Holloman observes New Mexico statehood

  • Published
  • By Mr. Arlan Ponder
  • 49th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --  Visitors to Holloman are normally met with a colorful display of U.S. Flags, New Mexico state flags and German flags. However, in honor of the state of New Mexico's admittance into the union on Jan. 6, 1912, the standard display was temporarily replaced with a line of state flags on that day. 

Since its admission into the union, New Mexico residents have given graciously
when called upon to defend this nation. 

In February 1942, Holloman - then Alamogordo Army Airfield - established a rich heritage in the state. Construction began on an airfield in the Tularosa Basin when Mr. Christopher L. Gallegos cut the first strand of barbed wire one-half mile west of Holloman's current main gate. 

On July 16, 1945, the first atomic bomb was detonated at Trinity Site near Alamogordo, which marked a dramatic opening to the nuclear age. 

On July 23, 1947, the first missile firing took place at Alamogordo Army Airfield, with the launch of a ground-to-air pilotless aircraft (GAPA). For the next 25 years, the site, which became known as the Holloman Air Development Center, and later the Air Force Missile Development Center, launched many missiles including Tiny Tim (the first Army rocket), Rascal, Aerobee, Falcon, Mace, Matador and Shrike. 

On Jan. 13, 1948, the Alamogordo Army Airfield was renamed Holloman Air Force Base, in posthumous honor of Colonel George V. Holloman, a pioneer in guided missile research.

Holloman wrote its name into the annals of American history during the 1950s and 1960s. On Dec. 10, 1954, Lt. Col. (Dr.) John P. Stapp received the nickname "The Fastest Man on Earth" when he rode a rocket propelled test sled, Sonic Wind No. 1, to a speed of 632 miles per hour. Additionally, Captain Joseph W. Kittinger Jr. stepped out of an open balloon gondola at 102,800 feet on Aug. 16, 1960, in an attempt to evaluate techniques of high altitude bailout. Capt. Kittinger's jump lasted 13 minutes reaching a velocity of 614 miles per hour. That jump broke four world records: highest open gondola manned balloon flight, highest balloon flight of any kind, highest bailout, and longest free fall.

A final noteworthy event occurred on Nov. 29, 1961, when Enos, a chimpanzee trained at the Holloman Aero-Medical Laboratory, was the first U.S. specimen launched into orbit. 

A new era began in the Tularosa Basin on July 1, 1968, when the 49th Tactical Fighter Wing arrived at Holloman Air Force Base, flying the F-4D. In 1977 the 49th TFW transitioned to the F-15 Eagle, the Air Force's top air-to-air weapon at that time. Holloman Air Force Base again garnered national attention when the Air Force's most technological fighter, the F-117A Nighthawk made its new home at Holloman in 1992. In April 2008, Congress chose to retire the F-117A from the Air Force's arsenal and return it to the first base it had ever known - Tonopah Test Range. With over 15 years of experience in low observability aircraft, Holloman received the fifth generation stealth fighter - F-22A Raptor - in June 2008. In October 2008, the arrival of the 44th Fighter Group, a reserve unit, with the famed 301st Tuskegee Airmen squadron made Holloman home. 

Today, Holloman Air Force Base continues to serve at the forefront of military operations, with the F-22A Raptor, supports Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operations Enduring Freedom, deploys the 'BEAR Base' team worldwide, and hosts the German Air Force's Flying Training Center.