Tulsa Air National Guard Base


 * See: Tulsa International Airport for civil airport information

Tulsa Air National Guard Base is the home base of the Oklahoma Air National Guard 138th Fighter Wing.

Overview
The 138th Fighter Wing (FW) of the Oklahoma Air National Guard (OANG) occupies 81 acre on the Tulsa International Airport, located approximately 7 mi northeast of downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma. The unit currently flies the F-16 Falcon. The 138th FW occupies 15 administrative, 24 industrial, and 5 services buildings totaling approximately 327,000 sqft. There are two construction projects in progress that when complete (both estimated to be complete by Jan 2002) will increase the base's building square footage by 32,500 sqft. There are currently 328 full-time personnel and unit-training drills conducted once each month result in a surge of up to a total of 1150 personnel.

An Army Aviation Support facility supplies and services a fleet of more than 20 helicopters.

The federal mission of the 138th Fighter Wing is to maintain combat forces ready for mobilization, deployment and employment as needed to support national security objectives. Additionally, its state mission is to support the governor of the state of Oklahoma with units organized, equipped and trained in the proteection of life and property, and preservation of peace, order and public safety under competent orders of authority.

After conversion to the F-16, the 138th Fighter Wing has participated in both Operation Provide Comfort and Operation Northern Watch enforcing the No-Fly Zone in Northern Iraq. Additionally, the laser targeting pod system for precision guided monitoring has been incorporated into the unit mission.

F-16s, belonging to the 138FW, Tulsa, OK fly General Purpose missions. The unit is doing a lot of Night Vision Goggle training. Rivers MOA is scheduled by the 138FW but is a long way for them to get to. Eureka MOA is more available now since the 184FW converted from fighters to bombers, freeing up the airspace for other users. Smoky Hill range is the range most commonly used by the 138FW for their air-to-ground training requirements and it also has the advantage of Bison MOA adjacent to the range. Razorback Range in Arkansas and Falcon Range in Oklahoma are used occasionally. The 138th Fighter Wing deployed to Turkey in 1996 in support of Operation Northern Watch

Air Force Plant 3
Air Force Plant 3 is adjacent to Tulsa International Airport, northeast of Tulsa. The site covers 642 acres (of which the government owns 52%) and includes 38,00000 sqft of floor space (of which the government owns 73%). The plant was shared by McDonnell Douglas Corporation and North American Aviation Operations (Rockwell International).

In 1940, the City of Tulsa purchased land adjacent to the municipal airport for an aircraft plant and, in 1941, Douglas Aircraft Company began operations. From 1941 to 1945, the plant was run by the Douglas Aircraft Co. and used to manufacture, assemble, and modify bombers and other airplanes for the Army Air Corps. Production was suspended in 1945, and the plant was used by Tinker AFB for storage from 1945 to 1950. The plant was reactivated in 1950 to manufacture B-47 Stratojets. In 1953, manufacture of the twin-jet Douglas Bomber (B-66) was begun.

In the early 1960s McDonnell Douglas began to use the plant to perform maintenance on private aircraft, including the B-52, KC-135 and the F-4. In 1962, Rockwell International moved in to share the plant with McDonnell Douglas, leasing 30 percent of the plant to manufacture aerospace products. McDonnell Douglas Aircraft Company continued to operate the remaining 70 percent for maintenance of military and commercial aircraft as well as for the manufacture of aircraft components.

During the 1980s McDonnell Douglas' s facilities manufactured components for the F-15 (aft fuselage, pylons, launchers, and external fuel tank), F-18 (pylons, launchers, and external tank), and AV-8 (external tanks). Rockwell' s facilities produced components for the B-1B (over-wing fairings, wing flaps, and doors) and the space shuttle.

McDonnell Douglas terminated its lease in June 1994, Rockwell remained. In September 1994, the City of Tulsa became the primary tenant, subleasing 20 percent of the plant to Rockwell; the remaining 80 percent was mothballed. As of 1996, the facility was scheduled to be sold.

The City of Tulsa subsequently subleased additional space to Rockwell (Boeing), and to air freight and warehousing operations. The City of Tulsa has responsibility for facility maintenance and environmental management of major systems and operations; Rockwell retained responsibility for permits and waste management activities relative to its production-specific operations. The Tulsa District Corps of Engineers was the caretaker for that portion of the plant in cold storage. A Quitclaim Deed transferring the title of the property to the City of Tulsa, OK, was executed on 6 December 1999. The City of Tulsa is now owner and operator of the property.