Grissom Air Reserve Base Grissom Air Reserve Base is a United States Air Force base , located approximately north of Kokomo , Indiana . The facility is a joint use civil airport / military base with the Grissom Aeroplex which provides general aviation and charter service . It is named in memory of astronaut and Indiana native Virgil I . " Gus " Grissom , who , along with fellow astronauts Ed White and Roger Chaffee , perished in the Apollo I fire at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 34 in 1967 . Overview . Grissom Air Reserve Base is located in North Central Indiana and is home to the largest KC - 135R Stratotanker wing in the Air Force Reserve Command . The host unit is the 434th Air Refueling Wing which consists of three major groups and a variety of squadrons and flights . The wing develops and maintains the operational capability of its units and train reservists for worldwide duty . Training consists of flight operations , deployments , and weekday and weekend training . Grissom Air Reserve Base hosts the largest Boeing KC - 135 R Stratotanker wing in the Air Force Reserve Command ( AFRC ) . Colonel William T . " Tim " Cahoon commands the 434th Air Refueling Wing . Its Command Chief Master Sergeant is Chief Master Sergeant Larry Brady . Additionally , Grissom ARB is home to units from the U . S . Army Reserve and U . S . Marine Corps Reserve . Other organizations located at Grissom ARB include the Civil Air Patrol , Air Force Reserve Command Regional Supply Distribution Center , U . S . Army Corps of Engineers , and TRANSAM , an Air Force unit that redistributes governmental assets to Native American reservations . History . The United States Navy established Naval Air Station Bunker Hill in 1942 and closed it after World War II ended . The United States Air Force reopened the base in 1954 as Bunker Hill Air Force Base . In 1968 , the Air Force later renamed the base in honor of Lieutenant Colonel Virgil Ivan ( " Gus " ) Grissom , an American astronaut who died in the Apollo 1 accident at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida . As an active Air Force installation from 1954 to 1994 , Grissom Air Force Base hosted various aircraft , including the Boeing KC - 135 Stratotanker . Navy base and transfer to Air Force . The United States Navy on 1 July 1942 started Naval Air Station Bunker Hill to train Navy , United States Marine Corps and United States Coast Guard pilots . Ted Williams of professional baseball fame received training as a Marine Corps Naval Aviator at Naval Air Station Bunker Hill . The naval pilot training mission ended after World War II in 1946 , and the Navy closed Naval Air Station Bunker Hill . After World War II , the base area reverted to farming use . United States Air Force obtained right of entry to 25 buildings from United States Navy on 16 November 1951 and used the base under United States Air Force Storage Branch . Still in inactive status , it was transferred from the Navy to the Air Force on 31 March 1954 . In the wake of the Korean War , the Air Force reopened the installation as Bunker Hill Air Force Base on 22 June 1954 and assigned it to Tactical Air Command . The base began to host the 4433d Air Base Squadron on 1 April 1955 . 323d fighter - bomber wing . The Air Force activated Bunker Hill Air Force Base on 18 August 1955 , with Tactical Air Command activating the 323d Fighter - Bomber Wing , and the 323d Air Base Group coming under TAC ' s Ninth Air Force . Initially training with North American F - 86Fs , these were quickly upgraded to the North American F - 86H Sabre and then to the North American F - 100A / D in 1956 to become proficient in tactical air operations . The wing ' s aircraft wore a band on the tail , and around the nose edged with small black checkers . In addition , Air Defense Command activated the 319th Fighter - Interceptor Squadron at the new base , reporting to the 4706th Air Defense Wing at K . I . Sawyer AFB , Michigan . Initially operating the F - 89 Scorpion interceptor , the mission of the 319th FIS was the air defense of the southern Great Lakes and Chicago - Gary - Central Indiana region . It was later upgraded to the F - 94 Starfire . The ADC interceptors remained until 1 January 1959 . Strategic Air Command ( SAC ) assumed operational control of Bunker Hill Air Force Base from Tactical Air Command on 1 September 1957 ; the Air Force then inactivated the 323d Fighter - Bomber Wing , and the 4041st Air Base Group arrived that day . The Air Force began to station the Boeing KC - 135 Stratotanker on the base in 1957 . 