Perrin Air Force Base " Perrin Air Force Base " ' is an inactive United States Air Force base , approximately 7 miles northwest of Sherman , Texas . It was active during World War II as pilot training airfield and during the Cold War as a combat crew and flying training base . It was closed on 30 June 1971 . After seeing the fighters take off from here , a young Chesley Sullenberger became interested in flying . History . Perrin Air Force Base began as an Army Air Field and was the first basic flying training school to become operational after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 . In the spring of 1941 , Grayson County leaders began to discuss the possibilities of a U . S . Army Air Corps basic flying school to be built in Grayson County . In March 1941 Grayson County Judge Jake J . Loy went to Washington , DC , to further the project idea . After his visit to Washington , Judge Loy returned to Sherman and began to work on the project with county commissioners , and a tract of land was subsequently selected that was suitable for use as a flying field . On 16 June 1941 , the Office of the Chief of the Air Corps drew up a program for construction . A tentative authorized strength of 199 officers , 422 cadets , 1730 enlisted men , and funds in the amount of $ 3 , 966 , 833 . 00 were ordered and set aside for the construction of the airfield . The lease was signed by the United States Government and Grayson County on 1 July 1941 and the Army Corps of Engineers started construction on the newly established Grayson Basic Flying School the same week . On 9 August 1941 , Major Robert J . Warren was the first person to report to duty at the partially constructed airfield , assuming duties as project officer and temporary Commanding Officer . Ten days later , five enlisted men arrived from San Angelo , TX , to assist Major Warren in the development of the airstrip , hangars , barracks , and field headquarters building . The airfield was laid out with four runways in a triangle pattern , consisting of 4500x150 ( N / S ) , 2700x150 ( NE / SW ) , 4200x150 ( E / W ) , 5137x150 ( NW / SE ) , all constructed of concrete . A large parking apron was constructed to accommodate the planned basic ( phase II ) training aircraft with at least 6 maintenance hangars and supporting buildings . East of the airfield , a ground support station was constructed consisting of about several hundred buildings based on standardized plans and architectural drawings . The buildings were designed to be the " cheapest , temporary character with structural stability only sufficient to meet the needs of the service which the structure is intended to fulfill during the period of its contemplated war use . " To conserve critical materials , most facilities were constructed of wood , concrete , brick , gypsum board and concrete asbestos . Metal was sparsely used . Perrin Field was designed to be nearly self - sufficient , with not only hangars , but barracks , warehouses , hospitals , dental clinics , dining halls , and maintenance shops were needed . There were libraries , social clubs for officers , and enlisted men , and stores to buy living necessities . In addition to the main airfield , there were four auxiliary airfields constructed to support the flying training at Perrin Army Airfield : On 21 August 1941 , the first aircraft , a Vultee BT - 13 Valiant arrived at the newly constructed Grayson Basic Flying School . The airfield was officially activated on 20 September 1941 by the Army Air Forces Training Command , Gulf Coast Training Center . It was placed under the jurisdiction of the Army Air Corps Pilot School ( Basic ) activated . The mission of the new airfield was the training of aviation cadets in the basic ( intermediate ) phase of flying training ( phase 2 ) . On 12 November 1941 , Lieutenant Colonel Donald G . Stitt was assigned to the airfield and assumed command on 19 November 1941 , with Major Warren remaining as project officer . Lieutenant Colonel Stitt was , in effect , the first commander of the field . World War II . On 7 December 1941 , the strength of the airfield stood at 90 officers and 545 enlisted men , with the first class of cadets expected by the end of December . In January 1942 , the installation was renamed Perrin Field in memory of the late Lieuteant Colonel Elmer D . Perrin , a native Texan who had been killed in a 21 June 1941 crash during an acceptance test of a B - 26 Marauder bomber near the Glenn L . Martin aircraft plant in Baltimore , MD . On 8 January 1943 , the War Department constituted and activated the 32d Flying Training Wing ( Basic ) at Perrin and assigned it to the AAF Central Flying Training Command . Normal manpower strength at base occurred in early 1943 , averaging 2500 enlisted men and 300 officers . Training aircraft used at Perrin Field included approximately 250 BT - 13 ' s and AT - 6 ' s , with approximately 550 maintenance personnel working 24 - hour shifts . Pilot cadet classes numbered between 300 and 400 students . Perrin Field hosted the 32nd Flying Training Wing from September 1943 to October 1945 , graduating over 10 , 000 pilots , including cadets from Brazil , Mexico , Guatemala , the Philippines , and Ecuador . The airfield also maintained a branch prisoner - of - war camp , holding about 200 German POWs . Basic pilot training was discontinued at the base in late 1945 , and an instructor school was established to maintain instructor proficiency and provide refresher training for oversea returnees and behind - the - line pilots , but the base was deactivated in November 1946 . Perrin became a storage facility for aircraft such as the AT - 6 Texan trainer , the B - 25 Mitchell