Sunday, January 28, 2001
Goodfellow Air Force Base celebrates
60 years of history
By Julie Schlabs
San Angelo Standard-Times
SAN ANGELO — Every evening at sunset,
the American flag that waves proudly over Goodfellow Air Force
Base Headquarters is lowered and symbolically folded into the
triangular shape of a cocked hat, as a reminder of those who fought
to preserve the rights, privileges and freedoms enjoyed today.
As the flag came down Friday, though, it
held an added significance for the base and the San Angelo community.
More than 200 military personnel and civilians
were on hand to celebrate 60 years of base history in the very
spot the flag was first raised on the same day in 1941.
A four-member honor guard clad in military
uniforms from World War II, the Korean War and the late 1970s
and 1980s performed the ceremony.
“Standing before this flag pole brings
back a lot of memories,’’ guest speaker Dick Burnett
told the crowd.
An early graduate of the base, Burnett proudly
shared the treasured memories of the experiences he had while
he lived and worked on the base. He also reflected on his fortune
to return to San Angelo to serve as chief of police after a stint
with the FBI.
Others spoke with fondness for San Angelo’s
contributions to the base.
Col. K.C. McClain praised the base’s
relationship with the community both in the initial opening and
later in the tumultuous battle to stay in the town that had so
rigorously supported its existence.
The base has amassed a rich history in the
time it has occupied the area just southeast of San Angelo, undergoing
a series of name changes as well as significant changes in mission.
On Jan. 26, 1941, the first formal flag
raising launched the San Angelo Air Corps Basic Flying School’s
opening. Just five months later, the post was renamed to honor
John James Goodfellow Jr., a San Angelo High School graduate and
World War I fighter pilot.
In 1948, it was officially designated an
Air Force base.
Since then, the mission has changed a number
of times.
The chief mission of the base today, according
to group literature, is to develop and deliver training in the
cryptologic and general intelligence career fields for the Air
Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps as well as to students from
certain allied countries and national agencies.
Today, the base is home to the 344th Military
Intelligence Battalion/111th Military Intelligence Brigade, the
Naval Technical Training Center Detachment, Marine Corps Detachment,
a Fire Protection Training Center and a Department of Transportation
tire testing facility.
It also provides Special Instruments Training,
including nuclear detonation tactics, in support of the U.S. Atomic
Energy Detection System.
Base historian Dr. John V. Garrett said
the base, which now covers 1,137 acres, has grown significantly
from its 640-acre beginning.
Garrett said when the base opened in 1941,
San Angelo’s population was around 25,000.
Since then, both the city and base populations
have increased to four times the original.
The growth has not been restricted to size,
however. Garrett said among the base’s numerous achievements
are the increasing quality of personnel and the training that
the base has provided.
Today, the base employs 3,309 military personnel
and 755 civilian workers and has an estimated economic impact
of $255.3 million annually in San Angelo.
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Copyright ©2001,
Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps. Publications
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