It’s been a long journey for Naval Air Station Meridian from the once-small auxiliary air station to the major jet training air base where pilots from around the world are trained. In fact, the base celebrates its 45th anniversary this year.

The initial plans were put into place and the first shovel of dirt was moved to begin the construction on the Naval facility on July 16, 1957, in northern Lauderdale County. Commissioned as Naval Auxiliary Air Station Meridian just two days shy of four years later, the Naval base began operating on July 14, 1961.

More than 40 years later, NAS Meridian has expanded and is now one of only two bases in the United States which trains Naval and Marine strike aviators. The other base is Naval Air Station Kingsville, Texas.

The commanding officer of NAS Meridian is Capt. Russell Knight, who took charge of the base in August 2005.

In August 1971, Training Air Wing 1 was commissioned and Training Squadron 19 was established. The Wing motto became “Readiness for Victory at Sea Through Training.” That October saw the arrival of the TA-4J, the jet trainer based on the A-4 “Skyhawk.”

Training Air Wing 1 is currently comprised of Training Squadron 9 and Training Squadron 7. Combined they train more than 160 pilots a year — each receiving their coveted “wings of gold.”

Pilots currently fly the T-45C “Goshawk.” In addition to the Naval and Marine Corps aviators, the wing also trains students from France, Italy and Spain. The commander of Training Air Wing 1 is Capt. Curt Goldacker.

Other facilities and notable events include:

• Stennis Center: This Naval technical training center, named in honor of the late U.S. Sen. John C. Stennis, was commissioned on April 17, 1974. It is the Navy’s primary training facility for enlisted administrative and supply classes. The average onboard student population is 500, with an average course length of 26 days. The center’s commanding officer is Cmdr. Robert Fink.

• Upgrade: NAS Meridian was upgraded to a major shore command on Oct. 1, 1982. In March 1984, the base was one of 15 chosen for the Department of Defense Model Installation Program.

In September 1985, the enlisted galley was dedicated to the memory of Marine Lance Cpl. Roy M. Wheat, a Mississippi native and Congressional Medal of Honor recipient killed in Vietnam.

In 1987, outlying field “Bravo” was renamed after Capt. Joe W. Williams Jr., NAS Meridian’s second commanding officer and the recipient of the Navy Cross.

• Regional Counterdrug Training Academy: The RCTA was established in 1992 and is currently operating at two sites onboard NAS Meridian. Operated by the Mississippi National Guard, it provides street-level counterdrug training to civilian law enforcement officers primarily from the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee and Georgia. The commandant is Lt. Col. Daniel Pepper.

• Navy Occupational Support Center: Following the closure of Naval Reserve Center Jackson, Naval Reserve Center Meridian opened on July 15, 2000, and had its first drill weekend two weeks later. The Reserve Center was renamed this year and is currently headed by Lt. Cmdr. Daniel Ogden.

• Marine training: On Aug. 18, 2000, Marine Aviation Training Support Group was re-designated Marine Aviation Training Support Squadron 1. On average, 675 entry-level Marines are trained each year in one of four military occupational specialty courses. Maj. Gerald Boos is the commanding officer.

• Hurricanes: September 2004 brought Hurricane Ivan to the East Mississippi Area. Nearly 1,000 evacuees from the Gulf Coast found haven at NAS Meridian. McCain Field also provided refueling services for 100 H-57’s from Whiting Field in Florida that we going to and from their evacuation site in Millington, Tenn.

August 2005 brought Hurricane Katrina to the Gulf Coast and more than 1,000 military evacuees and their family members to NAS Meridian.

The station also hosted FEMA after Hurricane Katrina, which set up its Mississippi Operational Area onboard the base. FEMA received and dispatched 3,000 trucks loaded with supplies during their relief efforts. The U.S. Public Health Service utilized half of Hangar 1 to establish a 500-bed federal emergency contingency unit. It was designed to provide non-acute care for patients transferred from hospitals to our south, where beds were needed for more critically ill patients.

During Hurricane Katrina, NAS Meridian sustained roughly $15 million in damage.



Penny Randall works in the area of public relations for Naval Air Station Meridian.



UPCOMING

Naval Air Station Meridian is in the planning stages for an air show in April 2007. The base’s last air show was in April 2004, when the Navy’s Blue Angels performed for a crowd of more than 50,000 spectators over a two-day span.



DID YOU KNOW?

The main base of Naval Air Station Meridian occupies more than 8,000 acres, with an additional 4,000 acres at Joe Williams Field and the target facility SEARAY. The size of NAS Meridian may be compared to that of other major naval air stations — such as the 5,000-acre NAS Pensacola, Fla.