Beginnings In the 1950s, helicopters began to be incorporated into the
United States Coast Guard. One such helicopter, the
H-25A Army Mule was built with amphibious capabilities. Float planes were no longer needed because of this development. Therefore, places like
Coast Guard Air Station Salem were slowly being phased out. In the 1960s, the Coast Guard began searching for a replacement facility for Coast Guard Air Station Salem, that was in service from 1935 to 1970. Salem was not able to expand, and the Coast Guard needed a space that could grow as needed and accommodate modern aircraft.
1970–1980 In 1968, the Department of Defense agreed to allow the Coast Guard to utilize
Otis Air Force Base on Cape Cod for a new Coast Guard air station. Air Station Cape Cod was officially established/commissioned on August 29, 1970. The
HH-3F Pelicans and
HU-16E Albatrosses were transferred from CGAS Salem and CGAD Quonset Point Rhode Island (NAS) to Cape Cod in the summer of 1970.
Crash of Helo CG-1432 The CG-1432 crash was a United States Coast Guard aviation accident which involved five crewmembers aboard a helicopter responding to a distress call from the
Japanese
fishing vessel Kaisei Maru #18. On the morning of February 18, 1979,
Kaisei Maru #18 sent a distress call. The call indicated that a 47-year-old crewmember was in distress and needed to be airlifted off the ship, which was operating in the
North Atlantic Ocean. The weather that morning was stormy and conditions were not ideal for flight. A legacy was set in which a reunion would be held every year so that the men would not be forgotten. A memorial was erected in 1980 at the entrance to Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod. At the 2009 reunion,
Rear Admiral John Currier, who was stationed at Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod in 1979, recalled telling pilot James Stiles to "fly safe." ==Notable persons==