Historic California Posts, Camps,
Stations and Airfields
Three Sisters Lake Test Annex
US Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles
District History (21 September 1999)
The United States Air Force (USAF) acquired
1,920 acres of public domain land at Dry Lake (the western most
lake of Three Sisters Lake) from the Department of the Interior
(Dol) by Special Land Use Permit on 26 January 1961.
From 26 January 1961 to 25 January 1971, the Air Force utilized
the dry lake site as an emergency landing area in support of
the X-15 Aircraft Test Program operating out of the USAF Flight
Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base, California. The only known
improvements to the site during USAF control were the application
of oil on landing strips and the installation of landing markers.
On 25 January 1971, the Special Land Use Permit on the 1,920
acres of public lands lapsed and the property was relinquished
and returned to the Dol. Currently, the site is administered
by
the Bureau of Land Management which has designated the property
as an undeveloped closed area. The site continues to be a dry
lake bed composed of sand with a small gravel section on its
southeastern perimeter. No evidence of oiled landing strips,
landing markers, or any other USAF activity was observed at the
Three Sisters Lake Test Annex site.
US Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles
District History (14 July 1999)
Location:
The Three Sisters Lake Test Annex site is located at Dry Lake
in Superior Valley, approximately 25 miles northwest of Barstow,
San Bernardino County, California.
Site History: On 26 January 1961, the United States Air
Force (USAF) acquired 1,920 acres of public domain land at Dry
Lake (the western most dry lake of Three Sisters Lake) from the
Department of the Interior (Dol) by Special Land Use Permit LA-1672
(Serial No. 0169143). From 26 January 1961 to 25 January 1971,
the Air Force utilized the site as an emergency landing field
in support of the X-15 Aircraft Test Program operating out of
the USAF Flight Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base, located
40 miles southwest of the site. The only known improvements to
the site during USAF control were the application of oil on landing
strips and the installation of landing markers. The use of the
Three Sisters Lake Test Annex site involved- no ammunition or
ordnance. The USAF disposed of the property by allowing the Special
Land Use Permit to lapse on 25 January 1971, returning the site
to the DOl. The site is currently managed by the Bureau of Land
Management which has designated the location as an undeveloped
closed area. No evidence of oiled landing strips, landing markers,
or any other USAF activity was noted at the Three Sisters Lake
Test Annex site.
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