Godman Army Airfield Godman Army Airfield is a military airport located on the Fort Knox United States Army post in Hardin County , Kentucky , United States . It has four runways and is used entirely by the United States Army Aviation Branch . History . Godman Army Airfield was established about October 1918 for the 29th Aero Squadron for World War I at then Camp Knox United States Army Air Corps . Its initial mission was to support Army forces at Fort Knox . In the build - up of the Army prior to the United States ' entry into World War II and the establishment of the United States Army Air Forces , the 73d Observation Group was established at the airfield in November 1941 , assigned to First Air Force . The 73d ' s mission was to train and provide tactical reconnaissance in support of Army maneuvers . After the United States entered World War II , Godman AAF became an First Air Force group training station for B - 25 Mitchell medium bomber groups . The 387th and 391st Bombardment Groups formed and trained at Godman in 1943 prior to their overseas deployment . In 1944 , the mission changed to replacement training , and the 477th Bombardment Group became the B - 25 Replacement Training unit . It trained replacement personnel prior to their reassignment to combat units overseas . It remained at Godman after World War II , and the airfield was designated as a permanent station of the USAAF . In 1946 , Godman was reassigned to the Tenth Air Force as part of the Air Force Reserve . The 315th Army Air Force Base Unit became the host organization , and the 477th Bomb Group remained as the flying organization until its inactivation in October 1946 . Redesignated as the 315th Air Force Base Unit in September 1947 with the establishment of the United States Air Force , it was further redesignated as the 2236th Air Force Reserve Training Center in July 1948 . Concurrently , Godman Field was renamed Godman Air Force Base . On October 10 , 1950 , during the Korean War , President Harry S . Truman placed the Kentucky Air National Guard ' s 123d Fighter - Bomber Group on active duty and moved the unit from Standiford Field to Godman Field . The airfield was then reassigned to Tactical Air Command . The unit ’ s P - 51 Mustang s were ferried to the Far East , and several of the unit ’ s pilots volunteered for combat duty over Korea . In addition to the Kentucky ANG , the New Jersey ANG ' s 108th Fighter - Bomber Wing was federalized and brought into active service on 1 March 1951 , was assigned to Strategic Air Command ' s 40th Air Division at Turner AFB , Georgia . In its activated configuration , the wing was composed of the 141st Fighter Squadron of the New Jersey Air National Guard , the 149th Fighter Squadron of the Virginia Air National Guard and the 153rd Fighter Squadron of the Mississippi Air National Guard . During its federal service period , the wing trained to conduct long range bombardment escort missions . On 9 December 1951 , the wing was reassigned to Godman AFB . It was relieved from active service on 1 December 1952 and returned to the control of the New Jersey ANG . After the 1953 armistice in Korea , Godman was phased down and the 4430th Air Base Wing became the host organization at the base . Air Force activities were ended and the base was inactivated on 31 December 1953 . It was subsequently transferred to the United States Army and became a light aircraft and helicopter airfield in support of Fort Knox , renamed as Godman Army Airfield . UFOs : Mantell Incident . The Thomas Mantell incident began at 1 : 20pm . On 7 January 1948 when the control tower operators at Godman Field Army Air Force Base , Kentucky sighted an unidentified airborne object in the sky close to the base . Several senior officers were summoned , and the base Operations and Intelligence Officer were soon joined by the Commanding Officer , but none were able to identify the object . At the time a flight of four P - 51 fighters was on a routine training flight under the supervision of Flight Commander Captain Thomas Mantell . They were flying towards Godman Field when , at approximately 2 : 45pm , the control tower officer in charge ordered them to investigate the strange object . Captain Mantell acknowledged , but a short time later one of the pilots requested permission to break away as he was running low on fuel , leaving the three remaining aircraft to head in the direction of the strange object . The next message came from one of the three remaining pilots , who said he was losing his bearings and was becoming fearful of becoming lost . He too was granted permission to break away and return , but he would be accompanied by one of the two remaining pilots , who was instructed to accompany his colleague to guide him safely back to base . The only aircraft now in pursuit of the object was that piloted by Captain Thomas Mantell . At 15 , 000 feet Mantell contacted the control tower and stated that he had the object in sight and was climbing to investigate . A short time later Mantell reported that he was closing on the object but that was the last message broadcast . Mantell ’ s aircraft crashed approximately 130 miles down range from Godman Field . The official Air Technical Information Command report on the crash stated that they were of the opinion that Captain Mantell lost consciousness due to oxygen starvation . The trimmed aircraft had continued to climb until increasing altitude caused a sufficient loss of power for it to level out . The aircraft then began to turn left due to torque and as the wing drooped , so did the nose , until it was in a tight turning spiral . The uncontrolled descent resulted in excessive speed causing the aircraft to disintegrate . It is believed that Captain Mantell never regained consciousness . This was borne out by the fact that the canopy lock was still in place after the crash , discounting any attempt to abandon the aircraft . They also stated that the UFO was in no way responsible for the crash .