Editing Tyndall Air Force Base (section)

==History==

'''Tyndall Field''' first opened its doors on December 7, 1941, as a gunnery range.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Roberts |first1=Ted |title=Happy birthday, Tyndall! |url=https://www.tyndall.af.mil/News/Commentaries/Display/Article/669665/happy-birthday-tyndall/ |website=tyndall.af.mil |access-date=1 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207233933/https://www.tyndall.af.mil/News/Commentaries/Display/Article/669665/happy-birthday-tyndall/ |archive-date=2022-12-07 |language=en |date=9 December 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref> The airfield was named in honor of 1st Lt Frank Benjamin Tyndall.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oG8eAAAAIBAJ&pg=3887%2C1204380 | title=Tyndall | work=Daytona Beach Morning Journal | date=4 December 1966 | access-date=3 November 2015 | page=5}}</ref> With the establishment of the [[United States Air Force]] in 1947, the facility was renamed "Tyndall Air Force Base" on 13 January 1948.
In December 1940, a site board determined that Flexible Gunnery School No. 9 would be located {{convert|12|mi|km}} southeast of [[Panama City, Florida]], on East Peninsula. On 6 May 1941, [[U.S. Army]] and local dignitaries held an official ground breaking for the school. Panama City's mayor, Harry Fannin, dug the first spade full of sand, and Colonel Warren Maxwell, Tyndall's first commander, wielded the first ax on the stubborn palmetto plants, so common on the East Peninsula. The site was covered with pine and palmetto trees, scrub brush, and swamps. Bulldozers worked around the clock to clear the brush and fill in swamps.<ref name="mul5">{{cite web|url=https://www.tyndall.af.mil/About/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/314998/tyndall-heritage/|title=Tyndall Heritage Factsheet|date=15 November 2012|publisher=Tyndall Air Force Base|access-date=21 October 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161021195117/http://www.tyndall.af.mil/AboutUs/FactSheets/Display/tabid/6654/Article/314998/tyndall-heritage.aspx|archive-date=21 October 2016}}</ref>  The base also subsumed the settlements of Cromanton, San Blas, Redfish Point, Auburn and Farmdale.<ref>Mike Fender. [https://www.newsherald.com/story/news/2021/12/24/tyndall-air-force-base-panama-city-named-after-florida-native/8968732002/ "Who was Tyndall Air Force Base named after?"] Panama City ''News Herald''. 24 December 2021. Retrieved 25 December 2021.</ref>

[[File:Tyn-lt-tyndall.jpg|thumb|Lieutenant Francis B. Tyndall (1894–1930)|alt=|left]]
Although construction was well underway, the base lacked a name. Congressman [[Bob Sikes]] suggested naming the school in memory of Lieutenant Francis B. Tyndall. A native of [[Sewall's Point, Florida]], Lieutenant Tyndall was a fighter pilot during [[World War I]], [[Silver Star]] recipient, and commander of the [[22nd Aero Squadron]], who was credited with shooting down six [[German Empire|German]] planes well behind enemy lines in 1918. While inspecting Army fields near [[Mooresville, North Carolina]], on 15 July 1930, Tyndall's plane, [[Curtiss-Wright Corporation|Curtiss]] [[P-1 Hawk|P-1F Hawk]], ''28–61'', crashed, killing him instantly. On 13 June 1941, the [[United States Department of War|War Department]] officially named the new installation Tyndall Field.<ref name="mul5"/>

On 7 December 1941, the first of 2,000 troops arrived at Tyndall Field. The first class of gunnery students began in February 1942. Although construction was incomplete, instructors and students began preparing for the first class. The first class of 40 gunnery students began on 23 February 1942. Of the thousands of students passing through the Tyndall gates, the most famous was actor [[Clark Gable]], a student here as a [[U.S. Army Air Forces]] lieutenant during late 1942 and part of January 1943. Foreign student training began at Tyndall in 1943 with [[French Air Force]] gunnery students being the first and Chinese students following later that year.<ref name="mul5"/>

