A HISTORY OF BUCKLEY AIR FORCE BASE SATELLITES TO
Buckley Air Force Base has established itself as one of the most prominent economic and physical landmarks in the history of Aurora. From its early days as a bombing range for Lowry Field, to its current role in providing the nation with strategic missile warning defense as well as serving as a home for the Colorado Air National Guard’s 140th Wing, Buckley Air Force Base has been a ubiquitous, if sometimes mysterious, feature of the city’s past.
Credits
Buckley Air Force Base
Bret Hoffberger, 460th Civil Engineering Squadron Cultural Resources Specialist
Christopher McCune, 460th Space Wing Historian
SrA Madison Ratley, 460th Space Wing/Public Affairs Colorado Air National Guard—Air Heritage Committee
Melinda Estrada Crowe
History Colorado
BUCKLEY FIELD 1938-1946
Buckley began its life in January 1938 when the City of Denver purchased the first parcel of a planned 64,000 acres for a bombing range to serve the new Army Air Corps Technical School being constructed on the site of the former Phipps Sanatorium in Denver. The Army also received 960 acres a few miles east of the school to use as an auxiliary landing field and ammunition depot for aircraft at Lowry Field. Initially called Lowry II, the site would later be named Buckley Field.
The advent of World War II in September 1939 coincided with a build-up of military activity at both Lowry and the bombing range as the United States prepared for a possible entry into the conflict. Because of the workload at the now-4,500 acre auxiliary field, the War Department designated it as a separate installation in 1941, under the authority of the United States Army Air Force Technical Training Command. On June 14, 1941, it became Buckley Field, named after Longmont resident and World War I pilot Lt. John Harold Buckley, who died Sept. 27, 1918, during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.
Commanded by Brig. Gen. Lawrence A. Lawson, Buckley served primarily as an armament school, training students in the repair and maintenance of .30 caliber and .50 caliber machine guns and 20 mm and 37 mm cannons. As the war progressed, its role expanded to include basic military training, chemical warfare training and arctic survival, which took place at Echo Lake near the summit of Mount Evans. During one six-month period in 1943, the base produced 30,000 armorers, 10,000 basic trainees and arctic survival graduates.
Aerial photograph showing Buckley Field, Lowry Field and Stapleton Airport, c. 1944 Buckley History Department
Armament training at Buckley Field, 1943
Lt. John Harold Buckley, c. 1917
Buckley History Department
BUCKLEY FIELD
1938-1946
The base contained a detachment of the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps, which handled secretarial, nursing and mechanical jobs on base. Similar to other women’s military and paramilitary organizations during the war, these positions covered personnel shortages due to men being called up or volunteering to enlist. Buckley also contained two segregated African-American units, the 86th Aviation Squadron and 940th Quartermaster Detachment. These units provided field services such as aircraft and vehicle maintenance. They were housed in their own barracks and possessed separate mess halls and a post exchange. Like most segregated units during World War II, they were commanded by white officers.
Buckley grew to become a miniature city in its own right, complete with a dance hall, gymnasium, library, two churches, two movie theaters, bank and 400-bed hospital and dental clinic. It sponsored athletic teams in several sports to compete against teams from local schools and other military installations. A notable training feature was the “Burma Road,” a two-mile cross-country course developed by former Colorado College football coach Capt. John J. Reid.
Following the end of World War II in September 1945, Buckley reverted to an auxiliary air field for Lowry and was nearly closed by the War Department in 1946. The activation of the 120th Fighter Squadron in April 1945 under the 59th Fighter Wing (later the 140th Fighter Wing), and migration of the Colorado Air National Guard (COANG) from its former headquarters near Stapleton Airport to Buckley, granted the base a reprieve and paved the way for its takeover by the Navy.
