A Bit of OC History: Santa Ana Army Air Base

SAAAB once covered a large part of what's now Costa Mesa.

The attack on Pearl Harbor by Japanese forces on Dec. 7, 1941, was a wake-up call to the U.S. Across the country, forces were mobilizing – including here in Orange County, where thousands of soldiers prepared for war.

On Feb. 28, 1942, the Santa Ana Army Air Base (SAAAB) opened its gates to the first wave of cadets. At the time the largest of three training centers for U.S. Army Air Forces, the sprawling facility covered a large portion of what is now Costa Mesa.
The threat of a West Coast invasion prompted the opening of the base before it was complete. The first cadets slept in informal tent cities, which they gave colorful names like “Dixie” and the “Wildcat Inn.” Eventually, the 1,300-acre base consisted of some 800 buildings, including more than 1.3 million square feet of barracks, 18 schools and four theaters.

Approximately 149,000 cadets engaged in rigorous training over the next four years. Roughly 128,000 graduated to become pilots, bombardiers or navigators. The SAAAB also served as a redistribution center from which cadets were sent to other sites for further training and, eventually, deployment.

Soldiers at the SAAAB also had their fun. Aside from local nightclubs, theaters and sports recreation, the base attracted many celebrity entertainers including Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Jack Benny, Duke Ellington, Groucho Marx, and Rita Hayworth.
The base was eventually deactivated on March 31, 1946. But many former SAAAB cadets returned to Costa Mesa and the surrounding areas after World War II, ushering in the transformation of Orange County from agricultural center to residential community.

As for the SAAAB land, much of it redeveloped into the OC Fairgrounds, Orange Coast College, Vanguard University, the City of Costa Mesa Civic Center, and several parks, commercial strips and residential areas. Traces of this crucial piece of Orange County history can be found at the Costa Mesa Historical Society Museum, which honors the SAAAB through an extensive collection of photos, artifacts and records. The society also published a book, The SAAAB Story: The History of the Santa Ana Army Air Base, by Edrick J. Miller, which is for sale at the museum.

For more information on the Costa Mesa Historical Society, call (949) 631-5918 or visit www.costamesahistory.org.

See more photos by clicking here.

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