Homestead Air Reserve Base
Summary
| Operating Country | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Location | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Status | ◉ Active |
| Usage | Military only |
| Year built | 1942 |
| Operating Organization | US Air Force Reserve |
| Units |
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Location & Details
| Coordinates | 25.4883°N, -80.3836°E |
| Elevation | 2 m (7 ft) |
| IATA code | HST |
| ICAO code | KHST |
| Runways |
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| Website | www.homestead.afrc.af.mil |
Description
Homestead Air Reserve Base is located in Miami-Dade County, Florida, northeast of the city of Homestead. The installation was established as Homestead Army Air Field on September 16, 1942, and operated as an Air Transport Command ferry airfield during World War II. Pilots trained at the facility using C-46, C-54, and C-87 aircraft. Following damage caused by a hurricane in 1945, the site was inactivated.
The base reactivated as a Strategic Air Command installation in 1954 and was renamed Homestead Air Force Base on February 1, 1955. During the Cold War, the 379th Bombardment Wing and the 19th Bombardment Wing operated B-47, B-52H, and KC-135A aircraft from the facility. In 1962, the base supported the 31st Tactical Fighter Wing and U.S. Army air defense units during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Control transferred to Tactical Air Command in 1968. Between 1970 and 1992, host and tenant units operated F-4 Phantom II, F-16 Fighting Falcon, and F-106 Delta Dart aircraft, along with search and rescue and airborne early warning platforms.
Hurricane Andrew destroyed the majority of the installation in 1992, leading to base realignment. In 1994, the installation transitioned to Air Force Reserve control and was renamed Homestead Air Reserve Station, later becoming Homestead Air Reserve Base in 2003.
The base is currently operated by the Air Force Reserve Command under the Tenth Air Force. The 482nd Fighter Wing serves as the host unit, operating squadrons of F-16C/D Fighting Falcons. Stationed flying units include the 367th Fighter Squadron and Detachment 1 of the Florida Air National Guard's 125th Fighter Wing, which maintains an alert detachment of F-15C Eagle aircraft for North American Aerospace Defense Command operations. The installation houses the headquarters for Special Operations Command South and the Florida Army National Guard's 50th Regional Support Group. Other resident units include the U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Safety and Security Team Miami and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Branch.