Chart Supplement Bulletin 9/14/2025 (not for navigational purposes)
"JFTB is the base but KSLI is the flying portion of the base and technically separate when it comes to aviation and airspace matters." - T.L.
Establishment and Early Years
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1942: The airfield was established as Naval Air Reserve Base Los Alamitos to provide advanced training for U.S. Navy and Marine Corps pilots. It was created in response to the need for more trained aviators during World War II. The base initially operated with a complement of about 2,500 personnel and began training aviation cadets, with the first graduating class consisting of 729 cadets.
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World War II Operations: The airfield played a crucial role in training pilots for the Pacific Theater. By the end of 1942, the base had expanded its fleet from 36 to 140 aircraft, and it acquired several outlying fields for additional training purposes.
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Transition to Army Control
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1977: The airfield was transferred to the U.S. Army and renamed Los Alamitos Army Airfield. This transition marked a shift in its operational focus, aligning it with the Army's aviation needs.
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Notable Events
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Major John H. Glenn Jr.: On July 16, 1957, Major Glenn set a transcontinental airspeed record flying from NAS Los Alamitos to NAS Floyd Bennett Field in New York, completing the flight in just over three hours. This mission, known as Project Bullet, was significant for both its speed and the panoramic photography it achieved.
- Current Status
Today, Los Alamitos Army Airfield serves as a joint base, supporting various military operations and training activities. It covers 1,319 acres and is home to numerous National Guard and Reserve units, reflecting its ongoing importance in military aviation.
The history of Los Alamitos Army Airfield illustrates its evolution from a key training site during World War II to its current role in supporting military readiness and operations. Its legacy continues to be significant in the context of U.S. military aviation history.
Joint Forces Training Base – Los Alamitos is a joint base in Los Alamitos, California, United States. Formerly operated as a Naval Air Station, the base contains the Los Alamitos Army Airfield and is sometimes called by that name. The base is also known as JFTB – Los Al or just JFTB. The base covers 1,319 acres and "supports 850 full-time employees and more than 6,000 National Guard and Reserve troops."[2]
Facilities
JFTB has an MWR with billeting, a pub, and a banquet hall.[3] Fiddler's Green is the last remaining military pub in Orange County.[4]
JFTB has significant training facilities, including an Engagement Skills Trainer, a Virtual Convoy Operations Trainer, a HMMWV Egress Assistance Trainer, a Laser Marksmanship Training System, and a Close Combat Tactical Trainer.[5]
Los Alamitos Army Airfield
The airfield has two runways:
- Runway 4L/22R: 5,902 × 150 ft. (1,799 x 46 m), surface: PEM
- Runway 4R/22L: 8,001 × 200 ft. (2,439 x 61 m), surface: asphalt/concrete
The airfield is home to Company A, 1st Battalion (Assault), 140th Aviation Regiment.
* credit: Wikipedia
NEWS & CHALLENGES
09/14/2025 City Council to consider override of ALUC - From SUN newspapers - "County airport commission finds Housing Element inconsistent with JFTB land use - The Seal Beach City Council on Monday, Sept. 8, 2025, voted unanimously to formally make notice of the council’s intent to override the OC Airport Land Use Commission. This was the last item on the agenda of a nearly three-hour meeting.
The Orange County Airport Land Use Commission recently determined that several city documents were inconsistent with the JFTB Airport Environs Land Use Plan.
Those documents were the Housing Element (which still hasn’t been certified by the state government), the citywide Zoning Code Amendment, and the Main Street Specific Plan Amendment.
The process doesn’t end there. The city manager will submit the council resolution to the county Airport Land Use Commission. The city manager will then schedule a public hearing at a future city council meeting. Read the Whole story Here.
Final vote on Airport Land Use Plan (ALUC) expected in August By David N. Young - From the Event-NewsEnterprise August 10, 2023
After several months of contentious debate, the Los Alamitos City Council has agreed to take a final vote in August on whether to overrule an aviation advisory panel that has concluded that proposed sites within the city’s approved housing element are “inconsistent” with the land use plan of the city’s military base.
The 2 square mile Joint forces Training Base
creates regulatory obstacles for city policy planners.
Courtesy of City of Loss Al.
At issue are noise standards and other criteria that could threaten the validity of the city’s approved housing element, which could be decertified, placed at the mercy of the Airport Land Use Commission (ALUC) or even the state’s Housing and Community Development agency if the finding is not overruled by the Council.
The dilemma is unique to Los Alamitos in that the Joint Forces Training Base, built in 1942, literally encompasses two-square miles, which is literally half the land size of the entire city, and which has an extra-long runway of more than 8,000 feet that requires additional criteria for safe access. Read More Here.
February 21, 2014, Touching base: What’s the latest on Los Al’s Joint Forces area? - From OC Register
"Los Alamitos’ 1,400-acre military base is many things to many people: a landing strip for wildfire fighters, a National Guard and Army Reserve training ground, even a field for crops to grow on. - This Saturday, it’s a racetrack, open for a short while so triathletes can run and bike over an airstrip on which Air Force One has landed and swim through the pool where the U.S. women’s water polo team trains.
To just about everyone else in Southern California, the Joint Forces Training Base goes largely unnoticed, but it’s a lifeline in the event of an emergency. In the 1992 Los Angeles riots and the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the base was turned into a staging area for disaster support. - “I think it goes back to our ability to provide civil support operations to the government,” said base commander Maj. Gen. Keith Jones, when asked what’s so important about having the base in Los Alamitos.
It’s a question that needs asking, given the state of the U.S. military’s budget. The country’s base closure process is scheduled to restart in 2015 and the military may seek to close the Los Alamitos facility, which houses a large National Guard unit, an Army Reserve unit and dozens of other military and non-military tenants. - There are more than 12 million people in the greater Los Angeles area and no major military airstrip between the Channel Islands to the north and Marine Corps Air Station Miramar to the south, Jones said.
At issue are noise standards and other criteria that could threaten the validity of the city’s approved housing element, which could be decertified, placed at the mercy of the Airport Land Use Commission (ALUC) or even the state’s Housing and Community Development agency if the finding is not overruled by the Council. - The dilemma is unique to Los Alamitos in that the Joint Forces Training Base, built in 1942, literally encompasses two-square miles, which is literally half the land size of the entire city, and which has an extra-long runway of more than 8,000 feet that requires additional criteria for safe access." Finish Reading Here.
August 12, 2012 Veterans Affairs Panel Votes to Save Navy and Joint Forces Bases - From Patch - "The state Assembly committee approves resolutions to protect the Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station and Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training Base from closure.-
The Assembly Veterans Affairs Committee unanimously passed Senator Tom Harman’s (R-Huntington Beach) resolutions urging Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, and Congress to preserve the bases.
The two resolutions, Senate Joint Resolution 24 and Senate Joint Resolution 25 would help to protect the bases from being considered by the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) commission for closure during the proposed rounds of defense spending cuts and base closure periods, according to a Harman spokesperson." Read More Here.