Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Base

Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Base
Base de la'Fuerza Aérea Antonio José Sáenz Heredia
Imperial Depression, Nuevo Xichútepa in Creeperopolis
Antonio José Sáenz Heredia Air Force Base in 2006.
Type	Creeperian Air Force Base
Site information
Owner	Ministry of Defense
Operator	Creeperian Air Force
Condition	Operational
Site history
Built	1933
Built by	EXPATI
In use	1933–present
Garrison information
Current commander	General Santino Rodríguez Velázquez
Garrison	1st Creeperian Air Force Wing
Airfield information
Identifiers	IATA: ABA, ICAO: CABA, FAA LID: ABA
Elevation	-102ft AMSL
Runways Direction Length and surface 05R/23L 15,024 feet Concrete 05L/23R 12,000 feet Concrete 06/24 8,000 feet Concrete 06/24 8,000 feet Concrete 17/35 40,097 feet Dirt 05L/23R 22,175 feet Dirt 05R/23L 15,000 feet Dirt 06/24 7,050 feet Dirt 07/25 23,100 feet Dirt 09/27 10,000 feet Dirt 12/30 9,235 feet Dirt 15/33 30,487 feet Dirt 18/36 23,086 Dirt 02/20 21,000 feet Dirt 11/29 21,000 feet Dirt
Other airfield facilities	1x V/STOL pad

Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Base (Creeperian: Base de la'Fuerza Aérea Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia, abbreviated BFA AJSH) (IATA: ABA, ICAO: CABA, FAA LID: ABA) is a Creeperian Air Force installation located in the Imperial Depression in Xichútepa, Creeperopolis, about 45mi west of Ninguaque.

It is the home of the Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Test Center, the Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Test Pilot School, and Antonio José Sáenz Heredia Flight Research Center. It is the center for conducting and supporting research and development of flight as well as testing and evaluating aerospace systems from concept to combat. It also hosts many test activities conducted by Creeperopolis' commercial and military aerospace industry.

Notable occurrences at the air force base include Fernando Matthei Aubel's flight that broke the sound barrier in the Maroto Botín FA-12, test flights of the Maroto Botín FA-14, and the first trials of the Maroto Botín H-3. The base was essential in the Catholic Imperial Restoration Council victory in the Battle of Nuevo Xichútepa by providing air support for the besieged city.

Based Units

Creeperian Air Force

Creeperian Air Force

• 1st Creeperian Air Force Wing
  • 1st Creeperian Air Force Fighter Detachment
  • 14th Creeperian Air Force Fighter Detachment
  • 22nd Creeperian Air Force Fighter Detachment
  • 39th Creeperian Air Force Fighter Detachment
  • 17th Creeperian Air Force Bomber Detachment
  • 18th Creeperian Air Force Bomber Detachment
  • 1st Creeperian Air Force Paratrooper Detachment
  • 1st Creeperian Air Force Refueling Squadron
  • 3rd Creeperian Air Force Transportation Detachment

Creeperian Army

Creeperian Army

• 17th Creeperian Army Division

Infrastructure and Facilities

Satellite image of the main site, with Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Base South at the bottom right of the image and Guatalteca Dry Lake at the top right.

Guatalteca Dry Lake with Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Base and Auxiliary Base South in the bottom left and Auxiliary Base North at the top of the image.

The base is next to Guatalteca Dry Lake, an endorheic desert salt pan whose hard dry lake surface provides a natural extension to Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Base' runways. This large landing area, combined with excellent year-round weather, makes the base good for flight testing.

As a military airbase, civilian access is severely restricted. There are four lighted, paved runways:

• 05R/23L is 15,024 feet x 300 feet, and an extra 9,588 feet of lakebed runway is available at its northerly end. It is equipped with arresting systems approximately 1,500 feet from each end.
• 05L/23R is 12,000 feet x 200 feet and was constructed to temporarily replace 04R/22L while it was being renovated in 2008.
• 06/24 is 8,000 feet x 50 feet (this runway is technically part of the South Base) and an extra 10,158 feet x 210 feet of lakebed runway is available at its easterly end.
• 06/24 is 8,000 feet x 70 feet (this runway is technically part of the North Base).

