Army Air Forces control.Ĭlark grew into a major American air base during the Cold War, it being launching pad for Korean War and serving as an important logistics hub during the Vietnam War. Clark Air Base was recaptured by Americans in January 1945, after three months of fierce fighting to liberate the Philippines. ĭuring the war, the Allied prisoners on the Bataan Death March passed by the main gate of Clark Air Base as they followed the railway tracks north towards Camp O'Donnell. Japanese aircraft flying out of Clark participated in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval battle of the Second World War. The base was overrun by Japanese forces in early January 1942 and became a major center for Japanese air operations. However, most of them were destroyed on the ground during an air raid nine hours after the Pearl Harbor attack. It was very large for an air field of its day, and in the late summer and fall of 1941, many aircraft were sent to Clark in anticipation of a war with Imperial Japan. Army Air Corps medium bombers and accommodated half of the heavy bombers stationed in the Philippines during the 1930s. Clark later served as a landing field for U.S. A portion of Fort Stotsenburg was officially set aside for the Aviation Section of the Signal Corps and named Clark Field in September 1919 after Harold M. Navy P-8 Poseidon aircraft to Clark.Ĭlark Air Base was originally established as Fort Stotsenburg in Sapang Bato, Angeles, Pampanga in 1903 under control of the U.S. The primary mission of the contingent appears to be to patrol disputed South China Sea islands, 'to provide greater and more transparent air and maritime domain awareness to ensure safety for military and civilian activities in international waters and airspace.' The air contingent builds upon previous deployments by U.S. The Air Contingent was composed of five A-10C Thunderbolt IIs from the 51st Fighter Wing, Osan AB, South Korea three HH-60G Pave Hawks from the 18th Wing, Kadena AB, Japan and approximately 200 personnel deployed from multiple Pacific Air Force units. air bases in Pyeongtaek and Okinawa to Clark. In April 2016, an Air Contingent of USAF A-10s and HH-60s was deployed from U.S. Following the departure of American forces in 1991 due to the eruption of Mount Pinatubo, the base became the site of Clark International Airport, as well as the Clark Freeport Zone and the Air Force City of the Philippine Air Force. The base was a stronghold of the combined Philippine and American forces during the final months of World War II and a backbone of logistical support during the Vietnam War until 1975. The base covered 14.3 square miles (37 km 2) with a military reservation extending north that covered another 230 square miles (600 km 2). Air Force under the aegis of Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) and their predecessor organizations from 1903 to 1991.

Clark Air Base was previously a United States military facility, operated by the U.S. Location of Clark Air Base in the PhilippinesĬlark Air Base is a Philippine Air Force base on Luzon Island in the Philippines, located 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Angeles City, and about 40 miles (64 km) northwest of Metro Manila.

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