Whidbey Island Station, WA

Whidbey Island Station is a census-designated place in Island County, Washington, built around Naval Air Station Whidbey Island’s Ault Field on the north-central part of Whidbey Island. The Navy began looking for a Puget Sound seaplane and patrol site in 1941, then surveyed Clover Valley for a land airfield after the attack on Pearl Harbor. About twenty farms gave way to runways and hangars, and construction of Ault Field began in March 1942. Naval Air Station Whidbey Island was commissioned on September 21, 1942, with Ault Field supporting land-based aircraft and a separate seaplane base serving flying boats.

The station’s map is tied to Oak Harbor, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the wider Puget Sound defense network. Early aircraft included Wildcats and Hellcats, while later decades brought patrol, transport, and electronic-attack missions; the EA-18G Growler is now part of the base’s familiar soundscape. The local scoop is that “Whidbey Island Station” is the census label for the developed naval community, while Ault Field is the older airfield name and NAS Whidbey Island is the larger installation.