Sarasota Army Airfield Sarasota Army Airfield , was a World War II United States Army Air Force located 4 . 4 miles north - northwest of Sarasota , Florida . History . Origins . The facility ' s beginnings date back to early 1939 when government and business leaders from Sarasota and Manatee counties agreed to construct an airport together , designed to serve the aviation needs of the two - county area . A 620 - acre site was selected on the Sarasota - Manatee County line through a Federal WPA - CCA Grant . In May 1941 , resolutions were passed creating the Sarasota Manatee Joint Airport Authority made up of one representative each from Sarasota County , Manatee County , the City of Sarasota and the City of Bradenton . A resolution also established the name of the new facility as the Sarasota Bradenton Airport . Aviation facilities were completed by early 1942 at a cost of nearly one million dollars . The Authority leased the land to the Army Air Corps in February 1942 for use as a training base for combat training of new pilots . Much additional construction was undertaken to convert Sarasota Bradenton Airport became Sarasota Army Airfield . The Army added 250 acres to the site in the course of its use . Sarasota AAF also controlled the following sub - bases and auxiliaries Local civic groups created recreational facilities for white airmen at the Municipal Auditorium ( a National Register of Historic Places listed site ) and at the Municipal Pier . African - American airmen found their entertainment and amusement in a segregated facility in Sarasota . III Bomber Command . The base was initially assigned as a sub - base of MacDill Field , near Tampa . It was assigned to the Third Air Force , III Bomber Command . The 97th Bombardment Group transferred on 29 March 1942 from MacDill to Sarasota to begin training on the B - 17 Flying Fortress . When the 97th Bomb Group left for Eighth Air Force in England in May , it was quickly replaced by the 92d Bombardment Group , which had also been formed at MacDill . The 92d also was deployed to England in early July . Both of these groups became part of the initial striking force of Eighth Air Force , and were rushed to England as soon as possible to initiate the American strategic daylight bombing campaign over Occupied Europe . In addition to the training mission , elements of the Army Air Forces Antisubmarine Command 26th Antisubmarine Wing flew anti - submarine patrols over the Gulf of Mexico as well as the Civil Air Patrol ( CAP ) . Antisubmarine Command operated from Sarastoa until Mid - 1943 when the mission was taken over by the Navy , however the CAP flights continued until the end of the war in 1945 . III Fighter Command . However , it was found that the runways could not withstand the weight of the bombers , and Third Air Force reassigned Sarasota to III Fighter Command in mid - July 1942 to become a fighter pilot training base instead . Under III FC , Sarasota became a fully operational base . The 69th Fighter Squadron was moved up from Drew Army Airfield in late July with P - 39 Aircobra s as a combat fighter pilot operational and replacement training unit . In September , the squadron was transferred to I Fighter Command and was moved to Richmond Army Air Base , Virginia . The 305th Fighter Squadron was formed by III FC to replace it , taking over the personnel and equipment of the 69th . However , the 305th did not stay long at Sarasota , as it was transferred to the Air University Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics in late October to become a combat tactics training unit . These transient squadrons were replaced by the 337th Fighter Group , which arrived at Sarasota in early January 1943 . The 337th was equipped with four training squadrons , the 98th , 303d , 304th and 440th , all equipped with early - model P - 47 Thunderbolt s . The 98th and 303d were assigned to Sarasota ; the 304th and 440th were assigned to the sub - base at Pinellas Army Airfield , near St . Petersburg . In an administrative reorganization by HQ Army Air Force , on 1 May 1944 , numbered training units in the Zone of the Interior ( ZI ) ( Continental United States ) were re - designated as " Army Air Force Base Units " . At Sarasota , the 337th Fighter Group was inactivated ; its mission taken over by the new 336th Army Air Force Base Unit ( Replacement Training Unit F ) . The operational squadrons of the 3337th were also re - designated as " A " and " B " . The training missions continued under these new designations . With the end of the European War in May 1945 , the pace of training replacement pilots slowed down during the summer months . On 24 June 1945 a hurricane hit the Tampa area , and training was temporarily suspended , the aircraft being moved out of the area , the hurricane damaged some buildings but training was resumed in a few days . Over the Independence Day holiday in July , the base held its first open house , thousands of local residents were welcomed onto the base , seeing a display of fighter aircraft and other planes flown in from Third Air Force bases . Also acrobatic displays of flying were performed . Closure . With the sudden Japanese Surrender in early August , ordered were received from III Fighter Command that training of replacement pilots was to end . Pilots already in training were allowed to complete their training , however no new trainees would arrive . By the end of August , the students were being reassigned to other bases , and the number of base support personnel were being reduced at a rapid rate . In late September Headquarters , Third Air Force sent orders to Sarasota announcing that the base would be inactivated as of 31 December 1945 and be transferred to Air Technical Service Command in a standby status , pending disposition as excess property . The airport was then returned to civil control by the General Services Administration ( GSA ) in late 1947 . It was stipulated by GSA that the airport must continue be used as an airport for aviation purposes ; and if not , that it be returned to the U . S . Government . Under ATSC , buildings and equipment were sold and any useful military equipment was transferred to other bases around the country . The base was declared as surplus in 1946 and was turned over to the War Assets Administration ( WAA ) for disposal and return to civil use . Today the facility is known as Sarasota Bradenton International Airport . Major units assigned . III Bomber Command III Fighter Command