Drawing 11. Standard Plan No. 3301 for a 110-Man Air Corps Barracks, 1930. (Source: Environmental Flight, Drafting Section, Howard AFB, RoP)

Drawing 12. Standard Plan No. 3302 for a 200-Man Air Corps Barracks, 1930. (Source: Environmental Flight, Drafting Section, Howard AFB, RoP)

Drawing 13. Standard Plan No. 12301 for a 150-Man Standard Barracks, 1939. (Source: Environmental Flight, Drafting Section, Howard AFB, RoP)

Drawing 14. Standard Plan No. 695-271 for an Air Corps Hangar 1930-B Design, 1930. (Source: 150mm film archives, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers History Office, Fort Belvoir, VA)

FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Thematic Groups

Since both Albrook AFS and Howard AFB; are located outside the United States, it is not necessary to define NRHP districts. This is normally a negotiation process pursued by installation personnel and the appropriate State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO). This report does, however, define historic boundaries and suggest possible thematic groupings based on the close historical, functional, and stylistic association of buildings, with geography as a minor consideration (Figures 56 and 57). Buildings at Albrook and Howard were placed into thematic groups based on their association with definitive historical periods of significance. The structures documented in this report fall into five (5) thematic groups. Early themes apply to Albrook AFS only, while later themes apply to both Albrook and Howard.

Original Construction Program

After World War I, it became apparent to military planners that air power, especially naval air power, constituted a serious threat to the safety of the Panama Canal. The one existing airfield (France Field) was too small, had a poor landing surface, offered no room for expansion, and provided little defense for the Pacific entrance to the Canal. Construction for an air base at Albrook Field was authorized by Congress in 1928, and $1.9 million was appropriated. Actual construction began in 1930 and most was completed in 1932. Albrook Field was commissioned in April 1932 as an active air field. (See Table 1.)  (Tables cited here are on next page.)

Early Improvements

The original construction program at Albrook left out several buildings necessary for efficient flight operations, including a headquarters building. As money could be secured throughout the 1930s, seven buildings were added to the base. In addition, the runways were unsuitable for all-weather flying and had to be improved. Funding for this additional construction came primarily from the 1932 Emergency Relief Construction Act. (See Table 2.)

Figure 56. Map of Albrook showing Air Force-Army layout, as well as areas dominated by historic structures, 1991. (Source: Environmental Flight, Drafting Section, Howard AFB, RoP)

Pro-War Expansion Program

By the mid-1930s, advances in naval aviation (primarily aircraft carriers) and increasingly long-range bombers had again made plain the inadequacies of Canal air defense. Plans to significantly expand Air Corps strength had been around since 1934, essentially proposing a system of outlying bases supported by pursuit and bombardment aircraft. It was 1939, however, before these plans began to be realized. Congressional authorization and $50 million in funding were forthcoming that year for improving Canal defenses. Since a large part of the expansion program was a vast increase in manpower, much of the new construction involved housing at existing bases. In addition, a new airfield (Howard Field) was authorized for the west bank of the Pacific entrance to the Canal. The majority of the expansion program construction was completed by early 1942. (See Tables 3 and 4.)

Expansion During World War II

After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the number of troops in Panama was sharply increased. The newly established Caribbean Defense Command carried out its mission of Canal defense through a wide-spread net of naval and air reconnaissance, with the greatest threat coming from German U-boats. By April 1943, the threat to the Canal was diminishing, defense status was downgraded, and a reduction in troop strength began. With the majority of the expansion program completed by 1942, little new construction occurred during the war. Most of the new construction involved base support facilities such as increased storage and maintenance, and a few administrative buildings. Low-level improvements were also made to aprons and runways. (See Tables 5 and 6.)

Postwar Development

The postwar period was a time of retrenchment for military installations in the Panama Canal Zone. The outlying airfields were returned to the host countries and troop strength was significantly lowered from wartime levels. Consolidation of most air personnel at Albrook Field necessitated a small amount of new housing. Little new construction occurred at Howard Field. (See Tables 7 and 8.)

^{(Footnotes and bibliography are at the end of this section)}