305th wing era . Strategic Air Command on 1 June 1959 moved the 305th Bombardment Wing , Medium , ( 305 BMW ) from MacDill Air Force Base in Florida to Bunker Hill Air Force Base . The wing flew the Boeing B - 47 Stratojet ; the Convair B - 58 Hustler then began replacing the B - 47s . Starting in 1960 , the Air Force equipped the 319th Fighter - Interceptor Squadron with the F - 106 Delta Dart . This squadron departed on 1 March 1963 . On 27 January 1967 , the Apollo I spacecraft caught fire during a pre - launch preparation at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 34 , killing United States Air Force astronaut Lieutenant Colonel Virgil I . “ Gus ” Grissom , an Indiana native and Purdue University graduate . The Air Force officially renamed Bunker Hill Air Force Base as Grissom Air Force Base in his honor on 12 May 1968 . With the retirement of the B - 58 in 1970 , the Air Force redesignated the 305th Bombardment Wing , Medium , as the 305th Air Refueling Wing ( 305 ARW ) on 1 January 1970 . The Air Force transferred the 70th Air Refueling Squadron from another wing at Little Rock Air Force Base to the 305th Air Refueling Wing in 1970 . From the early 1970s , the 305th Air Refueling Wing deployed KC - 135 aircraft to Europe , Alaska , Greenland , and the Pacific to support worldwide tanker task forces . Meanwhile , the 931st Air Refueling Group arrived on 15 January 1970 . In June 1972 , the 305th Air Refueling Squadron deployed elements to Korat Air Base , Thailand , as the 4104th Air Refueling Squadron ( Provisional ) . Later in 1972 the 4104th ARS ( P ) was relocated to U - Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield . 305th wing and 434th ( reserve ) wing . The Air Force Reserve joined the Grissom personnel complement in the early 1970s with the activation of the 434th Special Operations Wing ( 434 SOW ) and their Cessna A - 37 Dragonfly aircraft to the base on 15 January 1971 . On 1 October 1973 , the Air Force Reserve redesignated the 434th Special Operations Wing as the 434th Tactical Fighter Wing . In 1975 , the Air Force inactivated the 3d Post Attack Command and Control System of the 305th Air Refueling Wing and transferred specialized Boeing EC - 135 s to the 70th Air Refueling Squadron of the 305th Air Refueling Wing . The 931st Air Refueling Group ( 931 ARG ) departed on 1 July 1975 . The United States Army Reserve began its presence at Grissom in the 1970s . On 1 February 1978 , the Air Force renamed the 305th Air Refueling Wing as the 305th Air Refueling Wing , Heavy . The Air Force activated the 931st Air Refueling Group at the base on 1 July 1978 as the second group of Air Force Reservists . The base also served as the home of one active duty wing and two reserve wings , using 60 KC - 135 Stratotanker and 18 A - 10 Thunderbolt II fighter aircraft . The 72d Air Refueling Squdron of the Air Force Reserve began operating its KC - 135 Stratotanker aircraft from the Grissom in 1978 . The 305th Air Refueling Wing , Heavy , provided tanker refueling support to units involved in the invasion of Grenada in October 1983 . The 931st Air Refueling Group departed Grissom on 1 July 1987 . The Air Force Reserve on 1 July 1978 redesignated the 434th Tactical Fighter Wing as the 434th Air Refueling Wing , Heavy , giving it a similar mission to that of the 305th Air Refueling Wing , Heavy . The 305th Air Refueling Wing , Heavy , provided tanker support to units involved in the United States invasion of Panama in December 1989 . From August 1990 to June 1991 , deployed 305th Air Refueling Wing , Heavy , personnel and aircraft provided refueling support for air operations in southwest Asia as part of Operation Desert Storm . The 305th Air Refueling Wing , Heavy , also delivered food to the Kurds in Northern Iraq from April to May 1991 . The Air Force redesignated the wing as 305th Air Refueling Wing on 1 September 1991 . Despite this activity , the end of the Cold War led to a downsizing of the military . The Base Realignment and Closure Commission of 1991 recommended closure of Grissom Air Force Base . On 1 February 1992 , the Air Force Reserve redesignated the 434th Air Refueling Wing , Heavy , as the 434th Air Refueling Wing and that year activated the 74th Air Refueling Squadron within the 434th Air Refueling Wing to operate the KC - 135 Stratotanker . The Air Force inactivated Strategic Air Command ( SAC ) and realigned the 305th Air Refueling Wing to the newly established Air Mobility Command ( AMC ) on 15 June 1992 . The Air Mobility Command merged air refueling aircraft from Strategic Air Command with strategic and tactical theater airlift aircraft from Military Airlift Command ( MAC ) . The Air Force Reserve renamed the 434th Air Refueling Wing as the 434th Wing on 1 August 1992 . Base Realignment and Closure Commission of 1993 directed realignment of Grissom Air Force Base to the Air Force Reserve ( AFRES ) . The 305th Air Refueling Wing phased out operations and ended its presence on base on 30 September 1994 , when the Air Force inactivated it . The Air Force then immediately reactivated a new 305th Air Refueling Wing with different personnel and equipment at McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey . The Air Force inactivated the KC - 135 Rs of the 70th Air Refueling Squadron of the 305th Air Refueling Wing ; this squadron transferred to Travis Air Force Base in California , joined another wing , and used a different aircraft . The Air Force also retired the Boeing EC - 135 G / L radio relay aircraft as part of the demise of the Post Attack Command and Control System . 