CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- A recent $28 million overhaul of a WW II Army Air Corps airfield at Camp Davis will enable the base to provide another world-class training capability for Marine Corps aviators.
Located just north of Holly Ridge in the Greater Sandy Run Training Area, the resurfaced Davis South runway will serve as a multipurpose outlying landing field (OLF) that can support every airframe in the Marine Corps’ arsenal to include the KC-130 Hercules transport aircraft, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the MV-22 Osprey, and other rotary wing assets. It can even accommodate joint service aviation variants as large as the Air Force’s heavy lift C-17 aircraft.
As an OLF, Davis South is used primarily as a training platform and has no based units or aircraft and minimal infrastructure. The 4,525 foot airstrip includes a 3,600 foot asphalt runway and concrete turnarounds at each end to accommodate vertical take-offs and landings. The total area of the airfield measures 275 acres.
During the 18-month project, the entire runway was torn up, raised, and resurfaced with three layers of rock, gravel, and asphalt. The concrete landing pads and an apron in the middle are specially designed to handle high-intensity heat generated during hovering, landing, and turning maneuvers.
“The completion of Davis South represents a significant milestone for Camp Lejeune as one of this nation’s preeminent power projection platforms along the East Coast,” said Colonel Ralph J. Rizzo, Jr, commander, Marine Corps Installations East – Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune. “Aviation and ground units across the region will be able to use this runway to exercise the full spectrum of training capabilities in preparation for missions around the globe, to include simulating austere airfield conditions in conjunction with Expeditionary Advanced Basing Operations.”
Originally a U.S. Army installation constructed in 1941, Camp Davis was primarily used as an anti-aircraft artillery training center during World War II. At its height in the 40s, the camp was home to approximately 20,000 personnel and included 978 buildings, 32 miles of paved streets and an airfield, according to historic records. The Army discontinued use of the camp in 1946 and it eventually became part of the U.S. Navy’s purchase of the Greater Sandy Run Training Area in 1992 and used by Marine Corps rotary wing units from Marine Corps Air Station New River. The existing buildings, aircraft, and hangars are in place to simulate a mock airfield for ground unit exercises.
For imagery of the newly paved runway and OLF, click here.