The 42d Air Base Wing is steeped in a history of excellence and innovation. From roots in the Wright Brother’s flying school to the 42d Bombardment Group’s heroics in World War II’s Pacific theater where our motto was born; Aethera Nobis…The Skies for Us! Our mission today is to Prepare for Combat...Prepare others for the same; Team 42 has cemented itself as critical to the success of the Department of Air Force.

In today’s competitive environment and focus on re-optimization, the education and training of our Nation’s fighting forces is critical to mission success. Team 42 prides itself on providing excellent combat support to Air University and Air Education and Training Command. As the Department of the Air Force continues its optimization efforts over the next few years, the 42 ABW will continue to provide premier combat support capabilities that are foundational to the success of our 40+ mission partners.

Maxwell’s history began with the Wright Brothers and the dawn of flight in the United States. In February 1910, Wilbur Wright opened the first civilian flying school in the United States on an abandoned cotton plantation near Montgomery that remained for ten weeks.

In April 1918, the War Department established Aircraft and Engine Repair Depot #3 on the same land as the former flying school to repair training aircraft at Air Service airfields in the Southeast United States. After the war ended, the depot, despite curtailed workload and personnel, managed to avoid closure. In November 1922, the War Department renamed the depot Maxwell Field after Second Lieutenant William C. Maxwell, who had died in an airplane crash in the Philippines in August 1920.

In early 1931, the War Department relocated the Air Corps Tactical School from Langley Field, Virginia, to Maxwell Field and began a major construction program to provide academic facilities, support facilities, and housing for the significant increase in personnel at the installation. During the 1930s, the ACTS faculty and students developed the tactical airpower and strategic bombing doctrines operationalized during World War II.

With war clouds gathering over Europe and the Far East, the War Department suspended the school in June 1941 (closed it in October 1942) and opened the Southeast Air Corps Army Air Force Training Center (SEATC), later Eastern Flying Training Command, headquartered at Maxwell Field. The center oversaw over 100 flight schools at Maxwell Field and airfields across the Southeast United States. These schools graduated over 100,000 flight cadets, including those of many Allied air forces and Tuskegee Airmen, by September 1945. During the 1940s, Rosa and Raymond Parks served on Maxwell Field. She worked in lodging, and he served as a barber. The integrated transportation and service they experienced on Maxwell inspired them to fight for more integration in Montgomery and was pivotal to their role in the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott that integrated federal transportation.

In March 1946, Army Air Force senior leaders established Air University (AU) to continue the doctrine development and professional military education mission of the pre-war ACTS. Since then, AU has evolved into hundreds of individual organizations across the country. Known today as “the intellectual and leadership-development center of the Air and Space Forces,” AU provides U.S. Air Force and Space Force enlisted, officer and DoD civilians with professional military education, professional-continuing education and graduate education.

As AU grew, so did Maxwell Air Force Base. In October 1994, the 42d Air Base Wing was designated the host wing for Maxwell-Gunter, which traces its history to the 42d Bombardment Group (Medium) of World War II and the 42d Bombardment Wing (Heavy) of the Cold War. Today, the wing serves and supports over 42,000 active-duty Airmen and Guardians, Air Force Reserve, Air National Guard, Department of the Air Force civilians, contractors, students, allies & partners, family members, and military retirees in the River Region of Alabama.

In November 1940, the Army Air Forces opened nearby Gunter Field at Montgomery’s former city airport to host a phase 2 flight school. After the end of the war, Gunter went through several transitions. Between 1957 and 1966, the Aerospace Defense Command operated a Semi-Automatic Ground Environment Data Center at Gunter, which linked air surveillance radar stations around the southern Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts into a centralized center for regional air defense. In March 1992, the Air Force changed the installation’s status to Gunter Annex under Maxwell Air Force Base. Today, Gunter Annex is home to enlisted professional military and specialized education programs.

Maxwell Air Force Base has a long and distinguished heritage from the earliest days of aviation in the United States. Since its establishment over a hundred years ago, the base has provided a significant and growing presence in central Alabama and greatly contributes to the United States' National Defense.