“C” is for Columbia Army Air Base

“C” is for Columbia Army Air Base. Columbia Army Air Base served as a training center for B-25 bomber crews during World War II. Selected in 1940 as one of 250 sites across the nation where federal funds would be used to construct an airfield, it was originally designated Lexington County Airport. After Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, the U. S. Army Air Force took control. The declaration of war witnessed a huge expansion. Flyers known as the “Doolittle Raiders” arrived in February 1942 to train for their daring attack on Japan two months later. By spring 1945 the Columbia base had nearly 8,000 officers and enlisted personnel. In 1947 the Air Force declared the base surplus and the airfield became home to commercial aviation full time. In 1949, Columbia Army Air Base was renamed Columbia Metropolitan Airport.