Blimp Hangar at Tustin
by Guy Whiteley
Title
Blimp Hangar at Tustin
Artist
Guy Whiteley
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
Marine Corps Air Station Tutsin was established as a Navy lighter-than-air base and commissioned September 1942. Occupying 1,383 acres of agricultural land acquired from Irvine, the station supported observation blimps and personnel necessary to conduct antisubmarine patrols off the Southern California coast during World War II.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the Navy asked the U.S. Congress for authorization to purchase an increased number of airships. By June 1942, Congress had authorized the construction of 200 airships. During the war, Goodyear built a total of 168. At peak production, the company was turning out 11 airships monthly.
Six of these airships could fit into each of the two hangers constructed in Tustin. Labeled the world's largest unsupported timber constructed buildings, the massive structures were built at a cost of $2.5 million each. Each is 1,088 feet long, 178 feet high and 297 feet wide. This translates to being as high as an 18 story building and as long as three football fields. The doors are composed of six leaves, each weighing 26 to 29 tons. The hangers were designated as National Historical Landmarks in August 1978.
The facility served as an LTA base until it was decommissioned in June 1949. During the Korean conflict, the station was reactivated in May 1951, and commissioned as Marine Corps Air Facility Santa Ana. The name was changed to Marine Corps Air Station (Helicopter) Santa Ana in September 1969 and finally MCAS Tustin in June of 1985. It was the country's first air facility developed solely for helicopter operations. The name Santa Ana was originally attached to the base because it was located in an unincorporated area.
MCAS Tustin closed in July 1999. Approximately 1294 acres have been conveyed to the City of Tustin, private developers and public institutions for a combination of residential, commercial, educational, and public recreational and open-space uses.
� Tustin Area Historical Society; 395 El Camino Real; Tustin, CA 92780
credit: http://www.tustinhistory.com/articles/lta.htm
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February 5th, 2012
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