Minter Field was originally constructed
under the Defense Landing Area Program for the U.S. Army as a
flight training center
near the town of Shafter, 13.5 miles northwest of Bakersfield.
Although officially dedicated on Saturday,
February 7, 1942, operations on Minter Field actually began in
June of 1941 when the post was garrisoned by only a small guard
unit. The base commander, Colonel Carl Pyle, established his
headquarters on the Bakersfield Junior College campus in the
city while base personnel camped out in temporary quarters scattered
from Bakersfield to Wasco, located some fifteen miles to the
northwest of Minter Field.
Minter Fields was a city within itself
having served the 7,000 personnel stationed at the airfield during
World War II for training, living and recreational needs. Although
many of the facilities have been removed over the years, there
was a chapel, swimming pool, theater, post office, and infirmary,
among just a few of the services that were provided for those
stationed here. The remaining buildings are now used as offices
or warehouses including the Airport Administration Office.
By early August, 1941, multiple units
began moving onto the field as construction of wooden buildings
accelerated. In the beginning, the airport was known as Lerdo
Field because of its close proximity to the highway of the same
name. In October of 1941, the Minter Sub-Depot was established
as a branch of the Sacramento Air Depot. There was a prisoner of war camp here that held
about 600 prisoners of war.
The field was named in honor of First Lieutenant Hugh C. Minter,
a member of the locally prominent Minter family. The Lieutenant,
a World War I veteran, was killed in a mid-air collision over
March Field in July, 1932.
In April of 1942, contracts for the construction of more than
65 on-base buildings were let while the constantly increasing
numbers of cadets were housed in a large tent city erected as
temporary shelter. By July of 1942, Minter Field had become the
largest training base of its type on the West Coast, with nine
auxiliary landing fields located in:
Delano
Lost Hills
Dunlap
Poso
Wasco
Famosa
Semitropic
Minter No. 1 & No. 2
During the course of the War, more than
11,000 Army Air Corps Cadets graduated from Minter Field, deploying
around the world to fly in all theaters of operations.
For a while it was
known as Bakersfield Air Corps Flying School and offered pre-flight
and basic flight training. Late in the war Chinese pilots trained
here. The principle training aircraft
was the Consolidated Vultee Valiant, affectionately known as
the "Vultee Vibrator", powered by a 450 HP Pratt &
Whitney Wasp R985 nine-cylinder radial. The aircraft had fixed
gear and Hamilton-Standard two speed props. Other training aircraft
included the Cessna UC-78 Bobcat, also known as the "Bamboo
Bomber" because of its extensive use of lightweight wood
in the fuselage and wings. The Cessna was a twin-engine "Light
Personnel Transport" and advanced trainer. Aircraft also
seen on the field during World War II included the AT-6 Texan
trainer, B-25 Mitchell twin-engine bomber, and P-38 Lightning,
as well as other widely used fighter, bomber and observation
craft.
Upon the close of the war, the airfield
was turned over to the County of Kern which managed the airport
until 1985. In 1985 the Minter Field Airport District was formed
by tenants and local citizens interested in aviation to take
over the ownership and operation of the Airport from the County.
As the Cold War progressed, Minter Field
again answered the call, But this time as the site for early
warning radar. In late 1950 this Lashup site was operating an
AN/CPS-4 radar. In June 1952 Mt. Laguna AFS (P-76) assumed coverage
for this area. A planned long-range AC&W radar site at this
location (Shafter AFS, designated SM-161) was never built; instead,
gap-filler radar site P-59A was activated here, as well as remote
GATR (Ground-to-Air Transmit and Receive) site R-10.
Minter
Field
By Justin M. Ruhge
Goleta Valley Historical Society
Named in honor of Hugh C. Minter, killed
in an airplane collision on March Field on July 8, 1932. He was
a World War I veteran and Commander of the 73`d Pursuit Squadron
at March Field when his plane crashed in mid-air with another
aircraft. In 1918 he joined the Army Air Corps after a year of
study at Redlands University.
Minter Army Air Field was officially dedicated
on February 7, 1942. Operations began in June 1941. By early August
1941, multiple units began arriving on the field as construction
of wooden buildings accelerated. In the beginning the airport
was known as Lerdo Field because of its close proximity to the
highway of the same name. In October of 1941, the Minter sub-Depot
was established as a branch of the Sacramento Air Depot. The Field
Commander was Colonel Carl Pyle.
In April of 1942, contracts for the construction
of more than 65 on-base buildings were let while the constantly
increasing number of cadets was housed in a large tent city erected
as temporary shelter.
By July 1942, Minter Field had become the
largest training base of its type on the west coast with nine
auxiliary landing fields. Auxiliary fields: Wasco Auxiliary Field
Al, Famosa Auxiliary Field A3, Dunlap Auxiliary Field A4, Semi-tropic
Auxiliary Field A5, Poso Auxiliary Field A6, Lost Hills Auxiliary
Field A8, Minter No. 1 and Minter No. 2.
The training aircraft were Vultee BT-13s
and UC-78s.
During the course of the War, more that
11,000 Army Air Corps Cadets graduated from Minter Field, deploying
around the world to fly in all theaters of operations.
The field, in 2005, is still active in general aviation.
Reference: A Brief History of Minter Army
Air Field, Shafter California, by the Minter-Field Air Museum,
1996.
California State Military
Department