THE ORLANDO ARMY AIR FORCE BASE
September 1940
ABOVE: Orlando Morning Sentinel – Air Base Edition, August 31, 1940.
VIEW the 24-page Air Base Edition
Servicemen with photographs in the Air Base Edition: Captain Charles A. Bassett, Captain Dudley D. Hale, Captain Lester O. Crage, Mayor S. Y. Way, Lieutenant Colonel Thomas S. Voss, Major Phillips Melville, 1st Lt. George F. Pierce, 1st Lt. John M. Reynolds, 2nd Lt. Jean R. Byerly, 2nd Lt. Carrell T. Murrell, 2nd Lt. G. J. Schriever, Captain Joseph H. Atkinson, 2nd Lt. Walter J. Wagner, 2nd Lt. R. M. Winningham, 2nd Lt. John L. Zoeckler, 2nd Lt. Harry B. Pratt, 2nd Lt. Wm. H. Yaeger, Jr., Captain Lilburn D. Fater, Captain John H. Davies, 2nd Lt. S.E. Lawrence, Jr., 2nd Lt. W. P. Exum, Captain Winslow C. Morse, Captain John C. Crosthwaite, 2nd Lt. R. L. Morrissey, 2nd Lt. N. A. Newman, 2nd Lt. B. M. Sheldon, 2nd Lt. G. A. Waler, 2nd Lt. S. J. McKee, 2nd Lt. R. K. Ort, 2nd Lt. William Waller, III, 2nd Lt. G. R. McMillan, 2nd Lt. J. E. Haile, Jr., 2nd Lt. W. D. Gilchrist, 2nd Lt. E. L. Strickland, 1st Lt. D. R. Hutchison, 2nd Lt. H. B. Darling, Jr., 2nd Lt. H. W. Randall, Jr., 2nd Lt. T. W. Hornsby, 2nd Lt. W. E. Bieghtol, Jr., 1st Lt. Joseph D. Lee, Jr., 1st Lt. Ralph Kellogg, 2nd Lt. S. W. Westbrook, 1st Lt., James O. Guthrie, 2nd Lt. A. J. Wheeler, 2nd Lt. Howard F. Nichols, Captain Walter I. Wheeler, Captain Robert D. Johnson, Captain John W. Persons, 1st Lt. Dwight Divine, II, 2nd Lt. N. D. Baker, 2nd Lt. M.C. Brown, 2nd Lt. D. H. Carmines, Jr., 2nd Lt. L. L. Cannon, 2nd Lt. W. A. Anderson, 2nd Lt. W. W. Cross, 2nd Lt. C. S. Hall, 2nd Lt. H. J. Hawthorne, 2nd Lt. K. C. Kennington, 2nd Lt. J. B. Martin, 2nd Lt. E. F. Freeman, 2nd Lt. D. G. Hawes, 2nd Lt. J. R. Heron, 2nd Lt. W. M. Knowles, 2nd Lt. F. A. Holm, 2nd Lt. Donald W. Lang, 2nd Lt. J. F. Brannock, 2nd Lt. G. J. Aubert, 2nd Lt. J. A. Mahoney, Jr., 2nd Lt. T. F. McGehee, Captain George W. Munday, Captain Flint Garrison, Jr., Captain Delmar T. Spivey, Captain Davis D. Graves.
October 1940
ABOVE: Orlando Reporter Star, October 19, 1940, p. 10. Photographer Charles T. O’Rork, Jr.
This Is Orlando’s Army Air Base as seen from an airplane
Occupation of Buildings Starts Soon – Some To Be Used Next Week
The enormous scope of the Orlando Army Air Base is graphically portrayed in these two remarkable aerial photographs which not only take in the batteries of barracks and other buildings but show the air field and Lake Underhill in the distance.
Seventeen of the barracks have been completed except for paint to be applied later by WPA forces. A number of the mess halls also have been completed as well as several of the administration and storage buildings. Many of these buildings will be occupied next week for the first time.
Some idea of the size of the base may be gained by the fact 3,250,000 board-feet of lumber have been used in the construction. With each railroad car carrying 20,000 feet of lumber, it would take more than five trainloads of 30 cars each to transport the lumber use.
