Lackland Air Force Base (AFB) is located in San Antonio, Texas and has been run by the U.S. Air Force since 1941. In October of 2010, it joined with the Randolph Air Force Base to form Joint Base San Antonio. The site where Lackland AFB is now located used to be Kelly Field. Lackland and Kelly Field then both became separate entities, with Kelly Field becoming San Antonio Aviation Cadet Center. It was not until 1947 that Lackland officially received its name, after Brigadier General Frank Lackland. When the Korean War started, Lackland AFB was used to train 28 military squadrons. Dormitories had to be built quickly in order to keep up with the escalating numbers, but it was reduced again following the war. During the Vietnam War, training was split between Lackland and a technical school. After 1966, training was able to all take place at the base.
During the 1960s, spinal meningitis broke out, which left one airman dead. This lead to the cancellation of many of the training exercises and basic training had to move to Amarillo Air Force Base. Between 1966 and 1970, more permanent buildings were built at Lackland. At the time, these were state-of-the-art buildings and allowed trainees to live, eat, and train at one facility. Lackland was also integral in the Air Defense Command and became one of the 28 radar stations they used. Lackland was also used by the Federal Aviation Administration for air traffic control. To this day, the FAA operates a search radar from the facility.
In recent years, the Lackland Air Force Base has seen the closure of many of its training programs. One example of this was the Air Force Officer Training School to a base in Alabama. Today, Lackland is made up of its main base, Security Hill, the Medina/Lackland Training Annex, and the Kelly airstrip. In 2009, the decision was made to make one large base out of the smaller military bases in San Antonio. Now known as the Joint Base San Antonio, it is joined with the U.S. Army Fort Sam Houston, the U.S. Air Force Randolph Air Force Base, and the Lackland Air Force Base.
The Joint Base San Antonio is run by the U.S. Air Force 502nd Air Base Wing, Air Education and Training Command. It began in 2010 after a recommendation by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission in 2005. Today, this base has approximately 80,000 people and can support students up to 138,000. It is now famous as being the largest Department of Defense Installation in the country. The Plant Replacement Value of the base is over 10 billion dollars and its budget every year is 800 million dollars. It also has the second highest concentration of retired officers in the country.
The 502nd Air Base Wing which now has jurisdiction over the base was established in 2009. The goal of this wing is to serve the three different installations at the base and to ensure that they are able to do their jobs.
If you were arrested for a crime while on Lackland Air Force Base or the other military installations at Joint Base San Antonio, your first steps should be to get qualified legal representation. Our team at The Federal Practice Group Worldwide Service understands military law as well as criminal law. We are well aware of the penalties you could be facing a member of the military and will do everything in our power to ensure that you are protected.
The proven attorneys at The Federal Practice Group have over a century of combined experience successfully assisting federal employees through the most difficult periods of their lives and careers.
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