434th wing on Grissom Air Reserve Base . Effective 1 October 1994 , Grissom Air Force Base ceased active - duty operations , and the active Air Force transferred nearly half of the former base , including the runway , to the Air Force Reserve as Grissom Air Reserve Base . The Air Force Reserve ( AFRES ) redesignated the 434th Wing as the 434th Air Refueling Wing ( 434 ARW ) , which began the 434th Mission Support Group . The 434th Air Refueling Wing operates a KC - 135 Stratotanker air refueling squadron , operationally within the Air Mobility Command ( AMC ) . Because of this inactivation , the Air Force reassigned Grissom Air Reserve Base in 1997 to the Air Force Reserve Command ( AFRC ) . The base added Marine Corps Reserve units in 2001 and United States Navy Reserve units in 2002 . In 2005 , in an effort to consolidate Navy Reserve stations , the Navy Reserve transferred all its Grissom units to the Navy Operational Support Center at Heslar Naval Armory in Indianapolis , Indiana . In 2008 , Grissom Air Reserve Base entered into a joint - use agreement and opened its runway to civilian operations . Montgomery Aviation of Zionsville , Indiana , manages the day - to - day civil operations at Grissom Air Reserve Base . Under a five - year contract with the Miami County Economic Development Authority , Montgomery Aviation provides maintenance , fuel , and other services . Montgomery Aviation currently promotes the airport to business jets as a refueling stop for long cross - country flights . Its extremely long runway and instrument navigation facilities make Grissom Air Reserve Base especially well suited to this role . Civilian air traffic controllers also staff a radar approach control at the airport . Until the retirement of the Space Shuttle on 21 July 2011 , Grissom was listed as one of the emergency landing sites due to its 12 , 000 ft runway Current operations . Grissom Air Reserve Base still hosts the 434th Air Refueling Wing of Air Force Reserve Command . The Air Force Reserve Command controls only four other bases in the United States of America . Grissom also hosts Army Reserve and Marine Corps Reserve units . The base also serves its duty to the local community beyond its military functions . It has a combined workforce consisting of both military personnel and civilians and currently ranks as the largest employer in Miami County and the third largest employer in north - central Indiana . Grissom claims an economic impact of over $ 130 million per year , and community activities also heavily involve Grissom . Such programs include the Marine Corps Reserve ' s " Toys for Tots " , conducted annually in November and December . The National Arbor Day Foundation also designated the base as a " Tree City " . Geography . Grissom Air Reserve Base is located at . The base is listed by the United States Census Bureau as the " Grissom AFB " census - designated place ( CDP ) , with an area of , all land . Demographics . As of the census of 2010 , there were 5 , 537 people , 836 households , and 579 families residing in the CDP . Of the total population , 3 , 198 persons were residing in group quarters . The overall population density was 1 , 107 . 4 per square mile ( 429 . 2 per square kilometer ) . There were 1 , 150 housing units at an average density of 230 . 0 / mi ( 89 . 1 / km ) . The racial makeup of the CDP was 74 . 4 % White , 22 . 5 % African American , 0 . 3 % Native American , 0 . 2 % Asian , 0 . 04 % Pacific Islander , 1 . 0 % some other race , and 1 . 5 % from two or more races . Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4 . 6 % of the population . There were 836 households , out of which 49 . 0 % had children under the age of 18 living with them , 41 . 4 % were headed by married couples living together , 17 . 9 % had a female householder with no husband present , and 30 . 7 % were non - families . 24 . 4 % of all households were made up of individuals , and 6 . 4 % were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older . The average household size was 2 . 80 , and the average family size was 3 . 34 . In the CDP the population was spread out with 14 . 8 % under the age of 18 , 12 . 1 % from 18 to 24 , 47 . 3 % from 25 to 44 , 21 . 6 % from 45 to 64 , and 4 . 3 % who were 65 years of age or older . The median age was 34 . 2 years . For every 100 females there were 338 . 1 males . For every 100 females age 18 and over , there were 454 . 0 males . For the period 2007 – 2011 , the estimated median annual income for a household in the CDP was $ 42 , 105 , and the median income for a family was $ 42 , 857 . Males had a median income of $ 35 , 819 versus $ 27 , 857 for females . The per capita income for the CDP was $ 15 , 423 . About 19 . 3 % of families and 16 . 5 % of the population were below the poverty line , including 23 . 7 % of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over . In popular culture . Grissom appears in the video game " Tom Clancy ' s EndWar " as a possible battlefield . Grissom is also mentioned in the movie " " as a base used before the attack on Chicago .