Contact Information
Base Contact Information
Naval Base Point Loma base operator (619) 553-1011, DSN 553-1011
Housing (619) 556-8443
Public Affairs (619) 553-7175
Geography and Area Information
Naval Base Point Loma is located in San Diego California at 32°40′37″N, 117°14′41″W on the Pacific coast. The peninsula the base occupies is directly west of Coronado Island, another US Naval facility. Naval Base Point Loma sits on a small peninsula approximately 20 minutes from downtown San Diego. Within the peninsula Naval Base Point Loma is bordered by the San Diego Bay to the east and the Fort Rosecrans Cemetery and the Pacific Ocean to the west. To the south the base borders the Pacific Ocean and Cabrillo National Monument. On the north the base juts up to the residential area of La Playa. Naval Base Point Loma is located directly on the Pacific coast and as a result is subject to the full fury and mercy of ocean weather patterns. Despite this, the area experiences year round warm and humid weather. Summers can peak in excess of 90 degrees and winters are generally around 50 degrees.
History
The area around Naval Base Point Loma has been in use as a strategic point since 1795 when the Spanish built a fort near Point Guijarros. This fort was abandoned in 1845 and in 1846 the fort was taken over by Capt. Samuel Du Pont of the United States Navy who claimed the area for the US. In February of 1852 1,400 acres in the southern section of Point Loma was set aside by then President Millard Fillmore for military purposes, designated as Fort Rosecrans and turned over to command of the Army. In 1898 the Army built a costal artillery battery at Fort Rosecrans that remained active and in service until 1945. When the Army costal artillery battery was decommissioned the Navy Electronics Laboratory was established and run by the University Of California Division Of War Research. This was eventually renamed the Naval Ocean Systems Center and in 1997 was incorporated as part of the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command at Point Loma.
In 1959 the command of Fort Rosecrans was transitioned from the Department of The Army to the Department of The Navy. The area was designated as The Navy Submarine Support Facility and officially brought into action in November of 1963 on a 280 acre plot of land on the coast. In November of 1974 the base was re-designated from a submarine support facility to a shore command serving Submarine Group Five, Submarine Development Group One, the Submarine Training Facility, assigned submarines, Submarine Squadron Three and later Submarine Squadron Eleven. On October 1st 1981 the base was officially designated as a Naval Submarine Base.
Starting in April of 1995 with the Base Realignment and Closure recommendations several US Navy commands were decommissioned or had home ports reassigned. Multiple commands throughout San Diego were regionalized and in an effort to reduce budget spending and the six naval installations in and around Point Loma were consolidated and designated as Naval Base Point Loma on October 1st 1998.
Primary and Ancillary functions
The primary mission of Naval Base Point Loma is to provide support and direct daily operation to and all US Navy tenants and commands in the region under command of Navy Region Southwest. Naval Base Point Loma is comprised of seven different facilities, each with its own unique purpose and mission. The base is home to the Fleet Antisubmarine Warfare Training Center, Submarine Base Point Loma, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR), SPAWAR Systems Center, Combat Training Center Pacific, Naval Consolidated Brig, Miramar and the Fleet Intelligence Command Pacific.
Tenants and home based US Navy vessels at Naval Base Point Loma include command of the U.S. Third Fleet, Narwhal (TWR-842), Torpedo Weapons Retrievers Devil Ray (TWR-6), Swamp Fox (TWR-821), USS Hampton (SSN-767), Homeported submarine USS Albuquerque (SSN-706), USS Jefferson City (SSN-759), USS San Francisco (SSN-711), USS Asheville (SSN-758) and the USS Topeka (SSN-754).
Support from Naval Base Point Loma is broken down into three main categories, Air Operations, Port Operations and Other Operations. Air operations include shore and airfield aviation support, maintenance, and management of Naval Air Forces in the region. Port operations cover shore installation support and that of naval forces afloat in Navy Ports. Other operations covers all functions associated with deployment and training of naval forces including but not limited to weapons and ammunition storage, disposal, accounting safety and range training support.
Public Access
Naval Base Point Loma is not an open facility to those with a valid military ID card but visitors can access the base. More information can be found by contacting the Naval Base Point Loma public affairs office at (619) 553-7175.
