Travis Air Force Base Travis Air Force Base is a United States Air Force air base under the operational control of the Air Mobility Command ( AMC ) , located three miles ( 5 km ) east of the central business district of Fairfield , in Solano County , California , United States . The base is named for Brigadier General Robert F . Travis , who died in the crash of a B - 29 Superfortress while transporting a nuclear weapon . Units . The host unit at Travis AFB is the 60th Air Mobility Wing . The 60th AMW is the largest wing in the Air Force ' s Air Mobility Command , with a versatile fleet of C - 5 Galaxies , KC - 10 Extender s , and C - 17 Globemaster III aircraft . Components of the 60th AMW are : Overview . Situated in the San Francisco Bay Area and known as the " Gateway to the Pacific " , Travis Air Force Base handles more cargo and passenger traffic through its airport than any other military air terminal in the United States . Today , Travis AFB includes approximately 7 , 260 active USAF military personnel , 4 , 250 Air Force Reserve personnel and 3 , 770 civilians . Travis AFB has a major impact on the community as a number of military families and retirees have chosen to make Fairfield their permanent home . Travis AFB is the largest employer in the City and Solano County as well , and the massive Travis workforce has a local economic impact of more than $ 1 billion annually . The Base also contributes a large number of highly skilled people to the local labor pool . The demolition and reconstruction of Runway 21L - 03R , as well as the construction of a new C - 17 Assault Landing Zone , began on 4 February 2010 with completion expected sometime late in the fall of 2012 . Baldi Bros Inc . of Beaumont , California is listed as the " Prime Contractor " on the project , with Government oversight of construction and contract administration being performed by a group of both USAF and USN ( ROICC Travis ) civilian and military construction specialists . The project specifications state that work at the 21L - 03R location will include the " rehabilitation of Runway 21L - 03R , including removal of the existing pavement ( 11 , 000 feet by 300 feet ) , construction of new runway pavement ( 11 , 000 feet by 150 feet ) , shoulders with drainage improvements , airfield lighting and signage , navigational aid relocation , new approach lighting system , and incidental related work " . The C - 17 / ALZ project specifications indicate that construction will consist of " construction of a new C - 17 Assault Landing Zone facility on the south side of Runway 21L - 03R at the 21L threshold end of the runway and incidental related work " . In addition , the base ' s former Strategic Air Command Alert Facility is now a U . S . Navy complex that typically supports 2 transient Navy E - 6B Mercury TACAMO aircraft assigned to Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron THREE ( VQ - 3 ) Detachment and normally home - based at Tinker AFB , Oklahoma . The base is also host to David Grant USAF Medical Center , a 265 - bed , $ 200 million Air Force teaching hospital , which serves both in - service and retired military personnel . Museum . Travis AFB also plays host to the Jimmy Doolittle Air & Space Museum , one of the largest collections of military aircraft on the west coast . Museum of Military Aviation History : The Museum has a representative collection of American military aircraft from various periods : fighters , bombers , trainers , cargo and liaison aircraft . Its exhibits showcase Jimmy Doolittle and the Tokyo Raiders , the 15th AF in World War II , the Tuskegee Airmen , the Consairways story , the Berlin Airlift , and the history of Travis AFB with special emphasis on the Korean war , the Vietnam war and other significant military missions . Additional Attractions : Other exhibits include a space capsule for children , air force uniforms , the nose of a World War II glider , World War II aircraft recognition models , a Link Trainer , aircraft engines , and the cockpits of a T - 28 , a T - 37 , and an F - 100 . History . Originally named Fairfield - Suisun Army Air Base , construction began on Travis in June 1942 . Initially , Fourth Air Force intended to station medium attack bombers at the new air base , and in the autumn of 1942 , some of its aircraft used the runways for practice landings . During this period , United States Navy planes also practiced maneuvers at the same field . For a few months , in fact , the outline of the deck of an aircraft carrier was painted on one runway . This helped newly commissioned Navy pilots , flying F6F Hellcat s and SB2C Helldiver s , practice carrier landings and takeoffs before they were assigned to the Pacific Fleet . Despite its plans , Fourth Air Force never officially occupied the base . On 13 October 1942 , following negotiations that had begun in September , the War Department assigned the new facility to the Air Transport Command ( ATC ) in recognition of the base ' s potential to become a major aerial port and supply transfer point for the Pacific War Zone . Its proximity to rail , highway , and water transportation plus its location near San Francisco figured heavily in this decision . ATC assigned the airfield to the West Coast Sector of its Pacific Wing . The first unit to take up permanent residence at the airfield was a group of ten enlisted men and one officer from the 914th Quartermaster Division at Hamilton Field . These supply and food service workers arrived on 10 May 1943 to prepare the base for the arrival , in turn , of the first ATC personnel . One week later , on 17 May , ATC officially activated Fairfield - Suisun AAB and activated the 23rd Ferrying ( later Transport ) Group on 29 May 1943 . The base ' s primary mission during World