Eight hundred kegs of nails weighing 40 tons have been pounded into the wood and 4,000 rolls of roofing paper have been used. About 140,000 pounds of galvanized sheet metal has been consumed together with 3,000 pounds of copper and 2,000 pounds of solder. The utility outfit has used three carloads of six-inch water mains; two carloads of gas mains; one carload of two-inch pipe for house connections; five carloads of sewer pipes.
An average of 300 carpenters on a six months’ work basis are in operation as well as 150 laborers and hundreds of WPA workers, making the total something like 800 men.
One barracks building will house 63 men. A mess hall will accommodate 250 men at one time. One large mess hall will seat a thousand men.
ABOVE: Orlando Army Air Force Base with Lake Underhill in the distance.
Orlando Reporter Star, October 19, 1940, p. 10, by photographer Charles T. O’Rork, Jr.
1959
Historical Sketch from the 1959 Guide to the Orlando Air Force Base, Florida. Armed Forces Directory Service; Eugene, Oregon.
ORLANDO Air Force Base has been an integral part of the Central Florida community since August, 1940, when the first troops rolled in by truck convoy. At that time the municipal airport was taken over by the Army Air Corps and vast construction programs were begun.
Officially opened on December 1, 1940, the base became the center of the Interceptor Command School. First base commander was Col. Thomas Voss, who is credited with the general layout and landscaping on the base. During the following two years, additional lands were obtained and auxiliary landing fields were built in the surrounding area.
Army Air Force School of Applied Tactics
Operations through the war years beginning in November 1942, were centered around the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics, commanded by Brig. Gen. Hume Peabody. Selected air crews were given advanced training here in the latest bombardment methods and tactics. Also, an Air Defense Department was established to train fighter pilots in the techniques of defense against air bombardment attacks.
Following World War II, the base served as a separation center for thousands being returned to civilian life. The headquarters of the Provine Ground Command was centered here until July 1, 1946, when this unit moved to its present location at Eglin AFB, Florida.
The Flying Tigers
Reactivation of the 14th Air Force in 1946 brought the headquarters of the famous “Flying Tigers” to OAFB. A unit of the Continental Air Command, the 14th remained here until the base was deactivated on October 28, 1949.
After remaining on a standby basis for over two years, the base was reopened on January 1, 1951, as an aviation engineers training sight [sic] again under the direction of the 14th Air Force.
Air Photographic and Charting Service
Today’s [1959] face of the base began to take shape on November 5, 1952, when Headquarters of the Air Photographic and Charting Service was moved here from its previous home in Philadelphia, Pa. With the completion of the move, APCS was assigned to the Military Air Transport Service and occupied its new home under a joint agreement between MATS and ConAC.
Full jurisdiction of the base was given to MATS on July 1, 1953, and the 1360th Air Base Group was formed to provide logistical support and services to the many Air Force units that were to occupy OAFB.
Air Rescue Service and Flight Service
Additional MATS units were attached to the base when, in April, 1954, the headquarters of the Air Rescue Service and Flight Service were moved here. Flight Service was later moved when it was integrated with Air and Airways Communications Service in 1956.
Another MATS unit, the 1380th School Squadron operating the command’s Non-Commissioned Officer Academy, was organized in May, 1955, and assigned to APCS. The first class of NCOs was graduated on October 3, 1955.
Tactical Air Command
The first Tactical Air Command unit moved to the base in September 1954, putting OAFB into the missile age. It was the 11th Tactical Missile Squadron, formerly known as the Pilotless Bomber Squadron, which began the training of crews to operate the TM-61 Matador guided missile. Later integrated into the 701st Guided Missile Wing in Europe, the 11th was replaced by the 17th TMS on September 8, 1955. Since that time the missile activities have expanded into the present 4504th Missile Training Wing.
Other units located here recently for service, logistical and administrative support are the Orlando Air Procurement District of the Air Materiel Command; the 9186th Air Reserve Training Group; the 1278-2 AACS Detachment: .the 3415th Technical Training Group; OSI (IG) USAF, Detachment 703; area office for the USAF Auditor General; and the AF-CAP Liaison Office, Florida Wing.
1960’s
Joe Weber was stationed at the Orlando Air Base in the 1960’s where he completed Mace Missile Training. Joe shared the photos below with Orlando Memory.
ABOVE: Base entrance.
ABOVE: Base Exchange. Courtesy Joe Weber.
ABOVE: Base Exchange. Courtesy Joe Weber.