First graduating class of the 86th Aviation Squadron, 1943
Obstacle course at Buckley Field, 1943
Interior of Post Exchange at Buckley Field, 1943
AMOS ESTRADA
1920-1944
On Aug 27, 1943, Amos re-enlisted in the Air Corps, now the Army Air Forces, as an aviation cadet with the hopes of becoming a pilot. As luck would have it, he was assigned to Buckley Field, which provided basic training and qualification testing for aviation cadets during this period. Despite performing well, even qualifying as “Expert” in marksmanship, Amos was ultimately disqualified due to color-blindness and subsequently transferred to training as a tail gunner for bombers.
Sergeant Amos F. Estrada was born on April 24, 1920, in Brighton, Colo. to David Estrada and Fedelina Garcia. Fedelina and her third husband settled in Aurora with her two sons during Amos’ fifth-grade year. A star athlete at William Smith High School, Amos lettered in basketball and was captain of the football team. After graduating in 1938, Amos enlisted in the Army Air Corps from August 1938 to August 1941, serving as a mechanic at Lowry Field. While stationed at Lowry, Amos met Lillian Keller, the daughter of German-descended Russian immigrants, and the two were married on May 21, 1941. After his enlistment ended, the couple moved to Los Angeles where their daughter, Melinda Ann, was born in September 1942.
In May 1944, Amos was assigned to the 322d Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) in Bassingbourn, England. On June 21, 1944, shortly after his arrival in England, his bomber group was attacked by 50 German fighters on a mission near Ruhlow, Germany. His plane was shot down, and although the crew saw him bail out, Amos ultimately perished and his body was recovered near Sponholz. Initially buried in a community cemetery in Ruhlow, in 1949 Amos was interred at the Ardennes American Cemetery in Neuville-en-Cordoz, Belgium.
Amos with daughter, Melinda, at home in California, 1943
Melinda Estrada Crowe
Amos and Lillian Estrada at home in California, 1943
Melinda Estrada Crowe
Citation of Honor for Sgt. Amos Estrada, 1944
Amos F. Estrada Papers Mss.02630, History Colorado
Sgt. Amos F. Estrada, 1943
Amos F. Estrada Papers Mss.02630, History Colorado
Naval air Station-Denver 1947-1959
In mid-1946, the Navy needed an inland Naval Air Reserve station to serve as a cross-country refueling and maintenance stop for its aircraft, along with a facility to train Naval Reserve sailors from New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nebraska and the western Dakotas. The presence of over 800 ex-Navy personnel in the Denver area interested in joining the Reserves solidified the decision. Operations for the training center commenced in February 1947, and the Navy officially took over the base in September and renamed it Naval Air Station-Denver.
Following World War II, the return of veterans exacerbated a postwar housing shortage. NAS-Denver provided a temporary solution for veterans and their families with the establishment of five villages in the base’s former barracks and hospital buildings between 1947 and 1953. Each village had its own informal council and an elected mayor to oversee all the villages. Rent cost $30 a month, and the villages housed about 230 families and over 800 children at their occupational height. Initially very sparse with little in the way of proper sanitation or running water, the City of Denver eventually installed stoves, sinks and playground equipment throughout the village units.
Buckley began to take its place in the air and space defense network with the establishment of a 27,000-watt radar intercept station on July 1, 1957. Controlled by the 137th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron and with a range of 200 miles, it served as a link in the Air Defense Command radar net to warn of approaching Soviet bombers.
Naval Air Station-Denver flightline, c. 1950 Buckley History Department
Naval Air Station-Denver’s 10th anniversary, 1957 Buckley History Department
Naval Air Station-Denver with the veteran villages in the background, 1950 Buckley History Department
Naval air Station-Denver
1947-1959
Building 909, a closed gable steel truss hangar, was constructed for COANG in 1956 at a cost of approximately $750,000 in response to the need for additional air capabilities. The hangar served as a maintenance hangar for aircraft as well as being the main entry and exit facility for all Guard and active duty deployments in the state. The two-story hangar is 61,327 square feet in size and roughly rectangular in shape. Besides providing overarching mission support, Building 909 housed the Minute Men, an informally organized precision demonstration team that became the Air National Guard’s official team from October 1956 to June 1959.
