Alameda highlight
Former Naval Air Station Alameda
Naval Air Station Alameda operated as a major aircraft carrier hub from 1940 to 1997, serving multiple carriers including the USS Enterprise and USS Carl Vinson before closure through Base Realignment and Closure action.
The origins of Naval Air Station Alameda trace to 1927, when Alameda Airport was constructed on reclaimed wetlands at the western end of Alameda Island. The facility served civilian aviation until the U.S. Navy took control, with naval operations formally commencing on November 1, 1940. During the Second World War and the decades of the Cold War that followed, NAS Alameda became one of the Pacific Fleet's most important installations, a homeport to major aircraft carriers and a training and maintenance hub for naval aviation.
The base at its height housed carriers such as the USS Enterprise, USS Carl Vinson, and USS Abraham Lincoln, along with the personnel and support infrastructure required to maintain them. It served as a master air station and headquarters for numerous auxiliary fields throughout the region. By the 1990s, changing military strategy and budget constraints led the Department of Defense to include NAS Alameda in Base Realignment and Closure action. The base closed in 1997, ending more than half a century of continuous military operations on the site.
Today, Alameda Point—the former airfield and naval installation—has become a different kind of community anchor. The retired aircraft carrier USS Hornet serves as a museum ship moored at the former naval base, drawing visitors interested in maritime and aviation history. The broad runways and open spaces have attracted film productions, most notably serving as a location for the movie The Matrix Reloaded. For residents of Alameda, the transition from active military base to civilian reuse represents a shift in how the community plans for its future and the people and institutions it will depend on.