bomber , and other equipment , such as tractors and bulldozers . The only operational aircraft was the C - 47 Skytrain . Cold War . On 1 April 1948 , Perrin Field was reactivated under the newly established United States Air Force , hosting the 3555th Basic Pilot Training Wing from August 1948 to June 1952 . A shortage of funds forced ATC to open the base with only a caretaker group on hand . Three months later , on 1 July , the base began training . Training squadrons under the 3555th PTW were : It resumed its mission of basic single - engine pilot training under the Air Training Command ( ATC ) and continued until December 1951 . Beginning in January 1952 , Perrin began advanced single engine pilot training , flying the T - 28 Trojan . This training ended in December 1952 . In March 1952 , A - 26 Invader medium bomber training was transferred and conducted at Perrin . Beginning in 1951 , NATO / Allied students began pilot training at Perrin , which continued until 1962 when this role was transferred to the flying training wing at Sheppard AFB , TX . On 17 July 1952 , Perrin was designated a permanent Air Force installation and its name officially changed to Perrin Air Force Base . Perrin was transformed to crew training role for all - weather fighter interceptors and longer 8000 and runways were built to accommodate the T - 33 Shooting Star and F - 86 Sabre that arrived in December 1952 . During the 1950s to early 1960s , Perrin host wing , the 3555th , went through several name changes , being known as the 3555th Flying Training Wing ( fighter [ June 1952 - September 1954 ] ) , the 3555th Combat Crew Training Wing ( advanced interceptor [ September 1954 – August 1958 ] ) , and the 3555th Flying Training Wing ( advanced interceptor [ August 1958 to July 1962 ] ) . In July 1962 , Perrin was transferred from ATC to the Air Defense Command ( ADC ) and the 4780th Air Defense Training Wing absorbed the ATC 3555th Training Wing which was inactivated . The 4780th conducted training in the F - 102 and TF - 102 Delta Dagger . The training squadrons were re - designated as follows , transferring personnel and equipment to the new units : From 1962 to 1971 , Perrin had the largest fleet of F - 102s in the U . S . Air Force and became the only F - 102 replacement training base within the Air Defense Command , which was later redesignated the Aerospace Defense Command ( ADC ) in January 1968 . In October 1962 , during the Cuban Missile Crisis , a number of Perrin AFB aircraft were placed on alert , while others were deployed to bases in Florida for alert and air defense missions . The 4780th had two flying squadrons , the 4781st and 4782nd Combat Crew Training Squadrons . In 1964 , the 4780th Air Defense Wing was chosen to host the Air Defense Command Life Support School at the nearby Lake Texoma . The school was initiated to give life support and ejection training to aircrews flying ADC aircraft and Air National Guard units that supported the ADC mission . Prior to the school ' s establishment , ADC had a 22 % aircraft mishap fatality rate , but after the first year it fell to 5 % . The school trained and graduated over 11 , 000 aircrew members including forty - nine United States astronauts , several USAF F - 102s having been bailed to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA ) for astronaut proficiency training at the NASA Flight Operations Facility at Ellington AFB ( later Ellington Field Air National Guard Base ) near Houston . Perrin also utilized HH - 43B Huskie helicopters for local aircraft rescue and fire fighting duties . In April 1967 , Perrin assumed an added training mission with the activation of the Air Training Command ' s 3251st Flying Training Wing when instructor pilot training was transferred from Randolph AFB , Texas . As a tenant unit , the 3251st FTW ' s 3251st Flying Training Squadron trained already qualified USAF pilots as Cessna T - 37 undergraduate pilot training ( UPT ) instructors . Closure . On 3 March 1971 , it was announced that Perrin AFB would close due mainly to a change in pilot training requirements , primarily the retirement of the F - 102 from front - line service . In addition to the phaseout of the F - 102 , airspace congestion following the opening of the new Dallas - Fort Worth International Airport was also considered to be a secondary factor . On 13 May 1971 , the last graduating class flew its F - 102s in formation over Sherman and Denison as a farewell to its two host cities . A few days later , the last of the F - 102 Delta Daggers left the base and the 4780th Air Defense Wing was deactivated . On 15 May the T - 37 instructor pilot training transferred to Randolph AFB in Universal City , Texas near San Antonio . Perrin AFB was officially closed on 30 June 1971 . Current use . The closed Perrin Air Force Base was turned over to the Grayson County Community College and to the County of Grayson . The name of the field was changed to Grayson County Airport , which , in November 2007 , was renamed to North Texas Regional Airport . Today , in addition to serving as a general aviation airport , several businesses , as well as a juvenile detention center / boot - camp and adult probation center are built upon former barracks and nearby areas . Grayson County College uses several of the buildings for its course offerings . The college also operates the former base golf course . Today , a small group of local Sherman and Denison citizens have held the memory of Perrin together , hosting nine Perrin Field reunions since the early 1980s . The Perrin AFB Research Foundation was established in 1998 . There is a small museum dedicated to the former Perrin Air Force Base at the airport .