Elmendorf Field Elmendorf Field is a United States military facility in Anchorage , the largest city in Alaska . Formerly known as Elmendorf Air Force Base , in 2010 it merged with nearby Fort Richardson to form Joint Base Elmendorf - Richardson . Overview . The adjacent facilities were officially combined by the 2005 Base Closure and Realignment Commission . Its mission is to support and defend U . S . interests in the Asia Pacific region and around the world by providing units who are ready for worldwide air power projection and a base that is capable of meeting PACOM ' s theater staging and throughput requirements . It is the home of the Headquarters , Alaskan Command ( ALCOM ) , Alaskan NORAD Region ( ANR ) , Joint Task Force - Alaska ( JTF - AK ) , Eleventh Air Force ( 11 AF ) , the 673d Air Base Wing , the 3rd Wing , the 176th Wing and other Tenant Units . Units . The installation hosts the headquarters for the United States Alaskan Command , 11th Air Force , U . S . Army Alaska , and the Alaskan North American Aerospace Defense Command Region . Major units assigned are : Elmendorf Air Force Base . World War II . Construction on Elmendorf Field began on 8 June 1940 , as a major and permanent military airfield near Anchorage . The first Air Corps personnel arrived on 12 August 1940 . On 12 November 1940 , the War Department formally designated what had been popularly referred to as Elmendorf Field as Fort Richardson . The air facilities on the post were named Elmendorf Field in honor of Captain Hugh M . Elmendorf , killed on 13 January 1933 , while flight testing the experimental Consolidated Y1P - 25 , fighter , " 32 - 321 " , near Wright Field , Ohio . After World War II , the Army moved its operations to the new Fort Richardson and the Air Force assumed control of the original Fort Richardson and renamed it Elmendorf Air Force Base . The first Air Force unit to be assigned to Alaska , the 18th Pursuit Squadron , arrived in February 1941 . The 23d Air Base Group was assigned shortly afterward to provide base support . Other Air Force units poured into Alaska as the Japan ese threat developed into World War II . The Eleventh Air Force was formed at Elmendorf AFB in early 1942 . The field played a vital role as the main air logistics center and staging area during the Aleutian Campaign and later air operations against the Kurile Islands . Cold War . Following World War II , Elmendorf assumed an increasing role in the defense of North America as the uncertain wartime relations between the United States and the Soviet Union deteriorated into the Cold War . The Eleventh Air Force was redesignated as the Alaskan Air Command ( AAC ) on 18 December 1945 . The Alaskan Command , established 1 January 1947 , also headquartered at Elmendorf , was a unified command under the Joint Chiefs of Staff based on lessons learned during World War II when a lack of unity of command hampered operations to drive the Japanese from the western Aleutian Islands of Attu and Kiska . The uncertain world situation in late 1940s and early 1950s caused a major buildup of air defense forces in Alaska . The propeller - driven F - 51 s were replaced with F - 80 jets , which in turn were replaced in succession by F - 94s , F - 89 s , and F - 102 s interceptor aircraft for defense of North America . The Air Force built an extensive aircraft control and warning radar system with sites located throughout Alaska ' s interior and coastal regions . Additionally , the Air Force of necessity built the White Alice Communications System ( with numerous support facilities around the state ) to provide reliable communications to these far - flung , isolated , and often rugged locales . The Alaskan NORAD Regional Operations Control Center ( ROCC ) at Elmendorf served as the nerve center for all air defense operations in Alaska . The U . S . Air Force Security Service ( USAFSS ) activated the 6981st Security Group tasked with monitoring , collecting and interpreting signals intelligence of concern to the region , including installation of an AN / FLR - 9 antenna array as part of a worldwide network known collectively as " Iron Horse . " Air defense forces reached their zenith in 1957 with almost 200 fighter aircraft assigned to six fighter interceptor squadrons located at Elmendorf AFB and Ladd AFB . Eighteen aircraft control and warning radar sites controlled their operations . Elmendorf earned the motto " Top Cover for North America . " AAC adopted the motto as its own in 1969 . The late 1950s , 1960s , and early 1970s brought about a gradual , but significant decline in air defense forces in Alaska due to mission changes and the demands of the Vietnam War . The Air Force inactivated five fighter squadrons and closed five radar sites . In 1961 , the Department of Defense consigned Ladd AFB to the Army which renamed it Fort Wainwright . The Alaskan Command was disestablished in 1975 . Elmendorf began providing more support to other Air Force commands , particularly Military Airlift Command C - 5 and C - 141 flights to and from the Far East . Despite