Wright Patterson Air Force Base

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Part of Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC)
Near Dayton, Ohio
Air Force Materiel Command Headquarters National Museum of the United States Air Force Lockheed C-5 Galaxy, 445th Airlift Wing
Wright-Patterson AFB Location of Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio
Coordinates	39°49′23″N 084°02′58″W / 39.82306°N 84.04944°W / 39.82306; -84.04944 (Wright-Patterson AFB)Coordinates: 39°49′23″N 084°02′58″W / 39.82306°N 84.04944°W / 39.82306; -84.04944 (Wright-Patterson AFB)
Site information
Controlled by	United States Air Force
Condition	Currently active 1917–
Site history
Built	1917
In use	1917 – present
Events	W.P.A.F.B. Marathon & Flyover every September, Tattoo
Garrison information
Current commander	Col. Bradley W. McDonald
Garrison	88th Air Base Wing  NMUSAF  445th Airlift Wing

External images

Wright Field Heritage

Contrails (former WADC collection)

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) (IATA: FFO, ICAO: KFFO, FAA LID: FFO) is a United States Air Force base and census-designated place just east of Dayton, Ohio, in Greene and Montgomery counties. It includes both Wright and Patterson Fields, which were originally Wilbur Wright Field and Fairfield Aviation General Supply Depot. Patterson Field is approximately 10 miles (16 km) northeast of Dayton; Wright Field is approximately 5 miles (8.0 km) northeast of Dayton.

The host unit at Wright-Patterson AFB is the 88th Air Base Wing (88 ABW), assigned to the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center and Air Force Materiel Command. The 88 ABW operates the airfield, maintains all infrastructure and provides security, communications, medical, legal, personnel, contracting, finance, transportation, air traffic control, weather forecasting, public affairs, recreation and chaplain services for more than 60 associate units.

The base's origins begin with the establishment of Wilbur Wright Field on 22 May and McCook Field in November 1917, both established by the Army Air Service as World War I installations. McCook was used as a testing field and for aviation experiments. Wright was used as a flying field (renamed Patterson Field in 1931); Fairfield Aviation General Supply Depot; armorers’ school, and a temporary storage depot. McCook's functions were transferred to Wright Field when it was closed in October 1927.

Wright-Patterson AFB was established in 1948 as a merger of Patterson and Wright Fields. In 1995, negotiations to end the Bosnian War were held at the base resulting in the Dayton Agreement that ended the war.