Beale was named for Edward Fitzgerald Beale (1822-1893), the nineteenth-century pioneer. Edward Beale graduated from the Naval Academy, served in the California militia, and led the experiment to replace Army mules with camels. Camp Beale opened in October 1942, as a training site for the 13th Armored and the 81st and 96th Infantry Divisions. During World War II, Camp Beale's 86,000 acres was home for more than 60,000 soldiers, a prisoner-of-war encampment, and a 1,000-bed hospital. In 1948, the camp transferred from the Army to the Air Force. The Air Force conducted bombardier and navigator training at Beale and in 1951 reactivated the Beale Bombing and Gunnery Range for aviation engineer training. The base has been under several commands, including Air Training Command, Continental Air Command, Aviation Engineer Force, the Strategic Air Command (SAC), and since June 1, 1992, Air Combat Command. In May 1959, Colonel Paul K. Carlton assumed command of the recently activated 4126th Strategic Wing. The first two KC-135s arrived two months later on July 7, 1959. On January 18, 1960, the 31st Bombardment Squadron with its B-52s arrived at Beale to become part of the wing. The 14th Air Division moved to Beale from Travis AFB, one week later. On February 1, 1963, SAC redesignated the 4126th as the 456th Strategic Aerospace Wing. On September 30, 1975, the 456th Bombardment Wing deactivated and the 17th Bombardment Wing activated in its place. On September 30, 1976, the 100th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Davis Monthan AFB, AZ., became the 100th Air Refueling Wing and moved to Beale. Many of the people and the tankers that had been part of the 17th now became members of the 100th. The 17th Wing's B-52s moved to other bases. The 100th ARW stayed at Beale until March 15, 1983, when the Air Force deactivated the wing and consolidated its refueling mission and assets into the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing. From 1959 until 1965, Beale was a support base for three Titan I missile sites near Lincoln, Chico, and the Sutter Buttes. On July 1, 1979, the 7th Missile Warning Squadron brought the Phased Array Warning System (PAVE PAWS) Radar site to Beale. This 10-story structure can detect a possible attack by sea-launched ballistic missiles or track a global satellite. On October 15, 1964, the Department of Defense announced that Beale would be the home of the new, supersonic reconnaissance aircraft, the SR-71 "Blackbird." The 4200th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing activated on January 1, 1965. The new wing received its first aircraft, a T-38 Talon, on July 8, 1965. The first SR-71 did not arrive until January 7, 1966. On June 25, 1966, the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing, that began as the 9th Observation Group in 1922 and its 1st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron activated as the 1st Aero Squadron in 1913, replaced the 4200th. The first U-2 arrived from Davis-Monthan on July 12, 1976.
On May 1, 1999, the 9th Reconnaissance Wing celebrated the 50th anniversary of its activation at Fairfield-Suisun (present-day Travis) AFB, Calif. The wing's lineage and honors history extends back even further. Soon after the 9th Bombardment Wing activated, the 9th Bombardment Group inactivated and the group's lineage and honors passed on to the wing. The group stood up at Mitchel Field, New York, on Aug.1, 1922, as headquarters for the 1st (the oldest Air Force squadron) and 5th Squadrons. The 99th Squadron joined the group on Nov. 9, 1928.
In March 1916, the 1st Aero Squadron, with Capt. Benjamin D. Foulois as commander, supported General "Black Jack" Pershing's punitive expeditions into Mexico. Pancho Villa had raided Columbus, New Mexico, and Pershing pursued and hoped to capture him. On March 16, 1916, Capt. T.F. Dodd, with Capt. Foulois as observer, flew the first American aerial reconnaissance mission in combat. (The wavy line in the middle of the wing's emblem represents the Rio Grande River and the 1st Aero Squadron's operations in 1916).
Both the 1st and the 99th Aero Squadrons flew in World War I. Between 12 and 15 September 1918, they joined the great air armada of 1,481 airplanes in a massive air offensive in the St. Mihiel sector of France. The squadrons also participated in the Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, and Meuse-Argonne combat operations. (The four black crosses on the wing's emblem commemorate these air battles).
In World War II, the 9th Bombardment Group fought in the Pacific Theater. On April 15-16, 1945, 339th Group B-29s flew 1,500 miles, low-level to avoid detection, over water, at night, to attack heavily-defended Kawasaki, Japan. Enemy searchlight, anti-aircraft guns, and flak boats destroyed four of the group's 33 bombers and damaged six others. But the attack demolished Kawasaki's strategic industrial district. The group earned a Distinguished Unit Emblem (DUE) for its actions. The unit won another DUE the following month for mining the Shimonoseki Straits and the waters around Honshu and Kyushu blocking Inland Sea traffic and isolating important Japanese ports.
After its activation in 1949, the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing's 1st, 5th, and 99th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadrons flew RB-29s and RB-36s on visual, photographic, electronic and weather reconnaissance missions. The Air Force redesignated the wing the 9th Bombardment Wing on April 1,1950. In 1953, the wing moved from Fairfield-Suisun AFB to Mountain Home AFB, Idaho. There, B-47s replaced the B-29s. The wing's B-47s were an integral part of the Strategic Air Command's (SAC) nuclear deterrent force until 1966. In November 1955, the wing displayed SAC's ability to strike anywhere in the world by flying nonstop from Mountain Home AFB to New Zealand, a distance of 8,300 miles.
