Bakalar Air Force Base Bakalar Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located north - northeast of Columbus , Indiana . Opened during World War II , the base was a training base for medium - range C - 46 and C - 47 troop carrier planes and glider pilots . It also was used for training B - 25 Mitchell and B - 26 Marauder bomber crews . Reactivated during the Cold War , It was used as an Air Force Reserve training base for troop carrier , tactical airlift and special operations flying units . The base was closed in 1970 . History . It was established as a U . S . Army Air Forces installation initially known as Atterbury Air Base . It was named in honor of Brigadier General W . W . Atterbury . A graduate of Yale University , General Atterbury later became president of the Pennsylvania Railroad . The base was renamed Bakalar Air Force Base in a formal dedication ceremony held November 13 , 1954 , in honor of First Lieutenant John Edmond Bakalar , USAAF . A native of Hammond , Indiana , Lt . Bakalar , of the 353rd Fighter Squadron , 354th Fighter Group , was killed in action September 1 , 1944 , over France when his P - 51D - 5 Mustang , AAF Ser . No . " 44 - 13895 " , crashed . World War II . Atterbury Army Airfield was opened in February 1943 . Its history , however , dates back to June 1 , 1942 . Under the supervision of architect Stratton Hammon , construction began August 13 , 1942 . Four concrete runways , 5000 × 150 ' were constructed , oriented north / south ; northeast / southwest ; east / west , and northwest / southeast for the airfield . A large parking ramp was also constructed on the south side of the runway complex with several large hangars . A small secondary airfield , Bartholomew County Airfield was also used as an auxiliary airfield , its location and details today being lost to time . More than 1 , 000 workers employed during its construction . At the time Hammons took over the job of building the air base , he was 38 years old and had been an architect for 22 years . In December , with base nearly complete , promoted from captain to major and oversaw building of three more army fields , a general hospital , quartermaster depot , medical depot , and other structures . In order to finish base on time , Hammon needed a railroad spur to the base to ship in ten carloads of cement per day . Originally Pennsylvania Railroad refused to install the spur until other military obligations were met . Hammon ignored the military chain of command and appealed directly to the head of the War Production Board . Two days later , the spur was being built . Atterbury was over 2 , 000 acres in size and cost over four million dollars to construct . To make room for the base , fourteen families were forced to sell their property to the government . It included more than one hundred buildings , all intended to be temporary . Station buildings and streets were also constructed , the buildings consisting primarily of wood , tar paper , and non - masonry siding . The use of concrete and steel was limited because of the critical need elsewhere . Most buildings were hot and dusty in the summer and very cold in the winter . Water , sewer and electrical services were also constructed . I Troop Carrier Command . Jurisdiction of the new base was assigned to the I Troop Carrier Command , the mission of the base was to the training and organization of C - 47 Skytrain and C - 46 Commando transport aircrews . Also many Waco CG - 4 glider pilots received training at Atterbury . On 5 May 1943 , the 57th Station Compliment Squadron was activated on the airfield to organize military personnel and provide a station command organization . Atterbury Army Air Field was distinct base from the United States Army Camp Atterbury , which was finished in summer 1942 a few miles north of where the air base would be laid out . As originally conceived , Atterbury Army Air Field was intended to allow ground troops ( Camp Atterbury ) and air troops ( Atterbury Army Air Field ) to learn to work together in combat . By late summer 1943 most of the transport and glider training by I Troop Carrier command was being phased down at Atterbury , In September , elements of the III Bomber Command 596th Bombardment Squadron , 397th Bombardment Group from MacDill Field , Floria trained at the base . The unit flew B - 26 Marauder s from the field until early 1944 when they moved back to their unit , then stationed at Hunter Army Airfield , Georgia prior to their overseas deployment . From Hunter , the group was deployed and reassinged to Ninth Air Force , where they entered combat at RAF Gosfield ( AAF - 154 ) , England . First Air Force . In 1944 , a more controversial mission ( at the time ) began at Atterbury . Throughout World War II , continued pressure from African - American civilian leaders led the Army to allow blacks train as members of bomber crews , a step that opened many more skilled combat roles to them . In response to this pressure , jurisdiction of Atterbury AAF was transferred from I Troop Carrier Command to First Air Force on 24 August 1944 , and the mission of the base was changed to training black airmen for B - 25 Mitchell medium bomber crews . Two squadrons , the 618th and 619th Bombardment Squadron , assigned to the 477th Composite Group at Godman Field , Kentucky performed crew training at Atterbury between August 1944 and March 1945 . Administrative functions of the station were maintained by the 118th Army Air Force Base Unit . Atterbury was used for B - 25 training because the unit ' s main field in Kentucky was unsuitable for use by medium bombers . In March 1945 the 477th reached its full combat strength and B - 25 Mitchell training under the 477th CG was moved to Freeman Field , Indiana which consolidated the group , which was scheduled to go into combat on 1 July . By April , most personnel had been transferred , and Atterbury was placed in a standby status under control of Godman Field . After the departure of the 477th , most facilities were closed . The facility operated as a communications site until December 1945 when it was closed and turned over to the War Assets Administration for disposal . After World War II , the base used periodically for pilot training . Cold War . From 1946 to 1949 , the base was closed . However , in May 1949 it was announced that the Air Force was exercising a right of return to reopen the World War II airfield . The mission of Atterbury was to be a primarily as a summer training headquarters for 2 - week active duty tours of 5 , 000 to 10 , 000 Air Force Reservists from 13 north - central states . It also served a dual purpose as a maintenance center . During the time of its inactivation , the Army Air Forces had been made a separate branch of the military as the United States Air Force . The base was renamed Atterbury Air Force Base , and placed under Continental Air Command , Tenth Air Force . The 2466th Air Force Reserve Combat Training Center re - opened the installation , and the reserve training center was moved from Evansville , Indiana . The bulk of rehabilitation work was completed on the base facilities during June . The 434th Troop Carrier Wing , Medium , was established and activated on 1 July 1949 in the Air Force Reserve at the new Atterbury Air Force Base . The Indianapolis - based 434th Troop Carrier Group , Medium , was moved to Atterbury on 1 July 1949 and assigned as the wing ' s operational component . The group had 4 C - 47 Skytrain squadrons , the 71st , 72d , 73d and 74th Troop Carrier Squadron s . At Atterbury , the wing served as a training organization for Air Force Reservists , with most of the training was accomplished on weekends . In August 1949 , the group converted to C - 46 Commando es , and training for the most part consisted of transition flying training . Before the transition was completed , the Group spent two weeks in the summer of 1950 ( 8 – 22 July ) on active duty in a summer encampment . The 434th returned to its previous training role upon its return from the Korean War . On 13 November 1954 , the base was renamed Bakalar Air Force Base in a formal dedication ceremony in honor of First Lieutenant John Edmond Bakalar . His decorations and awards included the Distinguished Service Cross and the Purple Heart , both awarded posthumously , the Air Medal with six Oak Leaf Clusters . Throughout the 1950s , the 434th TCW performed routine reserve training at Bakalar . In 1957 , the wing transitioned from C - 46 Commandos to the Fairchild C - 119 Flying Boxcar . C - 119 ' s were flown by the 434th until the base was closed in 1970 . 1959 saw the 434th Troop Carrier Group being inactivated on 14 April , its squadrons being assigned directly to the wing under the tri - deputate organization adopted by the wing . The 2466th Air Force Reserve Combat Training Center was inactivated on 1 July 1959 due to budget reductions , its mission being folded into that of the 434th TCW . During the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis , the 434th TCW was activated and brought under the operational control of Nineteenth Air Force , Tactical Air Command . The wing ' s C - 119 squadrons began transporting supplies , equipment and Army personnel to Homestead Air Force Base , Florida . The 73d Troop Carrier Squadron was deployed to Scott Air Force Base , Illinois , where it operated from during the crisis . In December 1962 , the wing was returned to control of the Fifth Air Force Reserve Region and resumed reserve training . In 1963 , the 434th TCW was reorganized with the addition of three new reserve troop carrier groups being placed under its control . The 930th , 931st and 932d Troop Carrier Groups were activated and assigned on 11 February . The Wing ' s squadrons were divided between the three new groups , the 71st TCS being reassigned to the 930th TCG ; the 72d to the 931st TGG , and the 73d to the 932d TCG . All were equipped with Wing ' s former C - 119 Boxcars . On 1 October 1966 , the 932d TCG was released from assignment to the 434th TCW and reassigned to the 442d Military Airlift Wing at Richards - Gebaur AFB , Missouri , in preparation for heavy cargo operations . On 1 July 1967 , the 434th was re - designated the 434th Tactical Airlift Wing , its subordinate groups and squadrons also being re - designated as Tactical Airlift units . On 13 May 1968 , the 930th Tactical Airlift Group was activated for combat duty in the Vietnam War ; the 71st TAS ' s C - 119 aircraft were selected for modification to the AC - 119 G Gunship configuration . The group and its Bakalar Reservists were reassigned to Lockbourne AFB , Ohio on 11 June . The 71st was subsequently re - designated as the 71st Air Commando Squadron ( ACS ) on 15 June and eventually was deployed to Nha Trang Air Base , South Vietnam on 5 December where it was assigned to the 14th Special Operations Wing . Subsequently re - designated as a Special Operatons Squadron , the 71st flew combat operations in South Vietnam until 5 June 1969 when its reservists were returned to the United States . The major command at Bakalar was changed from Continental Air Command ( ConAc ) to the Air Force Reserve ( AFRES ) on 1 August 1968 , at the time a field operating agency , with Tactical Air Command ( TAC ) as the operational gaining command . The 434th TAW , however , remained as part of the Fifth Air Force Reserve Region . In 25 June 1969 , the 931st Tactical Airlift Group was re - designated as the 931st Tactical Air Support Group , its 72d Tactical Airlift Squadron being re - designated and re - equipped with U - 3A " Blue Canoe " light utility aircraft . The 931st TASG mission was charged with tactical air support . The group ' s C - 119s were reassigned to the 71st Special Operations Squadron and modified to the AC - 119G configuration . Closure . Due to funding reductions for CONUS bases in 1969 to fund combat operations of the Vietnam War , Bakalar Air Force Base was selected for closure . The 930th Special Operations Group was moved to Grissom Air Force Base , Indiana where it later became a Tactical Fighter Group in 1973 , flying the A - 37 Dragonfly . It was inactivated on 1 July 1975 . Its 71st Air Commando Squadron was inactivated in 1973 and its AC - 119s retired . It was later reactivated in 1987 as part of the new Air Force Special Operations Command ( AFSOC ) and now flies CV - 22 Osprey s from Kirtland AFB , New Mexico . The 931st Tactical Air Support Group was also moved to Grissom AFB in 1969 . It has gone though a number of changes over the years , and remains active today as the 931st Air Refueling Group at McConnell AFB , Kansas . Its operational component is the 72d Air Refueling Squadron , flying KC - 135 Stratotanker s . The 434th Tactical Airlift Wing was inactivated on 31 December 1969 with the closure of Bakalar AFB . It was later reactivated as the 434th Air Refueling Wing , and now operates as the host reserve wing at Grissom Air Reserve Base , Indiana , flying the KC - 135 Stratotanker . Bakalar AFB was closed by the Department of Defense in January 1970 . The City of Columbus received the title in 1972 , and in 1982 renamed it Columbus Municipal Airport . Current use . Today the former Bakalar Air Force Base is a first - class General Aviation airport . Some original World War II and Air Force buildings remain and are in use . Additionally , a museum , the Atterbury / Bakalar Air Museum , has been " dedicated to the memory of all military and civilian personnel who served there " . In 1995 , the local Aviation Board began a restoration of the former air base . During the process , the board determined that one of the few remaining World War II buildings on the base should be dedicated to a war hero . The original Atterbury Army Airfield Chapel was restored and named for Women Airforce Service Pilots ( WASP ) Jean Lewellen Norbeck . Norbeck ( 1912 – 1944 ) was a Columbus native , and was one of 38 WASP killed in service during World War II and the only woman from Bartholomew County killed in the line of duty . Stationed at Shaw Field , South Carolina , she was a test pilot for planes that had been marked unsafe . On October 16 , 1944 , she was killed when the plane she was piloting crashed . The restored chapel was dedicated to her on May 29 , 1998 .