Pope Air Force Base

Pope AFB is an Air Force operated military base located in the Cumberland County, less than 20 km away from Fayetteville. It is in the central part of North Carolina.

History

The facility was established as Camp Bragg, named after Braxton Bragg, one of the Civil War generals. The construction was finished in 1918. In 1919, the authorities decided to build a small runway too. The War Department took over the facility in 1919 and named it as it is today. It was turned into one of the first and oldest military bases around the United States of America territory. The new name was given in the honor of Harley Halbert Pope, who passed away in a plane crash in 1919. The primary missions of the base included photographic and mapping operations and mail services. A few observational balloons were also sent to strengthen the base. These operations kept going for about 8 years.

The ’30s came with a significant improvement in the base. First of all, more than 500 aircrafts were brought in within one day. The dirt runways were paved, ensuring a proper spot for the landing or lifting aircrafts. Once with the outbreak of World War II, the mission was changed again. The place was turned into a major training field for both air and ground operations. Since this was one of the most important military bases on the east coast, it represented one of the primary training spots for all types of troops.

Without a massive role played in the upcoming conflicts from Korea or Vietnam, the base was seriously reconsidered at some of the latest base realignment and closure commissions. The 2005 commission didn’t save it from realignment. The authorities decided to merge it with another larger base. In the first spring day of 2011, the base became a complementary base for the much larger Fort Bragg.

Over its history, Pope AFB hosted some of the most important units around the American forces, such as the 10-th Tactical Reconnaissance Group, the 4415-th Air Base Group, the 464-th Troop Carrier Wing, the 317-th Tactical Airlift Wing or the 23-rd Wing. The 23-rd Wing won a few unit awards too while being hosted at this base.

Units

The 43-rd Airlift Wing is currently the most important unit hosted on site. It provides full support to more than 15 tenant units, turning this base into a very complete environment and a force installation. The unit successfully fulfills its mission through its four groups – the operations group, the mission support group, the maintenance group and the medical group. Among the most important mission partners, you can count the Army Golden Knights, the 53-rd Aerial Port Squadron or the 18 Air Support Operations Group.

Housing

The housing system at Pope AFB is dealt with by the Picerne Military Housing. In order to benefit from a home as soon as you get there, you must get in touch with the office as soon as you find out about your deployment. Various factors like your rank, family, mission or deployment time may influence your application.