===Cold War===
[[File:Tyn-wwII.jpg|thumb|Base entrance during World War II|alt=|left]]
When [[World War II]] ended, Tyndall Field was demobilized. The base fell under the control of the [[Tactical Air Command]] (TAC) in 1946, but this only lasted three months, as Tyndall became part of the [[Air University (United States Air Force)|Air University]] (AU). Tyndall Field was subsequently renamed as Tyndall Air Force Base when the U.S. Air Force (USAF) became a separate service in 1947.<ref name="mul5"/>

In September 1950, Tyndall became an [[Air Training Command]] (ATC) installation, designated as the USAF Pilot Instructor School. The base also trained [[Ground-controlled interception|Ground Controlled Intercept]] (GCI) operators as well as interceptor pilots & flight crews for the [[Air Defense Command]] (ADC). Under the auspices of this training system, GCI trainees would direct [[F-51 Mustang|TF-51H Mustangs]] against "enemy" [[A-26 Invader]]s. In late 1952, both aircraft were replaced by Lockheed [[T-33 Shooting Star]] jet trainers. Airborne radar operator students would begin their training aboard radar-equipped [[B-25|TB-25 Mitchells]], then transition to either Lockheed [[F-94 Starfire]] or Northrop [[F-89 Scorpion]] aircraft. North American [[F-86F]] and [[F-86D]]s were eventually added to the training program as ADC units were equipped with them.<ref name="mul5"/>

In September 1957, Tyndall became an Air Defense Command, later [[Aerospace Defense Command]], base until October 1979 when ADC was inactivated and all its bases and units transferred to Tactical Air Command. Tyndall was headquarters of the ADC [[73d Air Division]] in the late 1950s, and the [[NORAD]] [[Southeast Air Defense Sector]] from 1960 to 1979.  ADC's [[20th Air Division]] based at Tyndall was responsible for the air defense of virtually all of the southeastern United States during the 1960s and 1970s, while ADC's [[23d Air Division]], also based at Tyndall, was responsible for air defense forces in the upper midwest and south central United States.<ref name="mul5"/><ref>USAF Aerospace Defense Command publication, The Interceptor, January 1979 (Volume 21, Number 1)</ref><ref>[http://www.afhra.af.mil/organizationalrecords USAFHRA Organizational Records] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120223230713/http://www.afhra.af.mil/organizationalrecords/ |date=23 February 2012 }}</ref>

====Fighter-Interceptor base====
[[File:Air Defense Weapons Center F-101F 57-277 1972.jpg|thumb|McDonnell F-101 Voodoo at Tyndall AFB in August 1972.|alt=|left]]
In the late 1950s into the 1960s, the base transitioned into the [[North American F-100 Super Sabre]], [[F-101]]B, [[F-102]]A and [[F-102|TF-102B]], [[F-104]] Starfighter, and the [[F-106]]A and B aircraft, training interceptor pilots for ADC assignments. The base served as a stopover and refueling point for ADC aircraft deployed to Florida during the [[Cuban Missile Crisis]], to be redeployed to other bases in the southeast shortly thereafter. The base maintained an alert facility from which the [[F-101 Voodoo]] and [[F-102 Delta Dagger]] interceptors were scrambled to intercept unknown aircraft. Tyndall shared training for the F-102 aircraft with [[Perrin AFB]], [[Texas]], until Perrin's closure in mid-1971.<ref name="mul5" />

====Radar station 1956–present====
On 1 July 1956 Tyndall AFB became the station operating for the third phase of the ADC mobile radar program, designated as '''TM-198'''. Activated by the 678th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron, Tyndall became operational to support the [[CIM-10 Bomarc]] surface-to-air missile program at [[Hurlburt Field]]. In 1958 the site was operating with an [[AN/FPS-20]] search radar and a pair of [[AN/FPS-6]] height-finder sets to support the 4751st Air Defense Missile Squadron.