With the end of World War II and the onset of the Korean War, air superiority and air support during combat became a valuable strategy to oppose foreign threats. This lead to a growing need to increase America's air power and maintain a level of air supremacy required to deter foreign aggression. COANG transitioned to the jet age at NAS-Denver with the arrival of F-80 Shooting Stars and F-86 Sabres.
In more recent years, Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush landed at Buckley AFB and made appearances at Building 909. The hangar began to undergo renovations in 2016, with the primary intention of returning the exterior to its original design. This will also improve Building 909’s function and efficiency for the 13 units that will be housed there. Building 909 is a highly visible facility that is tied deeply to the history of Buckley and will continue to serve as critical role in supporting the mission of the installation.
Building 909, the hangar used by COANG, c. 1956 Buckley History Department
“Minute Men” flying team, c. 1958 Buckley History Department
Flightline in front of Building 909, c. 1958 Buckley History Department
Buckley Air National Guard Base
1960-2000
COANG witnessed many changes during the 1960s, including increasing mission requirements and a marked increase in air traffic. Brig. Gen. Walt Williams served as the 140th Wing Commander and led the unit through activations such as the Berlin Crisis in 1961 and the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. During this same period, former wing commander Maj. Gen. Joe C. Moffitt was made the Adjutant General of Colorado, the nation’s first rated Air Guardsman to fill the role of the top military officer.
By the late 1950s, the Navy began consolidating operations at fewer air stations, leading to the decommissioning of NAS-Denver on June 30, 1959, and its transfer to COANG. The base was temporarily named Buckley Air National Guard Field and then renamed Buckley Air National Guard Base (ANGB) in April 1960. This made Buckley the first stand-alone air national guard base in the United States. The period between 1960 and 2000 saw both Buckley ANGB and the country experience dramatic social, technological and geopolitical changes that affected the fabric of operations on base.
One of the most unusual missions ever hosted at Buckley was the presence of Titan I missile silos on the former Lowry Bombing and Gunnery Range, with additional silo complexes located north of Deer Trail and southeast of Elizabeth. First constructed in the spring of 1959, each complex covered 30-60 acres and contained three silos 160 feet deep and 40 feet in diameter with one missile in each silo. The complexes contained a powerhouse, control center, radio antennas and water supply wells and were operated by the 724th and 725th Strategic Missile Squadrons out of Lowry AFB from 1962 – 1965.
Titan Missile construction, 1959
Buckley Air National Guard Field front gate, 1960 Buckley History Department
Maj. Gen. Joe C. Moffitt, c. 1965
Buckley Air National Guard Base
1960-2000
The 140 TFW gained a reputation for enthusiastically volunteering for deployments, with the most notable taking place between 1968 and 1969 at Phan Rang Air Base, South Vietnam. The wing’s 120th Tactical Fighter Squadron became the first Air National Guard organization to be called up for combat as a unit. Flying F-100s, they served primarily as close air support, along with aircraft escort missions. The public controversy surrounding the U.S. involvement in Vietnam affected the 140 TFW as well. Maj. Gen. John France observed that following deployment, pilots had to change into civilian clothes when going to dinner off base to avoid possible hostile interactions with the public.
The 140th Air Defense Wing assumed host responsibilities for Buckley upon the base’s transfer to the Guard. In 1961, the organization redesignated as the 140th Tactical Fighter Wing (TFW), and its fighters were upgraded to the F-100 Super Sabres. This platform served the 140 TFW through the early 1970s.
In 1969, Buckley was chosen to host a new, classified communications facility that came to be known as the Aerospace Data Facility. Established as part of a complex to track and monitor satellite communications, it grew in 1971 to include the Continental United States (CONUS) Ground Station which operated the Defense Support Program (DSP) satellite constellation. DSP provided initial warning data on strategic missile launches and reported nuclear detonations and other atmospheric explosions via satellites in geosynchronous earth orbit. The construction of this complex included what is today one of Aurora’s most iconic landmarks, the satellite radomes known colloquially as “the big golf balls.” The DSP system made its mark during Operation Desert Storm in 1991 when it was employed to locate and track Iraqi Scud missile launches.
