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The largest Marine Corps base in history, the Marine Air Ground Task Force Training Center at Twentynine Palms is located on 930 square miles of harsh terrain, nearly the size of Rhode Island, in southern San Bernardino County. An army base for training glider pilots at the outset of World War II, the former navy facility was taken over by the corps in 1952 during the Korean War and the advent of the cold war. The base provided adequate space and ranges to test new artillery and missile technology and was ideal for the largescale training of ground forces. In the 21st century, every U.S. Marine does a stint at Twentynine Palms because the climate, terrain, and remote location simulate many international hot spots of world strife. The marines have continually upgraded and expanded the Twentynine Palms facilities as daily maneuvers involve transports, tanks, artillery, and aircraft, particularly at the Expeditionary Air Field.

Soon after the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the Fairfield-Suisun Army Air Base, later to become Travis, was born on the windswept plains of Solano County. To meet the urgent need for an air gateway to the Pacific, the base soon had two runways on a 945-acre site between the twin farming communities. The gusty winds challenged the gutsy young pilots who trained here, many of whom saw the Golden Gate--their last view of the mainland--as they flew out to do battle. Expanding through the next two decades until it encompassed over 6,000 acres, Travis is now the largest base under the U.S. Air Force Mobility Command.