The 9th returned to its roots on June 25, 1966, when the Air Force redesignated the wing the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing and transferred it to Beale AFB. The wing would fly the new SR-71 "Blackbird," a supersonic, high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft. Flying above 80,000 feet at more than 2,000 mph, the SR-71 could survey over 100,000 squares miles in an hour. The airplane quickly became operational and began flying missions throughout Southeast Asia. Rescuers used SR-71 photos to plan the raid on Son Tay prison to free American prisoners-of-war. After the Vietnam War, the SR-71 established a level-flight-at-altitude record at 85,131 feet and a straight-course speed record of 2,194 mph.
On July 1, 1976, the U-2 joined the SR-71 in the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing giving the unit two of the most unique aircraft in the world. The "Dragon Lady" had gained national and international recognition with flights over the Soviet Union, China, Cuba, and Southeast Asia. The U-2 was the perfect complement to the SR-71. The Blackbird could penetrate highly-defended areas, take a "quick look," and depart at high speeds. The Dragon Lady could spend more time "on-station" and furnish a "long look" at the desired target. The U-2 was also much less expensive to fly. In 1989, the Air Force decided the SR-71 was too expensive to operate and retired the Blackbird on January 1, 1990. Although it made a brief revival in the mid-90s, today the aircraft is again retired.
The U-2, meanwhile, continued to prove its worth. In 1990-91, the wing deployed the largest contingent of U-2s ever to Saudi Arabia to support Operation DESERT SHIELD/STORM. The Dragon Lady tracked Iraqi troop and armor buildups, assessed bomb damage, and monitored a massive oil spill in the Persian Gulf. U-2 pilots alerted ground stations of Scud missile launches and guided fighter aircraft to destroy Scud launchers. After the Gulf War, the U-2 stayed in Saudi Arabia to monitor Iraqi compliance with the peace agreement. In 1998, the Dragon Lady set a weight-to-altitude record and in 1999 won the Collier Trophy, aviation's most coveted award.
Until January 26, 1990, when budget restrictions forced the retirement of the SR-71, Beale AFB was the home of two of the world's most unique aircraft. In July 1994, the 350th Air Refueling Squadron transferred from Beale to McConnell AFB, Kansas, taking the last of the KC-135Q tankers with it. Tankers returned in 1998 when the 940th Air Refueling Wing, an Air Force Reserve unit, transferred to Beale. The tankers left Beale in the mid-2000s when the 940 Reserve Wing began flying the RQ-4 alongside the active duty component. The tankers returned to Beale's flightline in FY 16. In 2001, the 12th Reconnaissance Squadron activated at Beale as the parent organization for the GLOBAL HAWK, the Air Force's newest high-altitude reconnaissance platform. Beale AFB again became the home for the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, the T-38 jet trainer, the GLOBAL HAWK, the first of the anticipated eight KC-135s returned to the flight line and the 940 Wing was redesignated once again as the 940 Air Refueling Wing.
In 2001, the historic 12th Reconnaissance Squadron joined the wing as the parent unit for the RQ-4 Global Hawk. An unmanned, remotely piloted high-altitude reconnaissance platform, the Global Hawk can linger over a target for 24 hours. In 2008, Beale received the Block 20 model. This adds another weapon to the 9th Reconnaissance Wing's vital role in our nation's defense. Today, the U-2 furnishes the National Command Authorities critical information on which to base important decisions. To do this, the wing operates permanent detachments and temporary operating locations at critical sites around the world.
In July of 2019, the 12th Reconnaissance Squadron and all of its components became part of the 319th Reconnaissance Wing when the 319th Air Base Wing at Grand Forks, ND was redesignated as the 319th Reconnaissance Wing.; The 12th Reconnaissance Squadron and all of its components physically remain at Beale AFB.
Today, Beale AFB is home for the U-2 Dragon Lady, T-38 Talon and KC-135.
At any given moment, day or night, twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year, there is probably a 9th Reconnaissance Wing aircraft flying an operational mission somewhere in the world.
For more information, visit Beale's web page.
Beale AFB is located in Yuba County, 15 miles from Marysville, California and approximately 25 miles from Yuba City, California. Marysville and the base are located in Yuba County and Yuba City is located in Sutter County, thus the communities surrounding the base are known as Yuba-Sutter. The Yuba-Sutter area has a combined population of 184,000. Located approximately 50 miles north of Sacramento, the California state capitol; Beale is 140 miles east of the culturally rich San Francisco Bay Area. Beale AFB is surrounded by rice fields and grazing land. The Sacramento Valley Area which includes Beale Air Force Base is a high cost of living area.
Beale AFB, though situated in a somewhat rural area of northern California, is within a two - two and a half hour drive of everything California is known for. You will be within two hours of the Sierras, the San Francisco Bay Area, Napa Valley, professional sports teams, just to mention a few. The Monterey Bay area is within 3 ½ hours, the Redwoods are a 5 ½ hour drive, Yosemite is a 3 ½ hour drive.
We are located in the middle of everything!
