Tacna Landing Strip

Military Decommissioning. The airfield was a World War II training facility that was no longer needed by the military following the end of the war. It was declared surplus and subsequently abandoned.

The site is completely abandoned and the land appears to be undeveloped open desert. Satellite imagery shows the faint but discernible outlines of the two former runways, which are heavily weathered and overgrown with desert scrub. The area is not used for any formal purpose and is likely under the management of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) or falls within the periphery of the vast Barry M. Goldwater Air Force Range. There are no buildings, infrastructure, or signs of recent activity other than occasional vehicle tracks.

The site was originally known as Tacna Auxiliary Army Airfield #4. It was constructed around 1943 as one of several satellite airfields for the larger Dateland Army Airfield. Its primary purpose was to support the massive pilot and crew training programs conducted out of the Yuma Army Airfield complex during World War II. The field consisted of two 4,500-foot unpaved runways arranged in an 'X' pattern. It was used for overflow, emergency landings, and practice takeoffs and landings by pilots training in aircraft such as the AT-6 Texan, B-25 Mitchell, and B-26 Marauder. Like most auxiliary fields, it was a spartan facility with no hangars or permanent structures.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the airfield. Its remote location, the complete deterioration of the runways, the lack of any supporting infrastructure, and its proximity to an active military training range make any future reactivation for aviation purposes extremely unlikely.