Marana Army Airfield

Marana Army Airfield (1942-1956) - A World War II U.S. Army Airfield was established in 1942 near Tucson, Pinal County, Arizona. First named Marana Army Airfield after the location. Closed briefly after the end of WWII in 1945. Marana Army Airfield Auxillary Airfields No Name Location State GPS Notes Aux 1 Picacho Picacho AZ 32.6600, -111.4800 Aux 2 Rillito Rillito AZ 32.4096, -111.2184 Marana Northwest Regional Airport Aux 3 Coronado Red Rock AZ 32.6900, -111.2800 Aux 4 Avra Avra AZ 32.3800, -111.3000 Aux 5 Sahuaro Sahuaro AZ 32.4300, -111.3900 World War II The Marana Army Airfield was built in 1942 by the Sundt and Del Webb Construction Companies and opened in March 1943, the facility was used as a pilot training base. Marana conducted basic flight training and the training of transport pilots in instrument flying and navigation, being the home of the 3024th (Pilot School, Basic). Post World War II The airfield was closed after WWII, but later reopened and used by several military groups, the Central Intelligence Agency, and commercial airlines for a variety of purposes. In 1948, after the establishment of the U.S. Air Force as an independent service, Pinal County accepted a deed to the property, subsequent to the Air Force's disposal of most of the buildings, water lines, gas lines, and electrical lines. From 1948 to 1951, Pinal County leased the property to multiple tenants, and from 1951 to 1956, Marana was reused as a contractor-operated USAF basic flying school, operated by Darr Aeronautical Technical Company. Cold War Marana Field became the headquarters of all Central Intelligence Agency air operations during the Vietnam War years when it was the primary facility of Intermountain Airlines, a wholly-owned CIA "front" company that was used to supply covert operations in Southeast Asia and elsewhere. Intermountain was infamous for its thinly veiled CIA special ops which included the development and use of the Fulton Skyhook, but its cover was its non-scheduled freight and maintenance operations. Marana was the principal continental United States maintenance base for Southeast Asia CIA operations including Air America and Continental Air Services. The Marana facility was subsequently acquired by Evergreen International Airlines which performed aircraft modification and maintenance at the airfield. Current Status Now known as Pinal Air Park and as such it provides storage and scrapping services for a large number of surplus commercial aircraft. {"selectable":false,"height":"-500","width":"-500"} Location: North of Tucson in Pinal County, Arizona. Maps & Images Lat: 32.509722 Long: -111.325278 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 1,893 GPS Locations: 32.509722, -111.325278 Marana Army Airfield See Also: World War II Army Airfields Sources: US Army Owned, Sponsored and Leased Facilities Report, AMD-1, Office of the Chief of Engineers, 31 Dec 1945, CDSG Pdf Shaw, Frederick J. Ed., Locating Air Force Base Sites: History's Legacy, updated 2014, Air Force History and Museums Program, USAF, Washington DC, 2004, 268 pages Links: Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields North Tucson Area Wikipedia - Marana Army Airfield The Army Air Forces in World War II, Part 6, men and Planes, Chapter 4. Fortification ID: AZ0343 - Marana Army Airfield Visited: No