Qualla: Condor Field

Condor Field: Introduction

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

By the end of World War II, more than 6,000 American pilots had learned to fly gliders. Of that total, 1,654 were trained at the Twenty-Nine Palms Air Academy — the wartime identity of a civilian airstrip that began as a 3,000-foot runway built on the edge of a dry lake in 1939.

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Condor Field: Before the War

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The airfield started simply: a civil airport named Twenty Nine Palms Airfield, built on the dry surface of Mesquite Lake at the southeast edge of the lakebed. By 1939, the dirt runway was operational, a modest facility serving the sparse desert community. Then January 1, 1942 arr...

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Condor Field: The Glider School

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Renamed Condor Field, the base became part of the United States Army Air Forces Contract Flying School network under the authority of General Henry H. Arnold. The Army built an 1,800-by-3,000-foot landing mat and opened the Twenty-Nine Palms Air Academy. Four auxiliary fields sup...

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Condor Field: Cold War Revival and Abandonment

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

After the Navy closed in October 1945, the airfield briefly returned to civilian use with a paved 4,000-foot runway. Then the Korean War created new demand. In 1952, Condor Field reopened as the core of what would become Marine Corps Training Center Twentynine Palms. A 6,000-foot...

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