by Melissa Roe

Created on: May 20, 2009

President Woodrow Wilson began the National Advisory Committee of Aeronautics (NACA) in 1913 after the outbreak of World War I. The NACA asked the president to establish a center where the military's airplane usage could be researched and where airplane technology could be studied and advanced. President Wilson granted this request and established this center in a location conveniently located near several automobile and aircraft manufacturers in Dayton Ohio. This center was named McCook Field, and would be occupied by the United States Air Corp personnel.

Over ten years had passed and the Air Corp began running out of room at McCook field. City residents and officials began to get worried that the Air Corp may try to relocate their facility to a new location. If this happened the city would lose income and jobs. City officials and residents came up with a plan to keep McCook field in operation at its current location by donating over 5200 acres to the United States Air Corp to help them expand their operations.

The Air Corp gladly accepted the generous donation and used the land to build a field that was named to honor Orville and Wilbur Wright for the work and contributions they made to make flight possible. Wright field formally opened in 1927, which was one year after the United States government changed the Air Corp to the Army Air Corp.

The material division of the Army Air Corp was ordered to operate at Wright Field. Continued research and development of the airplane and all of its parts and equipment took place here. No one realized that WWII was coming and the Army Air Corp still remained at a disadvantage compared to the Air forces of other nations.

The government desperately wanted to help the Army Air Corp expand and progress its aircraft technology. One way to improve operations of the Army Air Corp was to increase its research potential with over 300 million dollars of money donated by the federal government. The government wanted to have at least 5500 airplanes. With the donation of money this would now be possible. Wright Field consisted of less than 50 buildings in 1941, by 1944 that number had increased to over 300.

In 1947 the United States government created the United States Air force and combined Wright Field, with another field nearby named Patterson field. Since the Army Air Corp had been eliminated, and the combining of the two fields yielded a new name for the installation, the facility would now be called Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Wright Patterson AFB is also the home of the National Museum of the United States Air Force, and research for our military aircraft is still done there to present day.

Learn more about this author, Melissa Roe.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.