Tama Airfield The facility that houses Yokota Air Base was built during
World War II by the
Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) in 1940. It became the center of Japanese Army Air Forces flight test activities. The base was also the site of the first meeting between Japanese officials and their Italian wartime allies. Tama was first spotted by the
United States Army Air Forces in November 1944 by a
3rd Reconnaissance Squadron F-13 Superfortress photo-reconnaissance aircraft, flying from
Tinian in the
Mariana Islands. USAAF intelligence connected it with the aircraft manufacturing plant of
Nakajima Aircraft Company in the nearby town of
Musashino. Along with
Tachikawa Air Base to the east and the factory of
Showa Aircraft Industry to the south, it was compared to the USAAF's own aircraft-development complex at
Wright-Patterson Field in Ohio. The two bases conducted all IJA flight testing. In spring 1945,
XXI Bomber Command launched eight missions against the base and the aircraft manufacturing plant, but each time heavy clouds forced the bombers to attack secondary targets. The Nakajima plant was finally attacked in April 1945, but the Tama airfield never was bombed.
Postwar years Two days after the
surrender of Japan on 2 September 1945, a detachment of the
United States Army 1st Cavalry Division arrived at the base. The airfield's buildings were largely intact, and some 280 of the IJA's most modern aircraft were discovered in hangars. The 1st Cavalry named the facility Fussa Army Airfield, then at the end of September renamed it Yokota Army Airfield after a nearby village (now incorporated in
Musashimurayama) that appeared on a 1944 US map. The name was to have been changed to Wilkins Army Air Base (WAAB) after
Medal of Honor recipient
Raymond "Ray" Wilkins, but orders for this never arrived. Still, some metal manhole covers stamped "WAAB" remained in use around the base in 2017. The USAAF initially used the base for airlift operations. The
2d Combat Cargo Group arrived with four
C-47 Skytrain squadrons. The runway deteriorated under heavy use and was repaired. Yokota supported operations of the
A-26 Invader-equipped
3d Bombardment Group by August 1946. When the USAAF became the USAF in 1947, it was renamed Yokota Air Base. More construction during the 1940s and 1950s brought the base to its current size around 1960. On the occasion of extension, the course of
Hachiko Line and
National Route 16 was changed, and
Itsukaichi Kaidō was divided. During the postwar occupation years, Yokota hosted these USAAF/USAF units: •
20th Combat Mapping Group (October 1945 – April 1946) (
F-7 Liberator) •
8th Reconnaissance Group (June 1946 – October 1947) (F-7) •
71st Reconnaissance Group (February 1947 – April 1949) (
RB-17,
RB-29,
RF-51,
RF-61 and
RF-80) These units performed photographic reconnaissance and mapping of Japan and
South Korea. •
6th Night Fighter Squadron (1946–47) (
P-61A/B)Inactivated and personnel, mission and equipment transferred to
339th Fighter Squadron (
347th Fighter Group) with
F-82F/G Twin Mustangs at
Nagoya Air Base. •
82nd Photo Reconnaissance Squadron (1947–48) (
FP-80) •
3d Emergency Rescue Squadron (July 1947 – April 1950) (
SB-17G)Flew modified
B-17G bombers equipped to carry a 27-foot
A-1 lifeboat under their bellies; the boat could be dropped by parachute with enough food, water, and clothing to enable 12 survivors to last for about 20 days in the ocean.
Korean War During the
Korean War, Yokota was used for combat missions over North and South Korea. Known units based there were: •
Fighter units •
27th Fighter-Escort Wing (November – December 1950)Flew
F-84E Thunderjets on armed reconnaissance, interdiction, fighter escort, and close air support missions. •
35th Fighter-Interceptor Wing (April - August 1950) A broad agreement on civil-military use of the base was agreed on in 2005. In November 2009, the base was attacked by
Kakurōkyō members using improvised
mortar barrages. In April 2010 Colonel Frank Eppich, the USAF commander of base, banned screenings of the film
The Cove at the base theater. A base spokesman said that
The Cove was banned because using a base venue to display the film could be seen as an endorsement of the film. The spokesman added, "We have a lot of issues with Japan... and anything done on an American base would be seen as an approval of that event." Personnel and aircraft from the base assisted with
Operation Tomodachi following and during the March
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and
Fukushima I nuclear accidents. The base also served as an important hub for airlifted assistance during the disaster recovery efforts. During the crisis, around 600 American family members voluntarily departed the base for locations outside Japan. On 21 March 2012 JASDF units completed moving from
Fuchū Air Base (Tokyo). On 26 March, JASDF Yokota Air Base started operations. In 2013, the air base was again attacked by Kakurokyo members by improvised mortar barrages. On 5 April 2018 five
CV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft deployed to the base. They had originally been scheduled to deploy to Yokota in 2020, but the deployment was brought forward. As the first permanent deployment of the aircraft outside of Okinawa, the move sparked local protests. The number of aircraft will eventually reach 10.
Major commands to which assigned •
1st Cavalry Division, United States Army Forces Pacific, (September 1945) •
Pacific Air Command, US Army, (September 1945 – January 1947) •
Far East Air Forces (January 1947 – July 1957) •
Pacific Air Forces (July 1957 – present) == Role and operations ==