ABOVE: Base housing. Courtesy Joe Weber.
ABOVE: View across Lake Underhill. Courtesy Joe Weber.
ABOVE: Mace Missile Training facility. Courtesy Joe Weber.
2008
Photo courtesy of Warren French.
The City of Orlando Greater Aviation Authority sponsored the installation of an historical marker for the Orlando Army Air Base in 2008. The marker is located at at the intersection of Maguire Boulevard and East Livingston Street, on the right when traveling north on Maguire Boulevard at coordinates 28° 32.878′ N, 81° 20.72′ W. The marker reads:
THE ORLANDO ARMY AIR BASE
Orlando Municipal Airport opened in 1928 on 65 acres of land north of Lake Underhill. In 1940, with Europe at war, the United States Army took over the airport for defense purposes, activating it as the Orlando Army Air Base on September 1, 1940. The first Army Air Corps planes arrived on September 5, 1940. The Base provided a training center for pilots and fighter and bomber groups. The United States entered World War II on December 7, 1941, after the attack on Pearl Harbor. In 1942, B-17 bombers and their crews moved to the newly completed Pine Castle Air Force Base, now the Orlando International Airport, and the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics moved to the Orlando Army Air Base, by then grown to 1000 acres with 6 runways. The size and importance of the Orlando base, where pilots tested new aircraft, including P-26 and P-40 fighter planes, brought notable visitors such as Chief of the Army Air Force General Hap Arnold and entertainer Bob Hope. At the end of World War II, the base became a separation center for thousands of servicemen and women resuming civilian life. It was returned to the city of Orlando in 1946. Renamed Herndon Airport in 1961, it became the Orlando Executive Airport in 1982.
READ “Former Orlando Army Air Base honored with historical marker”, Orlando Sentinel, January 25, 2010.
More Information On Orlando’s Army Air Force Base
Learn more about the Orlando Army Air Force Base – Then and Now.
Read more about the Orlando Army Air Force Base.
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Orlando welcomes air group
Orlando welcomes air group
Army Base as seen from air
Army Base as seen from air
Army Base as seen from air
Army Base as seen from air
Orlando Morning Sentinel - Air Base Edition, August 31, 1940.
Orlando Morning Sentinel - Air Base Edition, August 31, 1940.
Entrance sign. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Entrance sign. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Base Exchange. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Base Exchange. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Base Exchange. Courtesy Joe Weber. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Base Exchange. Courtesy Joe Weber. Courtesy Joe Weber.
View across Lake Underhill. Courtesy Joe Weber. Courtesy Joe Weber.
View across Lake Underhill. Courtesy Joe Weber. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Base housing. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Base housing. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Mace Missile Training facility. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Mace Missile Training facility. Courtesy Joe Weber.
Historic marker
Historic marker courtesy Warren French.
Video about Orlando Air Base
Orlando Army Air Force Base - Then and NowOrlando Executive Airport
Orlando Army Air Force Base
Orlando Army Air Force Basehttps://orlandomemory.info/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Sentinel-24-pages.pdf
My dad hitch hiked from Michigan to Orlando with his brother, who was stationed there, in May of 1947. My dad was a US Army vet. of WWII, and re-enlisted at Orlando AAB, May 26, 1947. He was assigned to the 466th Army Air Force Base Unit, which later became the 2583rd Air Base Group. By August, 1947, he had risen to the rank of Sgt., and was in charge of Personnel Classification.
When the base closed in 1948, and 14th AF moved to Robins AFB, Ga, he was transferred there and served with HQ. Sqdn, 14th Air Force as NCOIC, Classification.
Greetings Ed! Thank you for the amazing story of your dad’s time in Orlando and later at Robins AFB in Warner Robins up in Houston County, Georgia! I’ve driven by that base on several occasions in my younger days traveling from my home in Savannah to visit relatives near Atlanta. If you have a couple of photos of your Dad here at the Orlando base, we’d be happy to post a couple on the site. Just reply here and we’ll reach out privately to make it happen! Thanks again for sharing. We hope you find other posts that bring back memories of the good old days here in Orlando. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
Transferred in from Air Rescue squadron Hawaii to 1360th ABGp CBPO September 1962. Was here in Personnel Office until 1968 when OAFB went to the Navy Training Center. Saw a lot of changes in Orlando in those 6 years.
