Naval Air Station Patuxent River " " Pax River " redirects here . For the river , see Patuxent River . " Naval Air Station Patuxent River , also known as NAS Pax River , is a United States Naval Air Station located in St . Mary ' s County , Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay near the mouth of the Patuxent River . It is home to Headquarters , Naval Air Systems Command ( NAVAIR ) , the U . S . Naval Test Pilot School , and serves as a center for test and evaluation and systems acquisition relating to naval aviation . Commissioned on April 1 , 1943 on land largely acquired through eminent domain , the air station grew rapidly in response to World War II . The base became a center for testing as several facilities were constructed throughout the 1950s and 1960s ; including the U . S . Naval Test Pilot School ( 1958 ) , the Weapons Systems Test Division ( 1960 ) , and the Propulsion System Evaluation Facility . The base also served as the testing facility for the V - 22 Osprey . In addition to its role in testing naval aircraft , during the 1950s to 1970s Patuxent River served as an operational base for a Transport Squadron - VR - 1 , a TACAMO squadron - VQ - 4 , Airborne Training Unit Atlantic - AEWTULANT , and VW - 11 , VW - 13 AN VW - 15 and a number of Patrol Squadrons including VP - 8 , VP - 44 , VP - 49 , VP - 24 , VP - 30 and VP - 68 . By 1965 , reconnaissance Squadron VQ - 4 , based at NAS Patuxent River , began using Lockheed C - 130s equipped with special communications equipment to perform their around - the - clock Take Charge and Move Out ( TACAMO ) mission . VQ - 4 provided long - range , very - low - frequency communications relay between the National Command Center and the ballistic missile submarine fleet . Two A - 7A Corsair II aircraft made the transatlantic crossing from NAS Patuxent River to Evereux , France , in 1967 , racking up 3 , 327 nautical miles in just over seven hours , an unofficial long distance , non - refueled flight by light attack jet aircraft . Research and development at NAS Patuxent River forged ahead in the 1970s . The Harrier , Tomcat , and Orion were just a few of the major aircraft programs undergoing the rigorous test and evaluation process at NAS Patuxent River . Helicopter programs also achieved major milestones during the 1970s . The Naval Air Test Center ( NATC ) at NAS Patuxent River took part in helicopter development and testing for new roles , such as minesweeping . The final flight of the service acceptance trials for the AH - 1T Cobra helicopter gunship was made at NATC Patuxent River . Since the end of the Cold War , the Pentagon ' s Base Realignment and Closure measures have migrated research and testing facilities for both rotary and fixed - wing aircraft to NAS Patuxent River from decommissioned bases . The complex now hosts over 17 , 000 people , including active - duty service members , civil - service employees , defense contractor employees , and military dependents . Additional commands at NAS Patuxent River include Air Test Wing Atlantic and the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division ( NAWCAD ) . The base was also was used as a filming location for the Harrison Ford film " Random Hearts " ( 1999 ) . Ford and director Sydney Pollack both visited Naval Air Station Patuxent River . Ford , a certified pilot , flew the aircraft himself . History . Genesis . Situated on a peninsula between the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Patuxent River , NAS Patuxent River is located on of what was once prime farmland , consisting of several large plantations , Mattapony , Susquehanna , and Cedar Point , as well as numerous tenant and sharecropper properties and a few clusters of vacation homes . The Cedar Point community included several churches , a post office , and a gas station . Some of the old homes now serve as quarters for Navy personnel stationed there . In 1937 , the Navy ' s Bureau of Aeronautics sought to consolidate aviation test programs , previously being conducted at several stations , including Dahlgren and Norfolk , the Washington Navy Yard , Naval Air Station Anacostia in Washington , D . C . , and the Naval Aircraft Factory in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania . Cedar Point was selected due to its remote location on the coastline , well removed from air traffic congestion , with ample space for weapons testing . Wartime urgency . The onset of American involvement in World War II spurred establishment of the new air station . Rear Admiral John Henry Towers , Chief of Bureau of Aeronautics , requested approval and authorization to begin construction on December 22 , 1941 . Secretary of the Navy , Frank Knox , gave approval on January 7 , 1942 and construction began on April 4 , 1942 . Residents had about a month , until March 1 , 1942 , to relocate as the federal government purchased all the land at a cost of $ 712 , 287 for . A lack of transportation in Saint Mary ' s County led the Navy to acquire and revitalize a branchline called the Washington , Brandywine and Point Lookout Railroad ( aka " The Farmers ' Railroad " ) from Brandywine to Mechanicsville , Maryland in June 1942 and build an extension south from Mechanicsville to the air station . Known as the U . S . Government Railroad , the rail line was steam - powered and operated south of Brandywine for exclusive official use until 1954 , when the Pennsylvania Railroad assumed operation of the line . Rail service ended in 1965 and the line was subsequently scrapped , although the right - of - way is still very visible . A highway extension to the new air station was required by the project — 250 , 000 tons of material were transported by either truck or water routes during a year of construction . Employing some 7 , 000 at its peak of construction , the area had a very Gold Rush " boom town " feel as local residents were joined by workers from all over the country , eager to get on the high - paying jobs on station . The Marines take over Security for a Short Time . On 20 October 1942 , U . S . Marines first arrived and took over security . Today , the station utilizes Navy Masters - At - Arms ( MA ) and Department of Defense Police for standard local law enforcement , the Naval Criminal Investigative Service ( NCIS ) for high profile criminal investigations , and a contract security force for access control . During construction , housing needs far outstripped supply , and barracks were built for workers on the station . Later , several housing areas were erected off station for workers and their families in Lexington Park , formerly Jarboesville , named in honor of the USS " Lexington " , the Navy ' s second aircraft carrier , lost during the Battle of the Coral Sea on 8 May 1942 . Dedication . The station was formally commissioned " U . S . Naval Air Station , Patuxent River , Maryland " on 1 April 1943 . In a ceremony presided over by RADM John S . McCain , Sr . , then chief of the Bureau of Aeronautics , Patuxent river was referred to as " the most needed station in the Navy . " The unofficial name had been " Cedar Point " or the " Naval Air Station at Cedar Point " , but officials were concerned about possible confusion with the Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point , North Carolina , so the new facility was named for the adjacent river . Trapnell Field . On 1 April 1976 , Patuxent River ' s air field was named after pioneering aviator VADM Frederick M . Trapnell , a former commander of the Naval Air Test Center at the station . Keynote address speaker , ADM Frederick H . Michaelis , Chief of Naval Material , noted : " All who fly in Navy blue remain indebted to Vice Admiral Trapnell . This field will serve as a living reminder of that debt . " Patuxent River Naval Air Museum . Patuxent River Naval Air Museum