In 1962 the search radar was upgraded and re-designated as an [[AN/FPS-64]]. On 31 July 1963, the site was redesignated as NORAD ID Z-198. During 1965 Tyndall AFB joined the [[Semi Automatic Ground Environment]] (SAGE) system, feeding data to DC-09 at [[Gunter AFB]], Alabama. After joining, the squadron was re-designated as the [[678th Radar Squadron]] (SAGE) on 1 June 1965. Also in 1965, Tyndall became a joint-use facility with the [[Federal Aviation Administration]] (FAA).

It also received a [[Back-Up Interceptor Control]] (BUIC) II, and later BUIC III, capability to perform command and control functions. Tyndall retained this function until the 1980s. On 1 March 1970, the 678th
was redesignated as the [[678th Air Defense Group]].

In addition to the main facility, Tyndall operated two [[AN/FPS-14]] Gap Filler sites:
* Carrabelle, FL (TM-198A): {{Coord|29|51|57|N|084|37|53|W|name=TM-198A|display=inline}}
* Eglin AFB, FL (TM-198B): {{Coord|30|33|14|N|086|45|36|W|name=TM-198B|display=inline}}

[[File:F-106-adtac-1979.jpg|thumb|Convair [[F-106]] Delta Dart at  Tyndall AFB, 1979.]]
On 1 October 1979, this site came under [[Tactical Air Command]] jurisdiction with the inactivation of Aerospace Defense Command and the formation of [[ADTAC]]. On 1 March 1983 the 678th Air Defense Group was inactivated and Tyndall became the home of the NORAD 23rd ADS (Air Defense Squadron) and operated the Southeast Regional Operations Control Center (SE ROCC), later renamed Sector Operations Control Center (SOCC).

The height-finder radar, modified as an [[AN/FPS-116]] c. 1977, was removed c. 1988. In 1995 an [[AN/FPS-64]]A was performing search duties. The site now{{when|date=August 2019}} operates an [[ARSR-4]] search radar under FAA control as part of the [[Joint Surveillance System]] (JSS) as site "J-11".<ref name="mul5"/><ref>''A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization 1946–1980'', by Lloyd H. Cornett and Mildred W. Johnson, Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado</ref><ref>Winkler, David F. (1997), ''Searching the skies: the legacy of the United States Cold War defense radar program''. Prepared for United States Air Force Headquarters Air Combat Command.</ref>

===Reorganization, 1991–2018===
In 1991, Tyndall underwent a reorganization in response to the [[United States Department of Defense|Department of Defense]] efforts to streamline defense management. Headquarters, [[First Air Force]], what had predominantly been the Numbered Air Force for the [[Air National Guard]], moved from [[Langley AFB]], [[Virginia]], to Tyndall. With the disestablishment of [[Tactical Air Command]] (TAC) in 1992, Tyndall was temporarily transferred to the [[Air Combat Command]] (ACC) and then to the [[Air Education and Training Command]] (AETC) in July 1993.<ref name="mul5" />

The 21st century proved to be momentous for Tyndall AFB, because it was selected as the first home of the Air Force's newest aircraft, the [[F-22 Raptor]]. In 2002 the [[Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force|Chief of Staff of the Air Force]] changed the organizational structure of the 325th Fighter Wing from an objective type wing to a combat organization. This organization moved all maintenance activities under the 325th Maintenance Group and all support activities under the 325th Mission Support Group.<ref name="mul5" />

Today, Tyndall is the home of the 325th Fighter Wing, providing training for all F-22A Raptor pilots. In 2012, with the gaining of a combat-coded F-22 squadron, Tyndall AFB returned to Air Combat Command, after a 19-year tenure in AETC.<ref name="mul5" />

