Moffett Federal Airfield

Moffett Federal Airfield, also known as Moffett Field, is a joint civil-military airport located in Santa Clara County, California, between northern Mountain View and northern Sunnyvale. Established in 1931, the original station was commissioned on April 12, 1933, as NAS Sunnyvale. After the death of Rear Admiral William A. Moffett, it was renamed Moffett Field on September 1, 1933. The base was briefly under Army jurisdiction from 1935 to 1942 before returning to Navy control as Naval Air Station Moffett Field. During World War II, it was used for blimp operations, and post-war, it became a base for anti-submarine warfare and maritime patrol aircraft like the P2V Neptune and P-3 Orion. At its peak in the 1990s, it served as the U.S. Navy's principal Pacific Fleet base for P-3C operations, hosting several patrol squadrons.

Due to post-Cold War defense cutbacks and BRAC actions, NAS Moffett Field was closed as a naval air station on July 1, 1994, and transferred to the NASA Ames Research Center, which now operates it as Moffett Federal Airfield. Current tenant military activities include the 129th Rescue Wing of the California Air National Guard and the Headquarters for the 7th Psychological Operations Group of the US Army Reserve. NASA also operates its own aircraft from the airfield. In 2014, NASA leased 1,000 acres of the property to Google for 60 years. The airfield features two active runways: 14L/32R, a concrete runway measuring 2,803 meters, and 14R/32L, an asphalt runway measuring 2,476 meters. Notable features include Hangars One, Two, and Three, which are designated as a National Historic District. Hangar One, constructed in 1931, is one of the world's largest freestanding structures, while Hangars Two and Three were built from wood and concrete during World War II. Hangar 3 was demolished in stages beginning in Summer 2024.