Lovelock Aerial Gunnery Range

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Lovelock Aerial Gunnery Range
military region
1955 map of "U. S. Prohibited, Restricted, Caution and Warning Areas on Elko Sectional Chart": "Black Rock Desert" (R-266) and "Sahwave Mountains" (R-430)
Country United States
State Nevada
Counties North: Pershing
South: Humboldt
Nearest city Reno
Landmark (NRHP tbd)
North area
South area
0 sq mi (0 km2)
0 sq mi (0 km2)
Years 1945-1963

Lovelock Aerial Gunnery Range was a World War II facility in two Nevada areas used for "aerial gunnery, strafing, dive bombing [and] rocket fire".[1]:{{{3}}} By 21 November 1944, the Lovelock Range had been approved by the Secretary of the Navy to be developed for Naval Air Station Fallon,[1] and on 13 January 1945, "Lovelock Air to Air" began[2]:{{{3}}} when "leased under the Second War Powers Act".[3] By February 1945,[2]:{{{3}}} land was being acquired[4] for the North Range in the Black Rock Desert which was 1,122 sq mi (2,910 km2) that included 64.4 sq mi (167 km2) of "Patented" (leased private) land.[2]:{{{3}}} The South Range in the Granite Springs Valley was 2,436 sq mi (6,310 km2), and in March 1945 "1920 Acres more" were added.[2]

The post-war range was reactivated in October 1945 when the United States Navy closed more than 1,563 sq mi (4,050 km2) to the public in the two Lovelock Aerial Gunnery Range regions.[5]:{{{3}}} The Department of the Interior permit for the Lovelock Range's North Portion was cancelled by a 6 March 1946 "BuDocks ltr", and the Bureau of Yards and Docks was directed to cancel the leases for the South Portion by the Chief of Naval Operations on 7 January 1947 (a lease for "NAAF Lovelock" ended on 1 January 1947).[6]

Black Rock Desert Gunnery Range

The 1942[verification needed] area of 973 sq mi (2,520 km2) in the Black Rock Desert for WWII USAAF aerial gunnery[5]:{{{3}}} (Targets 25, 26, 27 in areas 1, 2, 3)[7] was used for a 1949 Navy range of 745 sq mi (1,930 km2) that was reactivated near Sulphur, Nevada.[5]:{{{3}}} After a 1955 request by congressman Clair Engle,[5]:{{{3}}} the Black Rock Desert Gunnery Range was closed by 1964.[8]

Sahwave Mountain Air to Air Gunnery Range

In 1958 after the WWII Lovelock South range was "renamed Sahwave Mountain Air to Air Gunnery Range…the 500,000 acres was acquired by…Public Land Order No. 3632. Formal acquisition of the range was completed in August".[9] Used for "only machine gun" fire, the 547,906 acres (856.103 sq mi) "Basic Sahwave air-to-air gunnery range" was in use by October 1958.[10]

On 25 October 1976, after an INS platform failure during night training, Lockheed SR-71A, 61-7965, (Article 2016) was lost near Lovelock (the pilot and RSO ejected safely).[11]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (pdf p. 143 of Archive Summary Report--Findings: Dixie Valley Bombing Target No. 21)
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (pdf p. 143 of Archive .Summary Report--Findings: Dixie Valley Bombing Target No. 21)
  3. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (pdf p. 35 of Archives Search Report--Findings: Dixie Valley Bombing Target No. 21. Note: The c. 1959 sentence with "Minden, Winemucca, Lovelock, and Fallon" was subsequently used in edited form in 1973's Welcome Aboard ("Fallon, along with Nevada sites at Minden, Tonopah, Lovelock and Winnemucca") and that edited quotation was used verbatim in the 2002 Archives Search Report, p. 4-1. The 1997 The Economic Evolution of Fallon returned to the originally list's wording, but added "the Civil Aviation Administration and the Army Air Corps began building four airfields" and capitalized "Western Defense Program".)
  4. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (pdf p. 161 of Archive Summary Report--Findings: Dixie Valley Bombing Target No. 21)open access publication - free to read
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (pdf p. 143 of Archive Summary Report--Findings: Dixie Valley Bombing Target No. 21)
  7. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (in the Blow Sand Mountains). … Area No. 1 Target No. 25   Area No. 2 Target No. 26   Range ( Area No. 3 Target No. 27) (pdf p. 145)
  8. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (quote from "A-12, YF-12A, & SR-71 Timeline of Events")