Westover Air Reserve Base
Established at the outset of World War II, today Westover is the largest Air Force Reserve base in the United States, home to approximately 5,500 military and civilian personnel, and covering 2,500 acres (10 km²).In case of nuclear war, an alternate SAC command bunker for HQ 8AF, called The Notch, was constructed deep within nearby Bare Mountain.[9] Today, the Stony Brook site is the home of the Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company (MMWEC), Hampden County Jail, and other local businesses.The end of the Vietnam War in 1973, subsequent post-Vietnam reductions in the U.S. defense budget, and a long-standing SAC initiative to retrench from most of its coastal bases to the further inland in order to increase warning time for its alert force in the event of a Soviet attack, all led to the inactivation of the 99 BMW in March 1974 and redistribution of its B-52 and KC-135 aircraft to other SAC units.Rather than close Westover AFB outright, as was being done with several other SAC installations, it was decided that base would be transferred to the Air Force Reserve (AFRES).With the inactivation of MAC in 1992, the 439 MAW became operationally gained by the Air Mobility Command (AMC) and was redesignated the 439th Airlift Wing (439 AW), its current designation.The local government credits Westover with spurring development of the Memorial Drive corridor, including several planned hotels and a retail plaza.[19] The civilian portion of the airport is run by Michael Bolton, Director of Civil Aviation (an employee of the Westover Metropolitan Corporation).This included Brigadier General Douglas Saunders, USAF, commander of SAC's 57th Air Division at Westover AFB, and six civilian journalists,[21] On August 10, 1959, a 99th Bombardment Wing B-52C (AF Serial Number 54-2682) crashed near New Hampton, New Hampshire when the nose radome failed in flight.[22] On June 21, 1963, a USAF Boeing KC-135A Stratotanker of the 99th Bombardment Wing crashed into a wooded hillside nearly 6 miles N of Westover AFB during an instrument approach in heavy rain.
Westover Metropolitan AirportChicopeeMassachusettsUnited StatesC-5 Galaxies439th Airlift WingDepartment of DefenseUS Air ForceAir Force Reserve CommandasphaltconcreteFederal Aviation AdministrationLudlowSpringfield, MassachusettsWorld War IISpace ShuttleOscar WestoverArmy Air CorpsFourth Air ForceAir Mobility Command439th Operations Group337th Airlift SquadronCivil Air PatrolWestover Composite SquadronMassachusetts Civil Air PatrolU.S. Army Reserve302nd Maneuver Enhancement BrigadeU.S. Navy ReserveU.S. Marine Corps ReserveU.S. Army Air CorpsWar DepartmentMacDill Air Force BaseMarch Air Reserve BaseFairchild Air Force BaseU.S. Air ForceAir Defense CommandStrategic Air CommandEighth Air Force499th Air Refueling Wing99th Bombardment Wing, HeavyB-52C StratofortressKC-135A StratotankerThe NotchBare MountainAir Materiel Command3079th Aviation Depot WingHampden County JailVietnam WarAndersen Air Force BaseC-123K Provider731st Tactical Airlift SquadronC-130B Hercules337th Tactical Airlift SquadronC-130 HerculesC-123 ProviderC-5 GalaxyMilitary Airlift CommandBase Realignment and Closure CommissionNew EnglandBradley International AirportBarnes Municipal Airport103rd Airlift WingBlue AngelsKC-46A Pegasus916th Air Refueling WingSeymour Johnson Air Force BaseTinker Air Force BaseGrissom Air Reserve BaseC-5M Super GalaxyrunwaysAir Traffic ControlEnvironmental Protection Agencygeneral aviationair carrierhelicopterUnited States NavyR6D-1 LiftmaterKC-135A Stratotanker Massachusetts TurnpikeThe aircraft was attempting a world speed record from New York-London with 3 other USAF KC-135s57th Air DivisionNortheast Air DistrictFirst Air ForceAir Transport CommandMilitary Air Transport ServiceAir Force Reserve34th Bombardment Group60th Transport Group13th Bombardment Group64th Troop Carrier Group301st Bombardment Group326th Fighter Group402d Fighter Group459th Bombardment Group471st Bombardment Group386th Bombardment Group409th Bombardment Group341st Bombardment Group1600th Air Transport WingAtlantic Division, Military Air Transport Service60th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron26th Air Refueling Squadron324th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron337th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron384th Air Refueling Squadron99th Bombardment Wing99th Air Refueling Squadron4729th Air Defense Group76th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron4713th Defense Systems Evaluation SquadronMassachusetts World War II Army AirfieldsEastern Air Defense ForceList of military installations in MassachusettsAviation Safety Networkpublic domain materialUnited States Air ForceMaxwell Air Force BaseAlabamaAir ForcesFourthTwenty-SecondDobbinsDuke FieldGeneral MitchellGrissomHomestead