Hello Raymond,
Do you recall knowing a M.Sgt. Ivert Shinske?
the name does not ring a bell. what organization was he in?
Hello Raymond, Do you recall knowing a M. Sgt Ivert Shinske?
Greetings Mr. Turgeon! Thank you for adding your memories to our post on the old base. If you have any old photos you’d like to share, please let us know. We’d be happy to add a few. Hope you find more posts that bring back memories from your time in Orlando. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
My Dad flew all 4 years of WW 2 and then in the early 50’s was stationed at Orlando AFB where he spent all but the last 2 years of his 36 year career. I grew up shopping at the commissary and the PX and I fondly remember Orlando AFB. Thanks so much for the trip down memory lane, those were good times.
V.L. Mason
Hello Vicki
Do you recall knowing a M.Sgt. Ivert Shinske?
Greetings Vicki! Thank you for visiting the Orlando Army Air Force Base post on Orlando Memory. Orlando was certainly a much more bucolic place back in the 1950s. We hope you find other posts that bring back fond memories that you would like to share with us all. If you’d like, you may post your Dad’s name and rank in case others remember him. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
My Dad’s name was Master Sgt. Frank M. Bates. He was Orlando AFB for almost 20 years. I grew up in Orlando when it was a moss hung village where you could smell the orange blossoms in town when the wind was right. I knew Orlando AFB like the back of my hand, dances at the Officer’s club right on the lake, jones-ing for burgers from the NCO’s at their club (I always got one LOL.) It was a different world then and I miss it.
Greetings Vicki! Thank you so much for the beautiful description of Orlando way back when. We hope you find more posts on Orlando Memory that bring back memories of the good old days. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
Its like you learn my mind! You seem to know a lot about this, such as you wrote the guide in it or something. I believe that you simply can do with a few % to pressure the message home a little bit, however instead of that, that is excellent blog. A great read. I’ll definitely be back.
My Grandfather, Master Sgt CW2 Ivert Shinske was a career man in the USAAC, USAAF, then USAF. He served in WW2 and Korea and was stationed in Orlando for the rest of his 35 year long career. Unfortunately, he died of cancer when I was only 1 year old, so I never learned much about his military career. I’m wondering if any visitors here knew him? Especially Joe Weber, since my grandfather had something to do with missile testing. He was active from 1927-1957. He received a bronze star, and I would love to know the story on that one!
I finally received his service records. it was a huge stack of papers that cost me 80 bucks lol. there are five six even seven copies of the same page in there. nothing tells me how he got his bronze star, purple heart, or other awards. it is sorely lacking in information about how and where he served.
Greetings William! From whom did you get your dad’s military records? When I requested my dad’s from WWII, they had a sheet with the medals awarded and the theatres in which he served. My dad was in the Navy, so I was able to find out all the battles his ship was involved in during the dates he was on board. Hope you find more info on your Dad.
https://facebook.com/photo/?fbid=194706757260566&set=a.194706290593946
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=194707257260516&set=a.194706290593946
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=659065510824686&set=a.194706290593946
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=659065507491353&set=a.194706290593946
Greetings Bill! These are amazing photos! I just sent you an email so we can add these to the post. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
I also have some photos of the base that I scanned years ago, I would like to add them to this page but can’t figure out how…
Greetings Bill! I am sending you an email so we can discuss the photos. This is great! THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
I got them from the National Archives. I wonder if some of his records were destroyed in that fire in 1973? In any event, I can’t find out much about his career, even though it spanned 30 years!! I can only hope to find someone who knew him, which I know is a slim to none chance 🙁
If you have any info on the campaign or theatre you can look for posts online and add a message. I hope you can find more info. The fire didn’t destroy much, I’m told, it was the sprinkler system. I wonder if there were any articles in the paper about his Purple Heart. I guess there was nothing in his obituary. Did you request a military burial or the free tombstone? That DD214 form asks for their Discharge information and that should have info on his medals and tours of duty. If you live in Orlando area and have an OCLS library card you can schedule a 30-minute session with our Genealogist at the West Oaks Branch and she can show you databases we have. Depending on when he entered and left the service, he might show up in the 1940 and 1950 census on a military base stateside. THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
Greetings Bill! Thank you for visiting Orlando Memory. You may be able to get a synopsis of your grandfather’s service records through https://www.archives.gov/veterans. Years ago, I requested and received my dad’s (Navy) and his aunt and sister’s (Army Nurse Corps) service records (enlistment, boot camp, tours of duty, etc.) from WWII. Please read everything on the web site and follow the directions carefully. Depending on what information they need, you may need to visit your local library and use their Ancestry Library Edition to find things like DOB, Social Security Number, etc. We wish you success in finding the information on your Grandfather!