There are 13 other official runways on the Guatalteca lakebed:

• 17/35 is 40,097 feet x 900 feet. Imagery from the 1990s show an extension another 7,500 feet to the north, including a visual cue and centerline markings that extend about 15,000 feet down the currently declared portion of the runway.
• 05L/23R is 22,175 feet x 300 feet.
• 05R/23L is 15,000 feet x 300 feet and is next to 05L/23R at the 23L end.
• 06/24 is 7,050 feet x 300 feet. Not to be confused with the south base 06/24 paved runway (which also extends onto the lakebed), or the north base 06/24 paved runway.
• 07/25 is 23,100 feet x 300 feet.
• 09/27 is 10,000 feet x 300 feet.
• 12/30 is 9,235 feet x 600 feet. It is actually marked as two adjacent 300 foot-wide runways (L and R). Runway 30 rolls out onto the compass rose, so its corresponding, unmarked, runway 12 is never used.
• 15/33 is 30,487 feet x 300 feet.
• 18/36 is 23,086 feet x 900 feet. It is actually marked as three adjacent 300 foot-wide runways (L, C, and R).

The Encarnación lakebed has two runways painted on it:

• 02/20 is 21,000 feet x 300 feet.
• 11/29 is 21,000 feet x 300 feet.

Previous Names

• Ninguaque Air Force Base, 19 September 1933 – 23 July 1940
• Imperial Depression Air Force Base, 23 July 1940 – 2 September 1942
• Ninguaque-Imperial Depression Air Force Base, 2 September 1942 – 5 June 1957
• Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Base, 5 June 1957 – present

Commanders

No.	Commander	Photo	Term			Rank
			Term Start	Term End	Term Length
Commander
1	Arturo Hernán Merino y Benítez (1888–1970)		19 September 1933	18 March 1954	20 years, 180 days	General
2	Marmaduque Ramón Grove y Vallejos (1919–1989)		18 March 1954	11 April 1976	22 years, 24 days	General
3	Armando Diego Castro y López (1934–2008)		11 April 1976	18 July 1999	23 years, 98 days	General
4	Renato Óscar García y Vergara (1954–)		18 July 1999	1 September 2012	13 years, 45 days	General
5	Santino Máximo Rodríguez y Velázquez (1970–)		1 September 2012	Incumbent	11 years, 231 days	General

Geography

The Guatalteca Lake is not always dry. During the brief rainy season in the Imperial Depression, water fills the lake bed. The compass rose can be seen on the left.

The largest features of the 470 square miles that make up Antonio José Sáenz y Heredia Air Force Base are the Guatalteca Lake and Encarnación Lake, both of which are dry lakes. These have served as emergency and scheduled landing sites for many aerospace projects including the Maroto Botín FA-14, the Maroto Botín MB-12, the Maroto Botín MB-13, and the Maroto Botín MB-38. The lakebeds have black lines painted on them to mark seven official "runways." Also painted on the dry lake beds is the world's largest compass rose: 2,000-foot radius, 4,000 feet in diameter. The Antonio José Sáenz Heredia Air Force Base compass rose's magnetic declination faces true north. The larger lake bed, Guatalteca, encompasses 44 square miles of desert.

The world's largest compass rose is painted on the Guatalteca Lake bed.

The Encarnación Dry Lake bed encompasses 21 square miles and is also used for emergency landings and other flight research roles. By August, the lake bed is dry and rough from the weather and from high performance aircraft performing landings. Both lake beds are some of the lowest points in the Imperial Depression and they can collect large amounts of precipitation. Desert winds whip this seasonal water around on the lake beds and the process polishes them, yielding a new, extremely flat surface; the Encarnación Lake bed was measured to have an altitude deviation of 18 inches over a 30,000-foot length; that's about 1 inch altitude deviation over every 60 feet of length.

The census-designated place encompasses an area of 17.1 square miles of which 0.43 acres is water.

Environmental Concerns

There are several protected and threatened species living in the air force base, the most notable being the Creeperian desert tortoise. It is illegal to touch, harass, or otherwise harm a Creeperian desert tortoise. Another notable species is Yucca brevifolia: the taller members of this species are called Joshua trees.

See Also

• Creeperian Air Force