Sumpter Smith Air National Guard Base

Sumpter Smith Joint National Guard Base, identified by IATA code BHM and ICAO code KBHM, is a United States Air Force installation located near Birmingham, Alabama. The base was constructed between 1934 and 1938, becoming operational in 1938, and remains in use. It is owned by the Department of Defense and operated by the US Air Force, specifically controlled by the Air National Guard. The base shares its airfield with Birmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport, indicating a dual civilian and military usage. Its elevation is 198 meters (650 feet) above mean sea level. The base features two asphalt runways: 6/24, measuring 3,659.7 meters (12,007 feet), and 18/36, measuring 2,163.7 meters (7,099 feet).

The base is named after Colonel Walter Sumpter Smith, an electrical engineer and pilot who played a role in its development. Smith was commissioned into the 106th Observation Squadron of the Alabama National Guard in 1921. In 1938, the 106th Observation Squadron relocated to the newly constructed Birmingham Municipal Airport, which later became Sumpter Smith Joint National Guard Base. The base was briefly known as Alabama Air National Guard Base in the early 1990s before its original name was officially restored in 2017.

The primary unit stationed at Sumpter Smith Joint National Guard Base is the 117th Air Refueling Wing, which operates the KC-135R Stratotanker. This host wing includes the 117th Operations Group, the 106th Air Refueling Squadron (flying KC-135R Stratotankers), the 117th Maintenance Group, the 117th Medical Group, and the 117th Mission Support Group. Additionally, the 99th Air Refueling Squadron, a Geographically Separate Unit subordinate to the 6th Air Refueling Wing, is also based here, operating KC-135R Stratotankers.