Brookley Field
Airfield Identification
1938 to present
United States of America
CITY: Mobile, AL
IATA/ICAO CODES: BFM / KBFM
OTHER NAMES: Brookley Field (1938-1947), Brookley AFB (1947-1969), Mobile Downtown, Mobile Regional (present)
Commando Operations
Brookley Field was built in 1938 close to smaller Bates Field.
During World War II, Brookley became the major USAAF supply base for the Air Material Command in the southeastern USA and the Caribbean. Many air depot personnel, logisticians, mechanics, and other support personnel were trained at Brookley during the war. Also, the Air Transport Command operated large numbers of cargo and passenger aircraft from the base as part of its Domestic Wing. Finally, Brookley was the repair and calibration site of the top-secret Norden bombsights.
In 1944, with the closure of the Army contract flying school at nearby Bates AAF, Air Transport Command operations were shifted to Bates to alleviate runway traffic at Brookley. Late in 1945, Bates Field was returned to civil control and ATC operations returned to Brookley.
Brookley became an Air Force Base in 1947, and was returned to civilian use in 1969.
Units & operators based
533rd AAF Base Unit (Brookley Field)
Last edited: 11/05/2020