Laughlin AFB, TX

Laughlin AFB is a census-designated place in Val Verde County, Texas, on the west side of Del Rio near the Rio Grande. The Army Air Corps created Laughlin Army Air Field in July 1942 as a school for B-26 Marauder and A-26 Invader crews. It closed after World War II, and the land was later leased to local goat farmers for grazing. The Air Force reopened Laughlin in May 1952 as a jet-fighter training school, using aircraft such as the T-33, F-80, and F-84. The base was named for Jack T. Laughlin, a local pilot killed during the war.

Laughlin’s modern role is undergraduate pilot training. The 47th Flying Training Wing brings new pilots through the base, and the surrounding desert, river country, and Del Rio community all shape the day-to-day setting. The base’s history also includes a Cold War reconnaissance chapter, when high-altitude aircraft such as the RB-57D and U-2 operated from the installation. The local scoop is that Laughlin started as a wartime bomber school, became grazing land for a while, and came back as a pilot-training base with a very West Texas sense of place.