Seymour Johnson Air Force Base

Common card · No. 325351

Seymour Johnson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located in Goldsboro, North Carolina. The base is named for U.S. Navy Lt. Seymour A. Johnson, a test pilot from Goldsboro who died in an F4F Wildcat crash near Norbeck, Maryland, on March 5, 1941. In December 1941, $168,811 were authorized for the construction of a U.S. Army Air Corps Technical Training School. Local officials began working to have the field named in honor of Lieutenant Johnson; it is the only USAF base named in honor of a naval officer. Seymour Johnson Field was deactivated in May 1946. In late 1952, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers arrived and demolished old buildings and began construction of new ones. Led by Goldsboro mayor Scott B. Berkeley Sr., local community leaders began a campaign to have the installation reopened. The efforts were successful, and on April 1, 1956, the renamed Seymour Johnson Air Force Base was opened for use by Tactical Air Command. Three months later, the 83rd Fighter Day...

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