Stationed at OAFB 1961-1965 with 1381st GSS, Stellar Camera Division, located at Area “C, (separate from the base).
Hello Kirby,
Do you recall knowing a M.Sgt. Ivert Shinske?
Greetings, Kathy! Thank you for visiting the Orlando Army Air Force Base post on Orlando Memory. It was certainly a totally different Orlando in the early 1960s when you were stationed here! If you have a photo or two of the Stellar Camera Division in Area “C” that you would like to share with us, we’d be happy to consider them for inclusion on the post. We hope you find more posts that bring back happy Orlando Memories! ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
So happy to find this, it answers some questions for me. The explanation of when the base was deactivated answers one. I was born in Orlando in 1946, my dad was stationed at OAB. When I was born we lived at Reeves Terrace not far away but when I was about 1 we moved to Bumby Street near the base entrance. I vaguely remember being at a big celebration on the base when the Air Force was made a separate branch, and my dad got a new shoulder patch. Around the time in 1949 when the base was deactivated would be about the time dad had to go someplace else to work, it was Eglin. My mother and I stayed in the house on Bumby Street while he stayed in the barracks there and was looking for a place to live for us. It was not until around April of 1950, according to letters my mother sent to her mother, that we moved to Crestview but then in early July my dad was shipped to Korea after that war broke out, so my mom wanted to go back to North Carolina to her family. Orlando was kind of like a small town in those days, what little I remember of it. There was a dairy across the street with a boy a few years older than I was who had a pony and let me ride it with him sometimes. We had grapefruit and orange trees all around and picked them up to eat all the time. Bumby street was a quiet two lanes, and we played in an around the street all the time. Once when I was about 2, I wandered off the few blocks to the base looking for my daddy, and somehow was found by somebody who took me to the mess hall and gave me ice cream while they looked for dad, who then had to take me back to my frantic mother. Dad stayed in the Air Force until 1963, finishing as a senior master sergeant. He was a staff sergeant when we lived in Orlando.
Hello Zane,
Do you recall knowing a M.Sgt. Ivert Shinske? He had a daughter 2 years younger than you. A blonde named Robbie Lou Shinske.
Zane, is your dad still with us? if so can you ask him if he recalls an ivert shinske?
Greetings, Zane! Thank you for visiting Orlando Memory and the post on the Orlando Army Air Force Base. What amazing memories you have of Orlando and especially the Bumby area. It was probably the T.G. Lee Dairy you remember https://tgleedairy.com/our-story/ They actually call that area the “Milk District” today. If you have any photos of the base or your dad in uniform from that time that you would like to share, we may be able to include a couple on the post. We hope you will find other posts that bring back happy Orlando Memories! The Orlando Memory Team
Orlando AFB was my first assignment after graduating from OTS in Sep 1967. I was assigned to Hq Aerospace Audiovisual Service (descendant of APCS) which was commanded by Col Wm Barksdale. However, the base had been scheduled to transfer to the Navy, so Hq AAVS moved to Norton AFB, California in May 1968. Was a short stay but I loved it. Disney had just begun to openly announce plans and to prepare for construction of Walt Disney World. Orlando would never be the same after that. Thanks for the pictures!
Greetings Tom! Thank you for visiting the Orlando Army Air Force Base and leaving your memories of being here at the base in the 1960s. Orlando was certainly a different place before Disney – lots of small attractions, citrus groves, and much less traffic! If you have any photos of your time in Orlando that you’d like to share, let us know! Orlando Memory Staff
Stationed there march 1966 until April 1968. 1st assignment after boot camp and tech school. Assigned to Headquarters, air rescue and recovery; personnel, in officer/airman manning. Admin specialty, but placed in personnel, where needed. Remember well Jordan Marsh, Orange Ave, the Coconut Club, A and W Rootbeer at the Drive-In, the barrack. Sharing the barracks with transient para-rescuemen. Worked w/WO Dent, Sgt. Lackey, Sgt. Hackett, Sgt. Fred Kuhn, Sgt. Bradley, Sgt. Smith, Secretary Helen Butterfield, Col. Allison Brooks, Col McAllister, etc. To this day, I remember that I could have stayed at the base for my full tour, if only someone had not decided to turn our Air Force base into a Navy boot camp and decided that I should go to Vietnam instead! Loved everything about Orlando in the 60s.
