WHITING FIELD HISTORY
Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Milton, Florida is the busiest Naval Air Station in the world, responsible for an estimated 46 percent of the Chief of Naval Air Command's total flight time and over 10 percent of Navy and Marine Corps total flight time. Over 1,200 personnel complete their essential flight training yearly. NAS Whiting Field and Training Air Wing Five have an outstanding and unmatched safe flying record. The station has served as a naval aviation training facility since it was established as a naval air auxiliary station in July 1943. Its present mission is to train student naval aviators in the primary and intermediate phases of fixed-wing aviation, and in the advanced phases of helicopter training.
This installation hosts Training Wing Five (TRAWING 5) and its fixed wing primary training squadrons VT-2, VT-3, VT-6 and helicopter training squadron HT-8. NAS Whiting Field is located north of Milton, FL. NAS Whiting primarily operates in the Pensacola MOAs. While relatively free from aeronautical encroachment, the area is experiencing the growth characteristic of Florida, in both sheer numbers (Santa Rosa County experienced a 44.3% population increase in the 1990s) and in changing demographics. As a result, unconstrained use of DoN aviation facilities is challenged.
Before the field was officially commissioned, personnel were already beginning to train aviators. Squadron 3-B of Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) Saufley Field, Pensacola, Florida, began operations on July 1, 1943. Squadron 3-B was later joined by Squadron 3-A of Chevalier Field to form Training Squadron THREE. In only 14 weeks, Whiting Field came into being to fulfill the need for pilot training commands in WWII.
Commissioning ceremonies for Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) Whiting Field were held on July 16, 1943, in the South Field Hanger. At 11 a.m. that day, Rear Admiral George D. Murray, Commandant of the Naval Air Training Center, welcomed some 1,500 persons and introduced Mrs. Kenneth Whiting, the widow of Naval hero, Captain Kenneth Whiting, for whom the station was named. The commissioning of Whiting Field took place at a crucial time in American history. Only six days before the commissioning, the invasion of Sicily had occurred. Throughout World War II, Whiting's mission was to train aviators for the fleet.
On July 12, 1945, Detachment THREE 1470 SCU was established. Detachment THREE, a prisoner of war (POW) camp for German soldiers, was operated through the efforts and cooperation of Naval authorities at NAS Pensacola and Army authorities at Camp Rucker, Alabama. Certified documents indicate that the purpose of Whiting Field's POW camp was ". . . to furnish manual labor details necessary for construction and soil erosion projects at the field." The first officer in charge of the POW camp was Army Captain Robert H. Fuller. He arrived on July 7, 1945. Two days later, he returned to Camp Rucker to escort the first group of 100 German POWs to Whiting. Assisting him were 19 enlisted soldiers who were assigned to Whiting to guard the prisoners and help run the camp.
On August 3, an additional 125 prisoners were sent to Whiting. The labor for construction of the prisoners' barracks was provided by the POWs. Other construction projects included rebuilding a storage shed for a barber's shop and erecting buildings to house the canteen and reading room for the prisoners. All construction was completed with salvaged materials. No new construction was necessary. A small dispensary also was provided as hospital quarters for the minor illnesses among the prisoners. With the end of the war came numerous victory celebrations. German POW's were returned to their homeland. Training flights for cadets and aviation pilots were suspended for several days so the men could decide whether to remain in the Navy or return to civilian life. The entire country breathed a sigh of relief.
Milton residents became accustomed to the sight of heavy and medium bombers in the skies. By 1949, Whiting Field was known throughout the Naval Air Basic Training Command as the backbone of the Navy's flight program.
During 1949 and 1950, the famed Navy precision flying team, the Blue Angels, made their home at Whiting Field, and the Navy's first jet training unit, JTU ONE (JTU-1), was commissioned. The outbreak of the Korean War in 1950 caused the stay of the Blue Angels and JTU-1 at Whiting Field to be short-lived, as the Blue Angels were ordered to disband and go into combat. Jet training was transferred to Kingsville, Texas. Once again, Whiting could concentrate on basic pilot training.
On 1 May 1960, Primary Training Squadrons TWO (VT-2), THREE (VT-3) and SIX (VT-6) were established. VT-2 and VT-6 were located at North Field; VT-3 at South Field. Beginning in 1965, Whiting Field underwent a major facelift as an estimated $10 million was spent on construction projects. Whiting Field was subsequently commissioned as a Naval Air Station.
In January 1972, as a result of a major reorganization of the Naval Air Training Command, Whiting Field became the home of Training Air Wing FIVE. Under the command of Commander, Training Air Wing FIVE (TRAWING-FIVE) were his staff, three primary training squadrons and support personnel attached to NAS Whiting Field. Also in 1972, Helicopter Training Squadron EIGHT (HT-8) came under the command of TRAWING-FIVE and was later split to form Helicopter Training Squadron EIGHTEEN (HT-18).
In 1973, helicopter training began. Helicopter Training Squadrons EIGHT and EIGHTEEN were assigned to South Whiting Field. Training Squadron THREE relocated to North Field, making North Field the home of the three fixed-wing squadrons. Since then, all graduates of Navy helicopter training have received their Wings of Gold at Whiting Field.
