It only makes sense that one of the nation's iconic Air Force
bases would find a way to honor some of the icons of aviation. So,
to better portray the history of the Army Air Corps and the Air
Force, and Edwards AFB's part in that history, several of the
streets on the base are being renamed to recognize both military
and civilian personnel who have made significant
contributions to the field. Civil Engineering will remove 50 old
street name signs and replace them with new street name signs
starting June 16.
The street that will be renamed are:
Community Drive, which will be renamed Spaatz Avenue for Gen.
Carl A. "Tooey" Spaatz, last commander of the U.S. Army Air Forces
and the first Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force. He
helped lay the groundwork for an independent U.S. Air Force and
established many of its early institutions.
Desert Villa Circle becomes Balchen Loop for Col. Bernt
Balchen, the first pilot to fly over the South Pole. Considered
America's greatest Arctic expert in modern times, an aviation
pioneer, member of the Norwegian and later the U.S. Army Air
Forces.
Eighth Street will be renamed Gatty Street for Harold Gatty,
early expert in the field of navigation, who accompanied Wiley Post
on the 15,500-mile flight around the Northern Hemisphere (New
York-Sealand-Berlin-Irkutsk-Alaska-New York) in the Winnie Mae in
July 1931. Gatty also directed the Navigation School at Langley
Field, Virginia, in the 1930s.
Juniper Avenue switches to Lindbergh Street for Col. Charles
Lindbergh, the first person to fly across the Atlantic Ocean,
nonstop. The New York to Paris flight was made in the Spirit of St.
Louis May 20-21, 1927. He also contributed to the development of
commercial aviation through his continued efforts and flights.
Kincheloe Street, North will be renamed Post Drive for Wiley
Post, an aviation pioneer, who completed a 15,500-mile flight
around the Northern Hemisphere in 1931, and in 1935 made the first
transcontinental stratospheric flight.
Park Drive changes to Chamberlin Avenue for Clarence D.
Chamberlin, who became the second man to complete a nonstop,
trans-Atlantic flight. On June 4, 1927, just 17 days after Charles
Lindbergh completed his New York to Paris flight, Chamberlin flew
over 3,900 miles from New York to Germany.
Manzanita Way will be renamed Doolittle Parkway for Gen. James
H. "Jimmy" Doolittle, aviation pioneer; among his most notable
achievements were the many air races of the 1920s, as a 1st
Lieutenant in the 90th Aero Squadron, he became the first pilot to
travel coast-to-coast in under 24 hours on September 22, 1922, made
the first blind flight and was the leader of the Doolittle
Raiders.
Oleander Street will become Rickenbacker Drive for Capt. Edward
Vernon Rickenbacker, the leading American ace of World War I.
Sage Avenue's new designation will be Mitchell Street for Brig.
Gen. William "Billy" Mitchell, the outspoken leading American
advocate of air power. Best known for the first successful
demonstration of airpower against a naval vessel, the captured
German battleship Ostfriesland in 1921.
Yucca Street will be renamed Seversky Street for Alexander P.
de Seversky, a famous Russian naval flier. Seversky was in the
United States at the time the Bolsheviks seized power in 1917 in
Russia and remained in America to continue a distinguished career
as a test pilot, aircraft designer, and tireless advocate of
airpower. In 1931, he founded the Seversky Aircraft Corporation and
in 1937 the Seversky P 35 was accepted by the Army Air Corps.
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