Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove
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| NAS JRB Willow Grove | |||
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| IATA: NXX – ICAO: KNXX – FAA: NXX | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Military: Naval Air Station | ||
| Owner | United States Navy | ||
| Location | Horsham Twp, Pennsylvania | ||
| Built | 1928 | ||
| Commander | CAPT Michael S. Remington | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 358 ft / 109 m | ||
| Coordinates | 40°11′59″N 075°08′53″W / 40.19972°N 75.14806°W | ||
| Website | |||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 15/33 | 8,002 | 2,439 | PEM |
| Sources: official web site[1] and FAA[2] | |||
Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove or NASJRB Willow Grove (IATA: NXX, ICAO: KNXX, FAA LID: NXX) is a Naval Air Station owned by the U.S. Navy and located in Horsham Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States[3] four miles (6 km) northwest of the central business district of Willow Grove[2], which is north of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
It began in 1926 when Harold Frederick Pitcairn constructed a hangar and a grass airstrip in Horsham, Pennsylvania. The name "Willow Grove" came from the nearest town. At the time, Horsham was a rural township with little significance. From 1926 to 1942 he used the airfield for design, construction and testing of a number of aircraft, including the Mailwing which was used by the United States Postal Service.
After the start of World War II, the United States purchased the grounds, and launched a classified anti-submarine warfare program at the base. Following World War II and into the Cold War, it became an operational and training bases for aviation activities of the Naval Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, Air Force Reserve, Air National Guard, Army Reserve and Army National Guard, a duty it continues to this day. As part of its joint recruitment efforts, the base was an annual host to one of the largest air shows on the East Coast thru 2006.
Today Willow Grove is home to the 111th Fighter Wing, an Air Combat Command-gained unit of the Air National Guard operating the A-10 Thunderbolt II; the 270th EIS; Marine Aircraft Group 49, and Navy Fleet Logistic Squadrons 52 (VR-52) and 64 (VR-64), operating the C-9 Skytrain II and C-130 Hercules, respectively. Willow Grove is also home to The Liberty Bell Squadron of the United States Naval Sea Cadet Corps and Group 3 Headguarters of Pennsylvania Wing Civil Air Patrol.
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[edit] Base Realignment and Closure
On May 28, 2006, the Base Realignment and Closure commission recommended that this base be closed as part of the 2005 BRAC round, that the tenant Air Force Reserve Command airlift wing be deactivated and that Navy Reserve and Marine Corps Reserve flying units relocate to McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey as tenant units. This may be subject to change by the President of the United States and the United States Congress.
On September 30, 2007, pursuant to direction of BRAC 2005, the Air Force Reserve Command disestablished the 913th Airlift Wing at Willow Grove ARS, redistributing its C-130 Hercules aircraft to other active duty Air Force and Air Force Reserve units.[4]
On February 29, 2008, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania released a report detailing a plan for a joint interagency installation. The installation's mission will be national defense, homeland security and emergency preparedness. Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell is expected to make a decision on the amount of the existing Navy base the state will seek in the spring of 2008.
NAS JRB Willow Grove will continue supporting its mission through 2010, and final closure will occur by September 2011. It is anticipated that the Pennsylvania Air National Guard will take custody, and the facility will be designated Willow Grove Air National Guard Base.[5]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ NAS JRB Willow Grove, official web site
- ^ a b FAA Airport Master Record for NXX (Form 5010 PDF), effective 2007-12-20
- ^ "streets.gif." Horsham Township, Pennsylvania. Retrieved on January 25, 2009.
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/913th_Airlift_Wing
- ^ CNIC | Commander Navy Installations Command
[edit] External links
- Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove
- Joint Interagency Installation Implementation Plan for Willow Grove/Horsham
- Coordinates: 40°11′59″N 75°08′54″W / 40.1998°N 75.1482°W
- FAA Airport Diagram(PDF), effective 2 July 2009
- Resources for this U.S. military airport:
- AirNav airport information for KNXX
- ASN accident history for NXX
- NOAA/NWS latest weather observations
- SkyVector aeronautical chart for KNXX