===Hurricane Michael, 2018===
On 10 October 2018 [[Hurricane Michael]] made landfall as a [[Category 5 hurricane]] at [[Mexico Beach, Florida|Mexico Beach]] just to the east of the base.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/NASA_SPoRT/status/1050069729837240320|title=Hurricane Michael Hurricane Michael now making landfall|publisher=NASA SPoRT|access-date=10 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fox10tv.com/news/category-hurricane-michael-makes-landfall-on-florida-panhandle/article_15de442a-cc64-11e8-9950-9394afe61352.html|title=Category 4 Hurricane Michael makes landfall on Florida Panhandle|website=fox10TV.com|access-date=10 October 2018}}</ref> A [[weather station]] near the base recorded a wind gust of {{convert|130|mph}} before it failed, according to the [[National Hurricane Center]] advisory shortly after landfall.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brown |first1=Daniel |title=Hurricane Michael Intermediate Advisory Number 16A |url=https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2018/al14/al142018.public_a.016.shtml? |publisher=[[National Hurricane Center]] |access-date=10 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181010224819/https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2018/al14/al142018.public_a.016.shtml |archive-date=10 October 2018 |date=10 October 2018 |quote=A wind gust of 130 mph (210 mph{{sic}}) was recently reported at a University of Florida/Weatherflow observing site near Tyndall Air Force Base before the instrument failed.}}</ref> The [[National Weather Service]], in a preliminary report released later in the month, stated that the maximum sustained wind speed at the base was {{convert|75|kn}}{{efn|The report contains a note that "anemometer height is 10&nbsp;meters and wind averaging is 2&nbsp;minutes". The sustained wind speeds in tropical cyclones are [[Maximum sustained wind|usually measured by 1-minute average wind speed]] at a height of 10&nbsp;meters (33&nbsp;ft) above the ground by the National Hurricane Center, while other parts of the world use the average over a 10-minute period.}} and the maximum wind gust was {{convert|121|kn}}, both from 60°.<ref>{{cite web |title=Post Tropical Cyclone Report... Hurricane Michael |url=https://forecast.weather.gov/product.php?site=NWS&issuedby=TAE&product=PSH&format=CI&version=8&glossary=0 |publisher=National Weather Service |access-date=31 October 2018 |date=26 October 2018}}</ref> However, in a later interview with ''[[Aviation Week & Space Technology|Aviation Week]]'' on 27 October 2018'','' Commander Air Combat Command general [[James M. Holmes]] stated that, based on other data, the actual peak wind speed was closer to 172&nbsp;mph.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/24529/usaf-had-faulty-data-about-whether-hangars-full-of-f-22s-could-survive-hurricane-michael|title=USAF Had Faulty Data About Whether Hangars Full of F-22s Could Survive Hurricane Michael|last=Trevithick|first=Joseph|work=The Drive|access-date=2018-11-01|language=en-US}}</ref> Ninety-three Air Force personnel remained on the base during the storm, while the base's remaining 3,600 personnel and their families (a total of over 11,000 individuals) were evacuated beforehand.<ref name="WSJ Michael">{{cite news |last1=Calvert |first1=Scott |last2=Kamp |first2=Jon |title=Air Force Surveys Damage at Florida Base After Hurricane Michael |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/after-force-surveys-damage-at-florida-base-after-hurricane-michael-1539642222 |access-date=18 October 2018 |work=Wall Street Journal |date=15 October 2018}}</ref> Air Force officials described the damage to the base from the hurricane as "catastrophic," with all of the base's facilities being declared "unlivable".<ref name="unlivable">{{cite web|url=https://www.military.com/spousebuzz/2018/10/15/tyndall-air-force-base-unlivable-how-you-can-help.html|title=Tyndall Air Force Base Unlivable: How You Can Help|first=Amy|last=Bushatz|date=15 October 2018}}</ref><ref name="pcs">{{cite web|url=https://www.military.com/daily-news/2018/10/17/many-families-will-never-return-tyndall-after-hurricane-officials-say.html|title=Many Families Will Never Return to Tyndall After Hurricane, Officials Say|first=Richard|last=Sisk|date=17 October 2018}}</ref> While efforts to repair the base were underway, as of 12 October 2018 there was no confirmed time of completion on the repairs, according to 325th Fighter Wing Commander Col Brian Laidlaw. Airmen assigned to the 325th Fighter Wing were told they would be away from the installation for a significant amount of time.