Dateland Airfield

Military Decommissioning. The primary reason for closure was the end of World War II. The massive demand for pilot training ceased, making the airfield and many others like it redundant and surplus to military requirements.

The site has been completely converted to agricultural use. It is now privately owned farmland, characterized by large, circular fields irrigated by central pivots. While all original structures, pavement, and infrastructure have been removed, the faint, ghostly outlines of the three original runways and connecting taxiways are still clearly visible from satellite and aerial imagery, etched into the landscape beneath the modern farm plots.

Originally named Datelan Army Airfield (also known as Datelan Auxiliary Army Airfield #1), it was a critical World War II training facility. Constructed in 1943, it served as a satellite field for the much larger Yuma Army Airfield (now Yuma International Airport). Its primary mission was to support the Army Air Forces Pilot School, providing advanced flight training and aerial gunnery practice for pilots in both single-engine and twin-engine aircraft. As part of the vast California-Arizona Maneuver Area, it played a significant role in preparing thousands of US airmen for combat in the European and Pacific theaters. The airfield featured a classic triangular layout with three asphalt runways.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening the site as an airport. The land is privately owned and is actively and productively used for agriculture. The cost of acquiring the land and rebuilding the necessary aviation infrastructure would be prohibitive, and there is no current demand for a new airport in this specific location.