was officially launched. The address was made by Major General James E. Fechet, chief of the Army Air Corps also attending were Congressman Lister Hill and commandant of

5360-410: The task of American pursuit was not necessarily to escort bombers, but to also seek out and attack enemy fighters. During the first five years of the school's operation, Mitchell's beliefs formed the basis for instruction at the tactical school. However, by the mid-1930s the school's emphasis had shifted from pursuit to bombardment aviation. On July 16, 1933, Congressman Lister Hill secured approval from

5440-432: The time, this made Maxwell Field the largest (as far as personnel) Army Air Corps installation in the southeast. Approximately 300 signatures to the deed of the land occupied by the Air Corps Tactical School were signed, of which one was signed by a minor. Chairman of the Montgomery Chamber of Commerce James Hearin said, "...several cases had to be taken to court." Despite the obvious rush for signatures, by October 5, deeds to

5520-422: The west known as the Annex and became very important during the Civil War with President Abraham Lincoln visiting the War Office's telegraph room for constant updates and reports and walking back and forth to the "Residence". The original 1820 structures for War and Navy on the west side of the now famous White House was replaced in 1888 by construction of a new building of French Empire design with mansard roofs,

5600-407: Was also activated which instructed Aviation Cadets in the mechanics and physics of flight and required the cadets to pass courses in mathematics and the hard sciences. Then the cadets were taught to apply their knowledge practically by teaching them aeronautics, deflection shooting, and thinking in three dimensions. In June 1941, the Army Air Corps became the U.S. Army Air Forces . On 8 January 1943,

5680-809: Was also relocated from Lackland AFB /Medina Annex, Texas to Maxwell AFB, joining the national headquarters of the Air Force's other non-Academy officer accession source, Air Force ROTC . Detachment 3 of the 58th Operations Group activated at Maxwell during January 2024 to train crews on the MH-139A Grey Wolf . Flying and notable non-flying units based at Maxwell Air Force Base: Air Education and Training Command (AETC) Air Combat Command (ACC) Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) Field Operating Agencies Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) Civil Air Patrol (CAP) Space Training and Readiness Command (STARCOM) Military Entrance Processing Command (USMEPCOM) Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Maxwell Air Force Base

5760-451: Was authorized to appoint two inspectors to oversee the troops. Congress created several additional offices over the course of the 1790s, including the major general , brigadier general , quartermaster general , chaplain , surgeon general , adjutant general , superintendent of military stores, paymaster general , judge advocate , inspector general , physician general, apothecary general, purveyor, and accountant. Forming and organizing

5840-533: Was consolidated under Maxwell AFB in March 1992 to create a combined installation known as Maxwell/Gunter AFB. Maxwell AFB is also the site of Federal Prison Camp, Montgomery , a minimum security facility for male inmates. Toward the end of February 1910, the Wright Brothers decided to open one of the world's earliest flying schools at the site that would subsequently become Maxwell AFB. The Wrights taught

5920-466: Was given the answer: that they would give the matter "full consideration." The depot's first official flying mission was carried out after that. Observation missions originated there in 1927–1929. Pilots from the field were also involved in completing the first leg of a test designed to establish an airmail route between the Gulf Coast and the northern Great Lakes area. The successful test played

6000-455: Was initially expected to increase Maxwell Field's population by eighty officers and 300 enlisted. It was expected that the ACTS would be to the Army Air Corps what Fort Benning , Georgia was to the infantry. On January 15, 1929, it was announced that the ACTS would be twice as large as originally planned. On February 11, it was announced that $ 1,644,298 had been allowed for ACTS construction. This

6080-489: Was leased by the U.S. Army during World War I, and later purchased on January 11, 1920 for $ 34,327. Diminished postwar activity caused the U.S. War Department in 1919 to announce that it planned to close thirty-two facilities around the country, including the Aviation Repair Depot. In 1919, the Aviation Repair Depot had a $ 27,000 monthly civilian payroll, and was a vital part of the city's economy. The loss of

6160-508: Was not including an additional $ 324,000 the Secretary of War had approved previously for non-commissioned officer barracks and a school building after a conference with Congressman Hill. On March 12, a conference between a Major Kennedy, Chief of Buildings and Grounds of the Army Air Corps and commandant of the ACTS, and Congressman Lister Hill to determine the locations of the buildings and types of construction. In March 1929, personnel at Maxwell provided flood relief to citizens of Montgomery. This

6240-405: Was on leased properties with temporary buildings being the mainstay of construction. These temporary buildings/shacks were built to last two to five years. By the mid-1920s, these dilapidated wartime buildings had become a national disgrace. Congressional investigations also showed that the manning strength of the U.S. Army's air arm was seriously deficient. These critical situations eventually led to

6320-674: Was renamed Maxwell Air Force Base in September 1947 when the Air Force was created. In 1992, the 3800th Air Base Wing (3800 ABW) was disbanded and the 502d Air Base Wing (502 BW) took over as the host wing, which two years later gave way to the current 42d Air Base Wing . As home of the Air University, Maxwell became the postgraduate academic center of the U.S. Air Force. Air University evolved first as an institution influenced by air power as shaped in World War II, then by

6400-464: Was the first time at which food and supplies were airdropped by U.S. military forces during a major civilian emergency. On July 9, 1929, Captain Walter J. Reed and a battery of attorneys checked titles for the land. The War Department also announced the same day that the plan had changed to where the ACTS would now be four times as large as originally planned with 200 officers and 1,000 enlisted men. At

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