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Military aviation in El Paso began circa 1913 at what had been the first location of the Texas School of Mines and Metallurgy on Fort Bliss. Used by the 1st Aero Squadron in support of the Punitive Expedition into Mexico, 1916-17, Fort Bliss Field became home to the Border Air Patrol, 1919-21. On January 5, 1925, the War Department renamed it for James B. "Buster" Biggs, a native El Pasoan and World War I fighter pilot killed in France in 1918. In 1926, six years after activation of the 8th Airship Company, the field relocated to Camp Owen Bierne, north of the Fort Bliss cantonment area. During World War II, the Army expanded the runway and added new facilities on adjacent land east of Camp Bierne. With the improvements, Biggs Field became an important training base and headquarters for the 20th Bombardment Command of the Second Air Force. It also served as a key transient point for new aircraft en route from West Coast factories to the European Theater. With the establishment of the U.S. Air Force as a separate military branch in 1947, Biggs Field became Biggs Air Force Base on February 1, 1948. The arrival of the 97th Bomb Wing marked its inclusion into the Strategic Air Command, resulting in the need for further expansion. Declared inactive as an Air Force base in 1966, Biggs once again came under U.S. Army command, and it is the largest of the Army's airfields. Capable of accommodating all aircraft, Biggs Army Airfield has supported National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) space shuttle ferry flights since 1979. Today, through a variety of aviation activities, the airfield continues to support military operations at Fort Bliss. (2006) |
