McClellan Air Force Base | |
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Part of Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) | |
Sacramento County, California | |
McClellan AFB, 9 May 2002
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Coordinates | 38°40′04″N 121°24′02″W / 38.66778°N 121.40056°WCoordinates: 38°40′04″N 121°24′02″W / 38.66778°N 121.40056°W |
Type | Air Force Base |
Site information | |
Controlled by | United States Air Force |
Site history | |
Built | 1935-1938 |
In use | Open 1938 - IN USE 1948-IN USE (as McClellan AFB) |
Garrison information | |
Garrison | Air Force Materiel Command |
McClellan Air Force Base (1935–2001) is a former United States Air Force base located in the North Highlands area of Sacramento County, 7 miles (11 km) northeast of Sacramento, California. For the vast majority of its operational lifetime, McClellan was a logistics and maintenance facility for a wide variety of military aircraft, equipment and supplies. The depot went through several name changes, finishing its life in 1995 as the Sacramento Air Logistics Center (SALC). The SALC reported to the Air Force Logistics Command (AFLC) and later the Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC).
In 1986, the U.S. Air Force established the McClellan Aviation Museum on what was then McClellan Air Force Base. The museum was later chartered by the National Museum of the United States Air Force.
The United States Coast Guard previously operated Coast Guard Air Station Sacramento at McClellan AFB as a tenant activity, operating and maintaining several HC-130 Hercules aircraft. CGAS Sacramento continues to operate at McClellan following its closure as an Air Force Base and is the only remaining military aviation unit and installation on the airfield.
In 2005 the McClellan Aviation Museum changed its name to the Aerospace Museum of California. Various military aircraft sit on display inside one of the hangars, and many more are outside on the flightline. The museum has displays which highlight the mission of the base when it was active, as well as neighboring bases such as Beale AFB, Travis AFB and the since closed Mather AFB. The museum hosts educational programs to schools in the local area.