• June 23, 2000: Commercial Aircraft Make Emergency Landing

    An American Eagle commuter plane en route to Las Vegas, Nevada, made a successful emergency landing on the main runway. The pilot had discovered hydraulic problems shortly after leaving Los Angeles. The twin-engine Saab 340 carried 31 passengers and three crewmembers.As early as 1933, the idea of

  • June 22, 1971: F-4 Testing Engineer Wins Air Medal

    Elbert L. “Burt” Rutan, a civilian flight test engineer, was awarded an Air Medal for his work in developing flight techniques that would allow F-4 Phantom II pilots to recover from out-of-control conditions. The rest of the test team was similarly rewarded, but Mr. Rutan was believed to be the

  • June 21, 1940: Muroc Gunnery Range Officially Activated

    The Muroc Bombing and Gunnery Range was officially activated, although it had been in continuous use since September, 1933. At that time, the Army facility was concentrated on the eastern shore of the lakebed. It consisted solely of a wooden building, several tents, and a wooden water tower. It was

  • June 20, 1940: Roosevelt Signs Muroc Land Legislation

    President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 8450, transferring all public lands in the Muroc area (approximately 56,000 acres) to the War Department, and initiating the purchase of the remaining privately owned parcels. Congress had approved legislation authorizing this in March 1935.

  • June 19, 1958: Bachelor Officers' Quarters Construction Begins

    A contractor began construction of four two-story barracks-type buildings to house bachelor military officers and civilian employees.  This project marked the completion of the Center’s move to the New Base Area.  With the transfer of the Bachelors Officers Quarters, two surplus hangars, the bowling

  • June 18, 1956: Rocket Sled World Record

    A Convair Rocket Sled set a world’s speed record for recoverable sleds at the Experimental High Speed Track, reaching 1,560 mph. The sled, powered by 12 rocket motors, was designed to test rain erosion on aircraft components.A rocket sled is a test platform that slides along a set of rails,

  • June 17, 1997: 18th Space Surveillance Squadron Tenant Unit

    The 18th Space Surveillance Squadron became a tenant organization at Edwards AFB. The Air Force Space Command unit was housed in the surplus Joint Propulsion Laboratory buildings at North Base. Its mission involved detecting, tracking, identifying, and collecting the special signatures of objects in

  • June 16, 2010: Edwards AFB Street Name Changes

    To better portray the history of the U.S. Army Air Corps, U.S. Army Air Forces, U.S. Air Force and Edwards part in that history, military and civilian alike, who have made significant contributions, Civil Engineering personnel removed 50 old street name signs and replaced them with new street name

  • June 15, 2007: Signed Lease - Center of Excellence

    A lease-signing ceremony was held for the Center of Excellence with representatives from the Air Force Flight Test Center and the Muroc Joint Unified School District. The lease signing allowed Edwards Air Force Base Civil Engineering personnel  to take over responsibility of maintaining the old

  • June 14, 1978: Officer Wearing Many Hats

    Brigadier General Philip Conley established the position of Air Force Flight Test Center, Chief of Staff.  The new position supervised and coordinated the activities of the Center’s staff elements, particularly the comptroller and procurement functions, and reduced the administrative burden on the

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