|World War II
Larson Air Force was originally named Moses Lake Army
Air Base. It was first activated on 24 November 1942 as a temporary World
War II training center. Its first assigned mission was to train pilots for
P-38's and later to train combat crews for B-17 Flying Fortresses. Major
Donald A. Larson, for whom the base was named, was from Yakima, Washington.
He was killed 4 August 1944 on a fighter mission over Germany while attached
to the 505th Fighter Squadron. He had flown 57 combat missions when his P-47
Thunderbolt was shot down and crashed near Ulzen, Germany.
Boeing Test Facility
In 1945 the base activity was curtailed to
standby status and during the next three years, During this time, the
extensive Boeing Aircraft Company facilities at the base were used to test
the B-47 and the B-50. In February 1949, a lone B-47 lifted off the ground
at Larson, was pointed east, and began a race against time. The object was
to smash the cross country speed record with its destination, Andrews AFB,
Maryland. The B-47 set a new speed record, completing the flight in just
three hours and forty -five minutes at an average speed of 607.2 miles per
Larson was reopened as a permanent installation in
November 1948 under the Air Defense Command. The mission of F-82, F-94 and
and F-86 fighters was to protect the vital Hanford Atomic Works, Grand
Coulee Dam and the coastal area. On 1 April 1952, Larson AFB was placed
under the Tactical Air Command and the 62d Troop Carrier Wing moved from
McChord AFB, Washington to assume command. During the next eight years, the
62d was prominent in national news events with missions in DEW Line and
communications network construction, mercy flights and flights to Formosa
and Africa. Larson became a Military Air Transport Service base on 1 July
1957 and in June 1958 Larson was put under the newly created Western
Transport Air Force of MATS.
The Air Materiel Command Flight Test Center at
Larson tested B-52's at the field from February 1955 to 1959, when the
program was discontinued. Boeing built a $5.8 million-hangar to accommodate
eight B-52s or KC-135 tankers, 1954-1957. Featuring a three-inch thick shell
of alternating low- and high-bay barrels, the hangar was 1,068 feet long and
372 feet wide, with clear spans of 217 feet. Seattle engineering firm
Worthington & Skilling executed the design.
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command assumed command of Larson AFB
on 1 January 1960 and established the 462d Strategic Aerospace Wing as a part of
its Fifteenth Air Force. The 568th Strategic Missile Squadron was officially
activated on 1 April 1961 as a 4170th Strategic Wing unit. There were three
missile complexes consisting of three Titan I's each.
Responsibility for this project initially fell on the
Walla Walla District of the Corps of Engineers, which set up an area office in
October 1959. Nine Titan I silos split between three sites (3 x 3) at Odessa,
Warden, and Quincy would be built along with support facilities at Larson AFB.
In October 1960, the construction oversight responsibilities were passed on to
the Corps of Engineers Ballistic Missile Construction Office (CEBMCO). On
November 18, 1959, the Walla Walla District opened bid packages. Of the eight
bid packages, the lowest submitted ($31.6 million) had been assembled by a joint
venture of contractors composed of MacDonald Construction Company, The Scott
Company, Paul Hardeman Company, G.H. Leave11 Company, F.E. Young Construction
Company, and Morrison-Knudsen Company, Incorporated. Subsequent contracts for
such components as the propellant loading system (PLS) were let by the Omaha
The contractor broke ground on December 1, 1959. A cut
and fill method was used to install the missile silos and launcher control
facilities. Water seepage proved to be a challenge at these northwestern
locations. By August 1961, one site had pumps removing 175,000 gallons a day.
Improved drainage around the complexes eased the problem. Although no workers
died while working at Larson, the frequency of lost-time accidents doubled that
of the national average. In hindsight, the rush to get the project completed
caused workers and supervisors to forsake prudent measures. With the assumption
of the project by CEBMCO, a full-time safety engineer took charge and the
accident rate began to decline. Toward the end of the project, it had dropped
well below that of comparable CEBMCO projects.
The complexes, one located at Royal City, Washington,
one at Warden, Washington and another at Odessa, Washington, were deactivated
officially on 25 March 1965. The missiles were moved and shipped to Norton AFB,
California for disposition. Most of the aerospace ground equipment including the
diesel generators used for power underground during the operational period of
the complexes was removed, and the missile sites were turned over to the General
Services Administration for disposal on the open market.
The Secretary of Defense announced on 19 November 1965
that Larson was to be closed by June 1966. After initial shock, local civilian
committees were formed to attempt to determine the possible private or
governmental usage of Larson AFB facilities. Through the combined efforts of the
United States Air Force and governmental agencies several uses were considered.
A base closure plan was approved and a base closure projects office established
to act as liaison between Larson AFB, higher headquarters and civilian groups.
Formerly Larson Air Force Base, Grant County
International Airport is now a world-class heavy jet training and testing
facility used by the Boeing Company, Japan Airlines, the U.S. Military and many
other air carriers from around the world. With 4,700 acres and a main runway
13,500 feet long, it is one of the largest airports in the United States. Moses
Lake is famous for good flying weather -- this is not Seattle. Grant County
International Airport is located on the other side of the Cascade Mountains, in
the semi-arid desert of central Washington State.
The 462nd Strategic Aerospace Wing
activated on November 15, 1962 at Larson AFB, Washington. It acquired B-52Ds
previously with 327 BS, 4170th Strategic Wing. Conducted strategic
bombardment, and refueling operations. It's 568th Strategic Missile
Squadron conducted Titan I training missions from February 1, 1963 to March 25,