Historic California Posts, Camps,
Stations and Airfields
March Air Force Base Terminal
VHF Omni Range (TOVR) Annex
(Vail TOVR)
US Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles
District History (1993)
Site Name: The former March TVOR
Annex (also once known as Vail TVOR) lies within a privately
owned wilderness recreational area now called "Butterfield
Country".
Location: 11 miles east of Temecula, CA , 1 mile north
of State Highway #79 and 1/2 mile south of Vail Lake.
Site History: In October 1959, the U.S. Air Force (807th
Combat Support Group, March Air Force Base, CA) requested acquisition
of the site. The site was a 200 ft. radius circle (2.88 acres)
within a large, undeveloped wilderness area which surrounded
Vail Lake and included the right of non-exclusive use of an additional
285.60 acres (2000 ft. radius) and existing access road plus
the exclusive use for utility line rights-of-way (area undetermined).
The site was for support of the primary instrument runway at
March Air Force Base, Riverside, CA which was approximately 27
miles to the north. Prior to October 1959, the U.S. Air Force
had occupied the site with mobile equipment to conduct flight
tests to verify site suitability for its intended purpose. Site
leases from the Vail Company, a Nevada Corporation, were executed
1 July 1960 and 19 January 1965, effective 20 July 1959 to 3
December 1964. Subsequent lease from Rancho California, a partnership,
was executed 26 July 1965, amended 13 October 1965, effective
4 December 1964 to 3 December 1969.
Disposal through lease termination was
effected on 25 March 1969. There are no buildings remaining and
the visible residue of and debris from previous improvements
which are probably attributable to US Air Force presence include
a large vertically-mounted-on-grade storage tank, a group of
concrete piers protruding above grade, an asphalt paved area
and access road, an empty pole mounted electrical transformer
casing and lid, miscellaneous cable, wire, conduit, pipe, and
mounds of demolished building and utility materials. It is logical
to assume that this residue is of U.S. Air Force origin since
the material is at the former March TVOR site.
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