<ref name="Fox Michael">{{cite news |title='Widespread, Catastrophic Damage': Every Building at Tyndall AFB Totaled By Hurricane Michael |url=http://insider.foxnews.com/2018/10/12/hurricane-michael-trashes-tyndall-air-force-base-bay-florida |access-date=18 October 2018 |work=Fox News |date=12 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/10/20/658512648/it-will-be-years-before-life-at-tyndall-air-force-base-returns-to-normal|title='It Will Be Years' Before Life at Tyndall Air Force Base Returns To Normal|website=NPR |date=20 October 2018 |last1=Morris |first1=Amanda }}</ref>
Thirty-three of Tyndall´s 55 [[Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor|F-22]] stealth fighters were flown to [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]] near Dayton, Ohio before the storm.<ref name="NYT Michael">{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/11/us/air-force-hurricane-michael-damage.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage  |author=Dave Philipps |title=Tyndall Air Force Base a 'Complete Loss' Amid Questions About Stealth Fighters |newspaper=New York Times |date=11 October 2018  |access-date=12 October 2018}}</ref> Many of the seventeen F-22s which were left behind became damaged.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/17/us/tyndall-afb-damage-hurricane-michael.html?action=click&module=In%20Other%20News&pgtype=Homepage&action=click&module=News&pgtype=Homepage| author=Dave Philipps |title=Exposed by Michael: Climate Threat to Warplanes at Coastal Bases |newspaper=New York Times| date=17 October 2018 |access-date=18 October 2018}}</ref> The extent of the damage to the planes was then unknown.<ref name="USAToday Michael">{{cite news |last1=Gabriel |first1=Melissa |title=Hurricane Michael: Fate of costly stealth fighter jets at Tyndall Air Force Base still unknown |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2018/10/17/hurricane-michael-tyndall-air-force-base-f-22-raptors-damage-uncertain/1670962002/ |access-date=18 October 2018 |work=Pensacola News Journal |agency=USA Today |date=17 October 2018}}</ref><ref name="NYT Michael" /> According to US Senator [[Bill Nelson]] and Congressman [[Matt Gaetz]], the aircraft left behind were not in a condition to be flown.<ref name="USAToday Michael" /> A spokesperson for the Air Force said that none of the F-22s were destroyed and that they "believe at this time that they are all repairable."<ref name="Vice Michael">{{cite news |last1=Ockerman |first1=Emma |title=The Air Force won't say how many F-22s it lost to Hurricane Michael |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/hurricane-michael-might-have-damaged-more-than-a-dozen-prized-fighter-jets-at-a-florida-air-force-base/ |access-date=18 October 2018 |work=Vice News |date=16 October 2018}}</ref>

In April 2019, the Air Force estimated the hurricane damage to the base at $4.7 billion.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wilson |first1=Heather |title=Congress must step up for Air Force bases devastated by natural disaster |url=https://www.miamiherald.com/article229848384.html |access-date=4 May 2019 |work=Miami Herald |date=30 April 2019}}</ref>

In April 2022, Detachment 1 of the [[Rapid Engineer Deployable Heavy Operational Repair Squadron Engineers|823rd Red Horse Squadron]] inactivated at Tyndall and was replaced by the [[Rapid Engineer Deployable Heavy Operational Repair Squadron Engineers|801st Red Horse Training Squadron]]. The unit's role is to provide integrated, realistic training and exercises to combat support teams.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Del Oso |first=Airman 1st Class Tiffany |date=27 April 2022 |title=First Red Horse training squadron up, ready to run |url=https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3012082/first-red-horse-training-squadron-up-ready-to-run/ |access-date=2022-04-28 |website=US Air Force |language=en-US}}</ref>