page_title: Plattsburgh Air Force Base
section_title: Plattsburgh Air Force Base (PAFB)
hierarchical_section_title: Plattsburgh Air Force Base / History / Plattsburgh Air Force Base (PAFB)
caption_attribution_description: U.S. Air Force McDonnell F-4D Phantom II fighters from the 134th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 158th Tactical Fighter Group, Vermont Air National Guard, parked on the flight line at Plattsburgh Air Force Base, New York (USA), on 16 June 1984.
context_page_description: Plattsburgh Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base covering 3,447 acres in the extreme northeast corner of New York, 20 miles south of the Canada–United States border, located on the western shore of Lake Champlain opposite Burlington, Vermont, in the city of Plattsburgh, New York.
  The base closed on 25 September 1995, pursuant to the Defense Base Realignment and Closure Act of 1990 and the recommendations of the Defense Base Realignment and Closure Commission. It is now a civilian airport and industrial complex, operated by the Plattsburgh Air Base Development Authority. The airfield is now known as Plattsburgh International Airport.
context_section_description: In 1953, the site returned to the Federal government and Plattsburgh Barracks were renamed Plattsburgh Air Force Base.  
  The Air Force held a ground breaking ceremony for the new strategic base on 29 January 1954, and construction began immediately. The runway was completed and the first aircraft landed on 7 November 1955. However, operational facilities were not completed until 1956 due to several work stoppages and severe winter weather.
  Built during the Cold War, Plattsburgh AFB's runway is large enough to land the space shuttle. It was on a list of alternate landing sites for the space shuttle. Space shuttle Columbia astronaut Michael P. Anderson, born at Plattsburgh AFB, was an Air Force pilot at Plattsburgh AFB when he got selected by NASA in 1994.
  Major commands to which the base was assigned:
  Strategic Air Command, 1954 – 1 June 1992
  Air Mobility Command, 1 June 1992 – 25 September 1995
caption: F-4D Phantom IIs from the 134th Tactical Fighter Squadron of the Vermont Air National Guard at Plattsburgh AFB
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