120th TFS at Phan Rang Air Base, c. 1968
Radome construction at Buckley ANGB, c. 1973 Buckley History Department
Loading ammunition on the F-100, c. 1965 Buckley History Department
Buckley Air National Guard Base
1960-2000
In 1973, the 140 TFW switched from its F-100s to the A-7 Avenger, a close-air support platform. One of its most notable events was winning the Air Force-wide “Gunsmoke” air-to-ground gunnery meet in 1981. By the end of 1991, the 140 TFW was redesignated as the 140th Wing and transitioned its fleet to the F-16 Fighting Falcon.
As Aurora grew and its boundaries shifted, the responsibilities of Buckley, the 140 TFW, and its tenant units evolved and adapted along with it. Residential and commercial encroachment around Lowry AFB forced flying operations to end there in July 1966 and shift to Buckley, leaving it the lone military installation in the Denver metro area with a secured flight line.
Base realignment and closure actions beginning in the late 1980s profoundly affected Buckley and the city of Aurora. The closure of Lowry AFB, Fitzsimons Army Medical Center and the Rocky Mountain Arsenal near Stapleton Airport left Buckley as the last active military installation in the Denver metro area. Its survival ensured a steady growth of tenant and partner units encompassing all service branches and some civilian security organizations with a need to operate in a classified environment.
Buckley ANGB front gate, c. 1975 Buckley History Department
A7 flying over the mountains, c. 1980 Buckley History Department
COANG Gunsmoke team, c. 1982
Buckley Air Force Base
2000-Present
Initially the 821st Space Group, a geographically separate unit from the 21st Space Wing at Peterson AFB in Colorado Springs, took over installation host duties from the 140 WG while operating the DSP mission. Air Force Space Command quickly established the 460th Air Base Wing (ABW) on October 1, 2001, to provide base support functions, leaving the 21st Space Wing to oversee the space operations
The closures of Lowry and Fitzsimons placed a great deal of strain on the 140 WG, as the growth of Buckley’s tenant units and mission partners—particularly 6,000 active-duty personnel that had been serviced by those bases— stretched its support resources to the limit. Governor Bill Owens and the COANG asked Secretary of the Air Force F. Whitten Peters to assist in a practical long-term solution. This led to the conversion of Buckley ANGB to Buckley Air Force Base on October 1, 2000, the first new Air Force base in 19 years.
The 460 ABW quickly set about reforming the Buckley landscape. Dated buildings were replaced with facilities that could meet the needs of a modern Air Force base, such as a new base exchange and commissary, wing headquarters, enlisted dormitories and fitness center.
Buckley AFB front gate, 2001 Buckley History Department
“Mile High Militia” F16s, c. 2005 Buckley History Department
Buckley AFB Fitness Center, 2016 U.S. Air Force
Buckley Air Force Base
2000-Present
On August 19, 2004, Air Force Space Command consolidated the space operations and base support functions at Buckley under the redesignated 460th Space Wing. Since that time, DSP has begun to give way to the new Space-Based Infrared System of missile warning satellites and scanner payloads, while continuing to build up base infrastructure with a new chapel, lodging, child care centers, base security complex and on-base housing for families.
In addition to hosting tenants representing all five branches of service, Buckley AFB houses the Aerospace Defense Facility and Air Reserve Personnel Center and continues to provide a home for the 140 WG to operate its flying mission while providing a secure landing site in the Denver area for our nation’s leaders when they visit the state of Colorado. It remains an important economic driver for the city of Aurora, providing nearly $1 billion in financial impact every year and over 11,000 military, civilian and contractor jobs.
Aerial of Buckley AFB, 2009 Buckley History Department
460th Operations Support Squadron satellite engineer in front of satellite, 2017
U.S. Air Force
Team Buckley and local community leaders, 2015 U.S. Air Force
Replacement of radome antenna at Buckley AFB, 2016 U.S. Air Force
