Walker Air Force Base
Walker Air Force Base
 Roswell Army Airfield |
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| Part of Strategic Air Command | |
| Roswell, New Mexico | |
2006 USGS Aerial Photo
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 Walker AFB
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| Coordinates | 33°18′06″N 104°31′50″W / 33.30167°N 104.53056°WCoordinates: 33°18′06″N 104°31′50″W / 33.30167°N 104.53056°W |
| Type | Air Force Base |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1941 |
| In use | 1941-1967 |
Walker Air Force Base is a closed United States Air Force base located three miles (5 km) south of the central business district (CBD) of Roswell, a city in Chaves County, New Mexico, US.
Opened in 1941 as an Army Air Corps flying school, it was active during World War II and the postwar era as Roswell Army Air Field. During the early years of the Cold War, it became the largest base of the Strategic Air Command. It is also known for the Roswell UFO incident, an event that supposedly happened on 4 July 1947. It is alleged that a "flying disc" crashed during a severe thunderstorm near the base at Corona, New Mexico.
Walker AFB was named after General Kenneth Newton Walker, a native of Los Cerrillos, New Mexico. He was killed during a bombing mission over Rabaul, New Britain, Papua, New Guinea. on 5 January 1943. Though intercepted by enemy fighters, his group scored direct hits on nine Japanese ships. General Walker was last seen leaving the target area with one engine on fire and several fighters on his tail. For his actions, General Walker was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1943. The base was renamed in his honor on 13 January 1948.
Funding cutbacks during the Vietnam War led to the closure of the base in 1967.
What became Roswell Army Air Field was acquired by the United States Army Air Forces in 1941 from rancher David Chesser for the purpose of establishing a Military Flying Training Center and Bombardier School. From the beginning, it was designed as a large, expansive facility, given the excellent flying weather in New Mexico. The airfield consisted of seven concrete runways, two parallel North/South 7329x200 and 7000x200; two parallel NE/SW 7200x200 and 5655x200; two parallel NW/SE, 6964x200 and 5900x200 and one E/W runway 6884x200(E/W).
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