a diminished number of personnel and aircraft , a turning point in Elmendorf ' s history occurred in 1970 with the arrival of the 43d Tactical Fighter Squadron in June 1970 from MacDill AFB , Florida . The squadron gave AAC an air - to - ground capability which was further enhanced with the activation of the 18th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Elmendorf ( also with F - 4E s ) on 1 October 1977 . The strategic importance of Elmendorf AFB was graphically realized during the spring of 1980 when the 18th Tactical Fighter Squadron deployed eight of its F - 4Es to Korea to participate in exercise Team Spirit . It was a historical first and underlined an increasing emphasis AAC placed on its tactical role . The strategic location of Elmendorf AFB and Alaska made it an excellent deployment center , a fact that validated the contention of Billy Mitchell who , in 1935 , stated that " Alaska is the most strategic place in the world . " Deployments from Elmendorf AFB and Eielson AFB to the Far East are now conducted on a routine basis . The 1980s witnessed a period of growth and modernization of Elmendorf AFB . During 1982 , the 21st Tactical Fighter Wing converted from F - 4Es to F - 15A / B s . The 18th Tactical Fighter Squadron was assigned to Eielson AFB where it was equipped with A - 10s . The 54th Tactical Fighter Squadron , of Aleutian Campaign fame , activated once again in 1987 . Operating two F - 15 Squadrons ( 43rd and 54th TFS ) , the F - 15s were housed next to the 5021st Tactical Operations Squadron ' s T - 33 Shooting Stars . Rounding out the modernization program was the construction of an enhanced Regional Operations Control Center ( completed in 1983 ) , and the replacement of the 1950s generation aircraft control and warning radars with the state of the art AN / FPS - 117 Minimally Attended Radars . The integrated air warning and defense system became fully operational in mid 1985 . Alaska ' s air defense force was further enhanced with the assignment of two E - 3As to Elmendorf AFB in 1986 . The Alaskan Command was reestablished at Elmendorf in 1989 as subunified joint service command under the Pacific Command in recognition of Alaska ' s military importance in the Pacific region . The Elmendorf AFB is a site of one of the now decommissioned FLR - 9 Wullenweber - class antennas , a node of the now obsolete High Frequency SIGINT direction finding system . Modern era . That importance was further recognized when the F - 15E Strike Eagle equipped 90th Tactical Fighter Squadron was reassigned to Elmendorf Air Force Base from Clark Air Base in the Philippines in May 1991 . The Pacific Regional Medical Center moved from Clark to Elmendorf and construction of a new , greatly expanded hospital began in 1993 . The early 1990s also saw major organizational changes and an expansion of Elmendorf ' s importance . In 1991 , the 21st Tactical Fighter Wing was reorganized as an objective wing and all the major tenant units on Elmendorf were placed under it . The 21st Wing was inactivated and the 3d Wing was reassigned from Clark Air Base to Elmendorf Air Force Base on 19 December 1991 . This was in keeping with the Air Force ' s polices of retaining the oldest and most illustrious units during a period of major force reductions . It was also an alternative landing site for the Space Shuttle . Base Realignment and Closure , 2005 . The Department of Defense proposed a major realignment of the base as part of the Base Realignment and Closure program announced on 13 May 2005 . Currently , under the plan , one F - 15E and one F - 15C squadron have been replaced with the F - 22 , and the C - 130 fleet has been replaced with the C - 17 Globemaster III . Aviation accidents . On 22 September 1995 , a Boeing E - 3 Sentry Airborne early warning and control aircraft with 22 USAF personnel and two Canadian air crew members crashed after ingesting a flock of Canada Geese , killing all on board . On 28 July 2010 , a Boeing C - 17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft practicing for an upcoming airshow crashed into a wooded area within the base , killing all four air crew members ; three from the Alaska Air National Guard and one from the USAF . The cause of the accident has been reported to be pilot error . The pilot performed an aggressive righthand turn and ignored the aircraft ' s stall warning , continuing the turn until the aircraft stalled due to lack of airspeed . The low altitude of the turn made it impossible for the crew to recover from the stall in time to avoid impacting the ground . On 16 November 2010 , a Lockheed Martin F - 22 Raptor took off for a training mission . At approximately 1900 hrs . , the base reported that the aircraft was overdue and missing . Air Force rescue teams were reported to be concentrating their search for the missing plane and pilot in Denali National Park . The F - 22 ' s crash site was found about 100 miles north of Anchorage near the town of Cantwell , Alaska . The pilot , of the US Air Force ' s 525th Fighter Squadron , was killed in the crash .