San Clemente Island is the southernmost of the Channel Islands of California. It is owned and operated by the United States Navy, and is a part of Los Angeles County. It is administered by Naval Base Coronado. It is 21 miles (34 km) long and has 147.13 km2 (56.81 sq mi) of land. The 2018 census estimates 148 military and civilian personnel reside on the island. The city of San Clemente in Orange County, California is named after the island.
The United States Naval Special Warfare Command (USNSWC), also known as NAVSPECWARCOM and WARCOM, is the naval component of United States Special Operations Command, the unified command that oversees and conducts the nation's special operations and missions.
Joint Expeditionary Base–Little Creek (JEB–LC), formerly known as Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek and commonly called simply Little Creek, is the major operating base for the Amphibious Forces in the United States Navy's Atlantic Fleet. The mission of the Naval Amphibious Base is to provide required support services to over 15,000 personnel of the 27 homeported ships and 78 resident and/or supported activities. The base's combination of operational, support, and training facilities are geared predominantly to amphibious operations, making the base unique among bases of the United States and Allied Navies.
The Phil Bucklew Naval Special Warfare Center is a component command of the United States Naval Special Warfare Command, United States Navy. It is sited within Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, California.
Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island, at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado (NBC), and the home port of several aircraft carriers of the United States Navy.
Silver Strand, or simply The Strand, is a low, narrow, sandy isthmus or a human-constructed tombolo 7 miles (11 km) long in San Diego County, California, partially within the Silver Strand State Beach. It connects Coronado Island with Imperial Beach. Together with the Point Loma peninsula it shelters and defines San Diego Bay. State Route 75 (SR 75) runs the length of the strand and is a popular site for jogging and bicycling. The Silver Strand Half Marathon is run along the route each November.
Naval Amphibious Base Coronado is a US naval installation located across the bay from San Diego, California. The base, situated on Silver Strand, between San Diego Bay and the Pacific Ocean, is a major Navy shore command, supporting over 30 tenant commands, and is the West Coast focal point for special and expeditionary warfare training and operations. The on‑base population is 5,000 military personnel and 7,000 students and reservists. The base is one of the eight components of Naval Base Coronado (NBC).
Michael Anthony Monsoor was a United States Navy SEAL who was killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom during the Battle of Ramadi and posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. He enlisted in the United States Navy in 2001 and graduated from Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL Training BUD/S class 250 in 2004. After further training he was assigned to Delta Platoon, SEAL Team 3.
Naval Auxiliary Landing Field (NALF) San Clemente Island, also known as Frederick Sherman Field, is a military airport located on San Clemente Island, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It has been owned by the United States Navy since 1937.
Camp Kearny was a U.S. military base in San Diego County, California, on the site of the current Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. It operated from 1917 to 1946. The base was named in honor of Brigadier General Stephen W. Kearny.
Naval Outlying Landing Field (NOLF) Imperial Beach is a United States Navy facility for helicopters, situated on 1,204 acres (5 km2) approximately 14 miles (23 km) south of San Diego and within the city limits of Imperial Beach, California. It is known as "The Helicopter Capital of the World".
Silver Strand Training Complex (SSTC) is a training facility for U.S. Special Operations Forces. Located between Imperial Beach and Silver Strand State Beach near San Diego. The area is part of Naval Base Coronado and commanded by that base's Commanding Officer. While just north of Imperial Beach, it is within the city limits of Coronado. The facility was known by locals as the "elephant cage" which is a nickname for the large Wullenweber direction finder antenna. The antenna was used to provide direction finding, primary communication links for U.S. Navy submarines. The antenna was finally dismantled in 2015, even though it was scheduled to be removed in fiscal year 2007.
Mountain Warfare Training Camp Michael Monsoor in San Diego County, California is a 1,063 acres (4 km2) training facility used by the Naval Special Warfare Center. At 3,500 ft (1,100 m) elevation, it is 50 miles (80 km) east of San Diego near the unincorporated community of Campo.
The average member of the United States Navy's Sea, Air, Land Teams (SEALs) spends over a year in a series of formal training environments before being awarded the Special Warfare Operator Naval Rating and the Navy Enlisted Classification (NEC) O26A Combatant Swimmer (SEAL) or, in the case of commissioned naval officers, the designation 113X Special Warfare Officer. All Navy SEALs must attend and graduate from their rating's 24-week "A" School known as Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) school, a basic parachutist course and then the 26-week SEAL Qualification Training program.
The Commander, Naval Surface Force Pacific (COMNAVSURFPAC) is the type commander for the Surface Force under the United States Pacific Fleet. The COMNAVSURFPAC also leads the Naval Surface Force (COMNAVSURFOR) and the Surface Warfare Enterprise. The position is typically held by a Vice-Admiral. From 1978 onwards, the headquarters has been located at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, Coronado, California.
Camp Morena is an inland training facility of Naval Base Coronado, in the Mountain Empire region of San Diego County, California.
The Navy Region Southwest is one of eleven current naval regions responsible to Commander, Navy Installations Command for the operation and management of Naval shore installations in California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico. It is headquartered across from the Broadway Pier in downtown San Diego. The command also serves as the regional coordinator for the Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, headquartered in Hawaii, coordinating support for bases in Southern California and Nevada.
California during World War II was a major contributor to the World War II effort. California's long Pacific Ocean coastline provided the support needed for the Pacific War. California also supported the war in Europe. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, most of California's manufacturing was shifted to the war effort. California became a major ship builder and aircraft manufacturer. Existing military installations were enlarged and many new ones were built. California trained many of the troops before their oversea deployment. Over 800,000 Californians served in the United States Armed Forces. California agriculture, ranches and farms were used to feed the troops around the world. California's long coastline also put the state in fear, as an attack on California seemed likely. California was used for the temporary and permanent internment camps for Japanese Americans. The population grew significantly, largely due to servicemen who were stationed at the new military bases/training facilities and the mass influx of workers from around the U.S. in the growing defense industries. With all the new economy activity, California was lifted out of the Great Depression. Over 500,000 people moved to California from other states to work in the growing economy. California expanded its oil and mineral production to keep up with the war demand.
San Clemente Naval Auxiliary Air Station is a closed airfield located near the center of the San Clemente Island, California. Also called San Clemente Airfield, the airfield was built in 1934 with two 1,600-foot dirt runways. San Clemente Island is owned and operated by the United States Navy since November 7, 1934. The Works Progress Administration and a civilian contractor improved the airfield in 1938. The two runways were rebuilt to paved at 3,000-feet and 2,000 feet long by the WPA. The WPA also built a new hangar at the base. The airfield became a US Marines training base with the start of World War 2. A Marines squadron was station at Airfield and began air scouting training in 1942. The Marines trained in 19 Vought SB2U Vindicator carcraft and a one Grumman J2F Duck seaplane. The US Army installed two radar stations nearby and the runways were improved in 1941, the 3,000-foot runway was made into a 5,000-foot runway. In 1943 the airfield was renamed Naval Auxiliary Air Facility San Clemente Island. The Airfield supported bomb testing, radar training, Naval fighter gunnery training, and electronic countermeasures on the Island during the war. Over the years the size and scope of the airfield deduced, by 1977 the 2,000-foot runways was removed, and the east/west 5,000-foot runway was used rarely and closed at times. The deduced airfield was sometimes used for training in amphibious and air assault operational, also UAV operations. Today the runways as two helipads on the old runway. Naval Auxiliary Landing Field San Clemente Island became the main active Airfield.
