Kearns Army Air Base was a U.S. Army Air Base seven miles (11 km) southwest of Salt Lake City, Utah. It served in many roles. Despite being referred to as air base, it had no runways and no airplanes could land near there. It was not associated with Salt Lake City Municipal Airport No. 2 (now South Valley Regional Airport), which bordered Kearns to the south, which was a small general aviation airport.
At right is an Area Map of Kearns dated 6/25/43 when it was a technical training center. On the west side is a railroad spur to the base. There are six E-W roads, which from N to S are Avenues F to A, at 4715 S, 4865, 5015 (150 between these three, 200 between the next), 5215. 5415 and 5615 S. The N-S roads, E to W, are 1st Street at 4020 W (next to now 4015) to 9th Street at 4820 W (100 between each of these).
A Kearns Army Air Base Street Map
History
On 10 February 1942, the United States district engineer (Colonel E. G. Thomas) recommended a "5,450-acre dry farming area in Kearns" for an inland Army training site.[1] For one of "the eight new technical training installations rushed into operation" during 1942-3, a Kearns, Utah "plot of 1,405 acres was purchased".[2]: 110 The Kearns Center military unit was activated (designated) 1 May 1942,[3] and "a contract for a theater of operations cantonment was let" on 16 June 1942.[2] "Basic Training Center No. 5" began operations on 17 July[4] and opened on 20 July[2]: 110 under Training Command.[1] A "Denver and Rio Grande Western" spur was built to the installation's railroad station, and by 21 August all barracks were complete.[1] "Upon completion of their basic training most of the pre-aviation cadets [were] sent to one of the many college operated [flight schools] under the supervision of the Army Air Corp." [sic].[5] The 510th Training Group and 3 technical school squadrons (1032d, 1033d, and 1034th) were assigned to Kearns on 10 September 1942,[citation needed] and Kearns' commander--Colonel Leo F. Post--arrived by September 12.[1] Construction was completed in October 1942[2]: 110 and Kearns' "basic military training and technical training" continued until 30 Sep 43.[3]
Nine B-24 Liberator bombardment groups were at Kearns, but arrived and left by train as there was no airfield. --459th, 460th, 455th, 456th, 465th, 466th, 467th, 458th and from Gowen Field, 461st[6]—formed 31 August-17 October 1943. The base transferred to Second Air Force on 1 October 1943,[citation needed] and the bomb groups all were reassigned by the end of 1943 (e.g., the 461st to Wendover Field).[7][verification needed] In January 1944, Kearns AAF began performing personnel replacement training, rather than group training. In April, ground echelon training for B-24 support personnel was ended.[8]
Redesignated Army Air Base, Kearns on 1 October 1944 when transferred to the Second Air Force, command of the base transferred from Converse R. Lewis to[10] Colonel Walter F. Siegmund.[11]
A theater for "colored personnel" became part of Kearns Junior High School. A base chapel is now part of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church. The base train station is a day-care center. A cannon that had stood next to the headquarters' flagpole now decorates the corner of 40th West and 54th South.[15]
The World War I-era cannon and flagpole from the old Camp Kearns military base have been relocated to the Kearns township recreation center, 5670 S. Cougar Lane (4800 West). They are now part of the new Kearns Veterans Memorial Plaza, dedicated Nov. 10, 2012.
^ abcdFutrell, Robert F. (July 1947). Development of AAF Base Facilities in the United States: 1939-1945 (Report). Vol. ARS-69: US Air Force Historical Study No 69 (Copy No. 2). Air Historical Office. p. 110. At Kearns, Utah (just outside Salt Lake City), a plot of 1,495 acres was purchased, a contract for a theater of operations cantonment was let on 16 June, and Basic Training Center No. 5, was opened 20 July, although construction was not completed until October 1942.
^http://www.461st.org/History/461st%20History/PDFs/jul-sep43.pdf "In accordance with an Immediate Action Letter from Hqs of the Second Air Force September 4, 1943,(12) the Adjutant at Gowen Field issued Par. No. 11 of Special Orders No. 251 on September 8, 1943. This Par. Read as follows: "The following named O and EM 461st Bomb Gp this sta are hereby reld fr atchd to the 29th Bomb Gp and WP by rail on 10 Sept 1943 for temp change of sta to AAB Kearns Utah, RUAT CO thereat on Saturday, 11 Sept 1943 for dy and further asgmt."(13) ... On Sept. 29th the C.O. of Kearns, Col. Converse R. Lewis, reviewed his troops in farewell to his command at Kearns. The morning of the following day the Air Echelon of the 461st moved from the Salt Lake City AAB to Kearns. At noon all personnel of the Group boarded a troop train and left for Wendover Field, Utah.(19)
^Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.
^"Ft. Logan to be Convalescent Center Starting at Midnight"(transcription at PlainsHumanities.unl.edu). Denver Post. 14 April 1944. Retrieved 2013-02-11. Fort Logan…army air service command will take over the post from the army air forces western technical command, which has operated it since 1 March 1941, as a clerical school. Under the air service command, Fort Logan will become a center for the training of convalescent air force service men returning from overseas. … the western technical training command will take back Camp Kearns.
^"Kearns Gets New Head"(Google news archive). The Deseret News. September 28, 1943. Retrieved 2013-10-25. With the transfer comes the change in the name of the facility, from Basic Training Center No. 5 to Army Air Base, Kearns.
^"Colonel Walter F. Siegmund, A. C, Commanding Officer Army Air Base Kearns, Utah," inside title "Encamped at Kearns," ca. 1944 (cited by Alexander)
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