Hello Al Hudson. I was there at the CBPO 1360 ABGp building 2010 (base HQ) I also was a Personnel Specialist assigned there from Oct 1962 thru Jun 1968 when AF transferred to the Navy. I had transferred from 76th Air Rescue Sq Hickam AFB. Gen Joe Cunningham was commander of ARRS at the time.
Mr. Turgeon, thank you for leaving a comment on the Orlando Army Air Force Base post on Orlando Memory. If you a few great photos from your time at the base and would like to add them to the post, please let us know and we’ll contact you. We hope you leave comments on other posts that bring back memories of days gone by! THE ORLANDO MEMORY TEAM
Greetings Mr. Hudson! Thank you so much for visiting Orlando Memory and sharing your memories of life in Orlando in the 1960s at the Orlando Army Air Force Base! Jordan Marsh was one of my favorite stores, too! Really classy place and helpful staff. If you have any photos or memorabilia of your time in Orlando, we’d be happy to add them to Orlando Memory! Just let us know and we’ll make arrangements. We hope you’ll check out other posts and share more memories with us. I think you might like these photos from the 1960s by Tim Orwick. https://orlandomemory.info/topics/orlando-buildings-circa-1960-through-the-lens-of-tim-orwick/
I was first stationed at OAF base inn the summer of 1954, air police, very hot, no air at that time, left in 1955 but returned in 1958-1959 in the missile squadron. I reported in and was told, we have no air police, so the squadron. Commander moved me in to his office to do things. My how Orlando has grown, came back in 1967 to McCoy still a nice city. Moved to Summerfield but the villages came, too old to move, 89 next month.
Hello Harry,
Do you recall knowing a M.Sgt. Ivert Shinske? I believe he was involved with missile testing at OAFB.
Greetings Mr. Covington! First, thank you for your service to our nation and early HAPPY BIRTHDAY wishes! Thank you for sharing your memories about the OAF. If you have any photos to share, please contact us and we’ll add them to the post!
My father was stationed at Orlando AFB when we came back from England in 1954. He retired around 1959 and had 32 yrs of active duty. When I lived in Orlando as a kid I thought Orlando was an okay place to live but all these yrs later I do not feel that way. I lived in Winter Garden 2001-2011 and it is too crowded, too many people, and lousy drivers. Oh yeah, and the hurricanes and tornadoes which I have experienced many times. Have lived out west for over 40 yrs in 2 different states out west which is where we live now.
I also left England in 1954 and went to Orlando afb
Stationed here in 1966 for Mace Missile Training
Joe, thank you for visiting Orlando Memory and letting us know that you served at the Orlando Army Air Base in the Mace Missile Training area. If you have any photos of your time at the Base, please share them with us. It was an exciting time in “old” Orlando before the arrival of Disney World. I’m sure you have wonderful memories of the “roadside” tourist attractions and the smell of orange blossoms that used to permeate the air in the groves near Orlando. We hope you find other posts of interest on OrlandoMemory.info and share more memories with us. Thank you for your service to our country.
Stationed here in 1959/60 for matador training. A great place to live.
Greetings Al! Thank you for visiting Orlando Memory and leaving a comment. If you have any photos from your time in Matador Training, please contact us. We’d love to add them to this post!
Stationed there in September 1959 till December 1959. In training on the TM-61C Matador and went to Cape Canaveral and launched one of our birds into the Atlantic Ocean and down range. Then off to Korea for 16 months duty on a missile launch crew. Back then in Orlando there wasn’t to much to say about Orlando as a town. What a change now.
Hello Kenneth! Thank you so much for visiting Orlando Memory and sharing your memories of the Orlando Army Air Force Base. It must have been exciting to work with the historic Matador cruise missile here in Orlando where it was developed at Martin. We thank you for your service and hope you will find our posts on Martin Marietta of interest, too.