Walker Air Force Base is a ramshackle, closed United States Air Force base located three miles (5 km) south of the central business district of Roswell, New Mexico. It was opened in 1941 as an Army Air Corps flying school and was active during World War II and the postwar era as Roswell Army Air Field (RAAF). During the early years of the Cold War, it became the largest base of the Strategic Air Command. It is also known for the Roswell UFO incident, an event that occurred on 4 July 1947. It is alleged that a "flying disc" crashed during a severe thunderstorm near the base at Corona, New Mexico.
Walker AFB was named after General Kenneth Newton Walker, a native of Los Cerrillos, New Mexico who was killed during a bombing mission over Rabaul, New Britain, Papua New Guinea on 5 January 1943. His group scored direct hits on nine Japanese ships before being intercepted by enemy fighters. Walker was last seen leaving the target area with one engine on fire and several fighters on his tail, and he was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1943. The base was renamed in his honor on 13 January 1948. Funding cutbacks during the Vietnam War led to the closure of the base in 1967.
History[]
What became Roswell Army Air Field was acquired by the United States Army Air Forces in 1941 from rancher David Chesser for the purpose of establishing a Military Flying Training Center and Bombardier School. From the beginning, it was designed as a large, expansive facility, given the excellent flying weather in New Mexico. The airfield consisted of seven concrete runways, two parallel North/South 7329x200 and 7000x200; two parallel NE/SW 7200x200 and 5655x200; two parallel NW/SE, 6964x200 and 5900x200 and one E/W runway 6884x200 (E/W).
In addition, no fewer than nine auxiliary landing fields for overflow and touch/go landing/takeoffs were established in the area. Enough construction was completed for the base and airfield to be activated and assigned to the United States Army Air Corps Training Command on 20 September 1941.
World War II[]
The Roswell Army Flying School was activated on 20 September 1941. Its mission was the training of third-phase aviation cadets in twin-engine aircraft. The school operated Beechcraft AT-11 Kansan twin-engine trainers and four (548th, 549th, 550th and 551st) Two-Engine Flying Training Squadrons. In addition to the flying school the Bombardier's school, operated 3 training squadrons also flying the AT-11.
In 1943, three additional twin engine flying training squadrons were added and two additional squadrons were added to the Bombardiers school as additional runways became available. Over 300 trainers filled the large parking ramp, which included Vultee BT-13 and BT-15 Valiant single engine trainers and Cessna AT-17 twin-engine trainers.
Until the fall of 1944, Second Air Force provided all Boeing B-29 Superfortress transition training for the Army Air Forces. Then, on 12 September 1944, HQ AAF directed Training Command to establish B-29 schools for the transition of crews consisting of pilots, copilots, and flight engineers. Initially, there were few B-29s available for Training Command to conduct training. However, by January 1945 Roswell AAF had transitioned and the 3030th AAF Base Unit (Pilot School, Specialized Very Heavy) which specialized in B-29 Superfortress 4 engine pilot transition and bombardier training was activated.
Although there was a bombing target adjacent to the runway, the only items dropped from an aircraft were bags of sand or flour. The practice bombing and gunnery ranges were due south of the air field and on Matagorda Island along the Texas Gulf coast.
In addition to the airfield, the Roswell Prisoners of War (POW) camp was built for up to 4,800 POWs. Most of the POWs housed at the camp were German and Italian soldiers captured during the North African campaign. The POWs were actually used as construction laborers on local projects and many of Roswell's parks were built by POWs. The Spring River, which passes through downtown Roswell, was lined with concrete and stones using POW labor. The prisoners used stones of different colors to form an Iron Cross in the riverbed.
With the end of World War II, the training mission at Roswell AAF ended on 1 November 1945. The base was designated as a permanent Army Air Force facility and jurisdiction of the base was transferred to 238th Army Air Forces Base Unit, Second Air Force, Continental Air Command.
Closure[]
In 1967, the Air Force announced that Walker AFB would be closed. This was during a round of stateside base closings and consolidations as the Defense Department struggled to pay the expenses of the Vietnam War within the budgetary limits set by Congress. The 6th BW became the 6th Strategic Wing and was relocated to Eielson AFB, Alaska.
Walker AFB was officially closed on 30 June 1967. It has since been redeveloped by civil authorities into the Roswell International Air Center. Large numbers of out-of-service aircraft are stored on the parking ramps and disused taxiways/runways for refurbishment and sale. In addition, the Boeing Company uses RIAC for braking performance testing of its aircraft, most recent was the testing of the BF Goodrich carbon brakes on the 737-900ER model. Also testing on brakes was performed on the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
The Eastern New Mexico University has built a large campus on the west side of the former base, however much of the base still has the look and feel of the former Air Force Base. Many former Air Force buildings, including aircraft hangars, maintenance shops, barracks, and office buildings have been reused for private interests. The large housing area still exists, with the former government housing units in private hands. Large numbers of buildings have also been removed or torn down, leaving large areas of vacant land with streets and former parking lots and concrete foundations.
In 2005, the base was used for a secret Foo Fighters concert celebrating the band's tenth anniversary.