War II was ferrying aircraft and supplies to the Pacific Theater . The installation ' s first commander was Lt Col . Arthur Stevenson . By the end of World War II , Fairfield - Suisun AAB had become the West Coast ' s largest aerial port . The airlift of troops and supplies to occupied Japan and Korea , and the processing of war - weary returning GI ' s , had become its primary mission . Following the establishment of the United States Air Force as a separate service in 1947 , the installation was renamed Fairfield - Suisun Air Force Base . On 1 June 1948 , the Military Air Transport Service assumed jurisdiction of the base . In July , two of the base ' s air transport squadrons left for USAFE to assist in the Berlin Airlift . On 1 May 1949 , the Strategic Air Command ( SAC ) became the parent major command for Travis AFB , turning it into a major long - range reconnaissance and intercontinental bombing installation for the 9th Bomb Group / 9th Bomb Wing . For the next nine years , airlift operations became secondary while Travis served as home for SAC bombers such as the B - 29 Superfortress , B - 36 Peacemaker , and eventually , the B - 52 Stratofortress . During this period , new hangars appeared , runways were added and widened , and permanent barracks and family living quarters were built . The base was renamed Travis Air Force Base in 1951 for Brigadier General Robert F . Travis , who was killed on 5 August 1950 when a B - 29 Superfortress on which he was acting as command pilot crashed 5 minutes after takeoff , killing General Travis and 18 others . Although the aircraft was carrying a Mark 4 nuclear weapon , the bomb ' s plutonium pit was carried aboard another aircraft , rendering a nuclear explosion impossible . However , the 5000 lbs . of high explosives in the weapon exploded about twenty minutes after the crash . The base was officially renamed Travis Air Force Base on 20 April 1951 . To provide air defense for the base , United States Army Nike surface - to - air missile sites were constructed during 1957 – 58 . Travis Air Force Base Defense Area Nike Sites ringing the air base were located near Dixon / Lambie ( T - 33 ) ; Elmira ( T - 10 ) ; Fairfield / Cement Hill ( T - 86 ) , and Potrero Hills ( T - 53 ) . Regular Army units manned the sites . The sites at Elmira ( T - 10 ) and Fairfield / Cement Hill ( T - 86 ) later received modifications to accept the Nike Hercules missile , while the sites at Dixon / Lambie and Potrero Hills were inactivated in 1959 . During the late 1960s and early 1970s , the Travis battalion assumed responsibility from the Army for the remaining active batteries guarding the entire San Francisco region . Headquarters facilities were located on Travis AFB . The Fairfield / Cement Hill site remained operational until 1971 , and Elmira shut down in 1974 . The Military Air Transport Service ( MATS ) resumed command of Travis AFB on 1 July 1958 , after SAC ' s new dispersal policy led to the transfer of the 14th Air Division to Beale AFB , California and the 1501st Air Transport Wing ( Heavy ) became the host unit . The Army Corps of Engineers San Francisco District commenced work in 1959 on a CIM - 10 Bomarc surface - to - air missile installation near Travis . However , on 25 March 1960 , the Air Force announced a $ 300 million cutback in the program and work ceased at the site . On 1 January 1966 , MATS was redesignated as the Military Airlift Command ( MAC ) and on 8 January 1966 , the 60th Military Airlift Wing ( 60 MAW ) replaced the 1501st as host unit . Over the next three decades , Travis would become known as the " Gateway to the Pacific " in its role as the principal military airlift hub in the western United States . Initially equipped with legacy C - 124 Globemaster and C - 133 Cargomaster aircraft from the 1501st , the year 1966 would also see the 60 MAW introduce the Air Force ' s new all - jet heavy airlifter , the C - 141 Starlifter . In 1969 , the 349th Military Airlift Wing ( 349 MAW ) of the Air Force Reserve ( AFRES ) was also established as an " Associate " wing to the 60 MAW , with both units sharing the same aircraft and eventually seamlessly mixing flight crews , maintenance crews and other support personnel . In 1970 , the 60 MAW and 349 MAW ( Assoc ) would also begin concurrently operating the Air Force ' s largest airlift aircraft , the C - 5 Galaxy . In 1991 , the 60 MAW was redesignated as the 60th Airlift Wing ( 60 AW ) and the 349 MAW was redesignated as the 349th Airlift Wing ( 349 AW ) the following year . In 1992 , with the reorganization of the Air Force following the end of the Cold War , Military Airlift Command ( MAC ) was inactivated and Travis came under the control of the newly established Air Mobility Command ( AMC ) . With the concurrent inactivation of Strategic Air Command ( SAC ) and the transfer of most of SAC ' s air refueling aircraft to AMC , the 60 AW gained KC - 10 Extender aircraft that had been previously assigned to March AFB , California . With the inclusion of an aerial refueling mission into its long - time strategic airlift mission , the 60 AW and the 349 AW were redesignated as the 60th Air Mobility Wing ( 60 AMW ) and the 349th Air Mobility Wing ( 349 AMW ) , the designations they continue to hold today . In 1997 , the 349 AMW ( Assoc ) also became part of the newly established Air Force Reserve Command ( AFRC ) while remaining operationally " gained " by AMC . In 1997 , the 60 AMW also shed its C - 141 aircraft , which were transferred to other Air Force , AFRC and Air National Guard ( ANG ) wings , while retaining its C - 5 and KC - 10 aircraft . On 8 August 2006 , the 60 AMW and 349 AMW ( Assoc ) again acquired a third aircraft type in their inventory with the arrival of the C - 17 Globemaster III .