Naval Air Station Meridian Naval Air Station Meridian or NAS Meridian is a military airport located 11 miles northeast of Meridian , Mississippi in Lauderdale County and Kemper County , and is one of the Navy ' s two jet strike pilot training facilities . History . On July 16 , 1957 , the first shovel of earth was thrown , marking the beginning of the Naval Auxiliary Air Station ( NAAS ) , which was commissioned July 19 , 1961 . Captain W . F . Krantz , USN received the golden key to the air station , and senior Mississippi U . S . Senator John C . Stennis was the guest speaker for the ceremony that opened the $ 60 million base . At that time , the operations area was named McCain Field in honor of the late Admiral John S . McCain , Sr . of Teoc , Mississippi . Training Squadron SEVEN ( VT - 7 ) arrived at NAAS Meridian July 12 , 1961 , then split to form its sister squadron , Training Squadron NINE ( VT - 9 ) on December 15 . In September 1965 , hundreds of planes from Florida bases arrived to escape the wrath of Hurricane Betsy . The Naval Auxiliary Air Station continued to grow , and by July 1968 , the station became a full Naval Air Station . The years brought an increase in building development and family housing units . In 1968 , and again in 1969 , 300 aircraft from Naval Air Station Pensacola , Florida arrived to escape the fury and destruction of Hurricane Gladys and Hurricane Camille , respectively . In August 1971 , Training Air Wing ONE ( TRAWING ONE ) was commissioned and Training Squadron NINETEEN ( VT - 19 ) was also established . The Wing motto became " Readiness for Victory at Sea through Training . " That October saw the arrival of the TA - 4J , the new advanced jet trainer based on the A - 4 " Skyhawk . " In April 1973 , President Richard M . Nixon , accompanied by Senator John C . Stennis and many other high - ranking military and civilian officials , attended the dedication of the new Naval Technical Training Center ( NTTC ) . Known locally as the Stennis Center , it was officially commissioned April 17 , 1974 . NAS Meridian was selected and upgraded to a Major Shore Command on October 1 , 1982 . In March 1984 , NAS Meridian was one of 15 installations chosen for the Department of Defense Model Installation Program . In September 1985 , the enlisted galley was dedicated to the memory of Marine Lance Corporal Roy M . Wheat , a Mississippi native and Medal of Honor recipient who was killed in Vietnam . Current operations . NAS Meridian supports aviation and technical training , and other tenant activities by providing timely , quality services and facilities in an environmentally safe , secure community . Departments working under the NAS Commanding Officer form the backbone for the entire installation ' s functioning . The Administrative Services Department provides general administrative services for the command . Responsibilities include : processing military personnel matters with the Personnel Support Activity Detachment , Meridian ; processing special requests , leave and TAD orders , evaluations and command correspondence ; maintaining command directives and correspondence files ; providing duplicating services and messenger systems ; and coordinating administrative systems and services throughout the command . The Air Operations Department employs 230 military and civilian personnel to operate NAS Meridain / McCain Field and Naval Outlying Landing Field ( NOLF ) Joe Williams . Their primary mission is to support Commander , Training Air Wing ONE , the wing ' s subordinate training squadrons and its associated T - 45 Goshawk aircraft in the conduct of undergraduate strike pilot training . Additional services are furnished to support operations for NAS and transient military aircrews . Air Traffic Control Division operates the control tower and radar final control systems . They provide flight planning services and issue clearances and instructions to pilots for all phases of military flight operations within the vicinity of the airport . Ground Electronics Maintenance Division ( GEMD ) ensures all assigned UHF , VHF and FM radio communications , air navigation aids , weather monitoring / reporting equipment and precision approach radars required to conduct safe and effective flight operations around NAS Meridian and its outlying field operate at or above designated performance standards . GEMD also provides sound support services and functions as point of contact for matters related to 3M , frequency management , equipment configuration and computer repair / assistance . HH - 1N Huey helicopters were formerly used by the station ' s Search and Rescue personnel to provide 24 - hour rescue coverage of the Eastern Mississippi / Western Alabama area . The 25 - member SAR team consisted of pilots , aircrewmen and hospital corpsmen who were trained in first aid , helicopter rappelling and tree extraction . The team also assisted in a wide variety of civilian emergencies , such as searching for missing persons , assisting with aircraft and boating mishaps and occasional MEDEVAC missions .