Category: Mississippi

The Mississippi Pascagoula Naval is built on an artificial island created by dumping of debris from the Pascagoula Channel and a shipyard close by the Singing River. The total land covered by the Naval Base is about 437 acres and was established when the navy saw the need to establish other naval bases aside the already existing ones. The construction project started in 1988 and was completed for the opening of the base by 1992, when USS Gallery, the maiden ship arrived on the coast of the island.

NS Pascagoula Facts

• Website: Visit NS Pascagoula Website »
• Location: Pascagoula, Mississippi
• Latitude: 30.336707
• Longitude: -88.576872
• DSN: N/A

The Base was however closed in 2006 and by July 2007 handed over to the office of the Secretary of State of Mississippi. As at 2005, the staff strength of the Pascagoula Naval Base was 200 civilians, 2,000 military staff. Apart from these workers, family of military staff, retirees on the country and their family also lived on the island and it was estimated that, the base had a total of 100 million dollars, will all services, contracts and payrolls inclusive. The F99 station was given the responsibility of managing and operating the facility as a Naval Support Center.

The Pascagoula Naval Station offered support services to crews of combatant ships, assigned to the surface ships and also crew onboard the base facility and ships stationed at the facility. The facilities at the base also supported other Navy installations and the Navy fraternity at large. Most of the Divisions and Agencies of the Navy located in the facility mainly have to do with the welfare of the officials and their family members; the Housing Referral Office, the Recreation Department, the Family Support Center and the Moral Welfare units are all located within the base facility. Facilities at the Base include quayside berths, located on the lower deck.  The base also undertakes maintenance services on the Navy’s ships either directly or contracting it to other shipyards around.

Naval Air Station Meridian is found in the northeastern side of Lauderdale and Kemper County in Meridian, Mississippi. It lies in 12,000 acres of land wherein the 4,000 acres is in SEARAY, a target field and the Joe Williams Field. Its major function is to train the US Navy jet strike pilots in lined with the Naval Air Station Kingsville which is found in Texas and also provides the technical training and support for all the units stationed in the base. The Naval Air Station houses the 4,000 military employees and their dependents and civilian personnel employees.

Naval Air Station Meridian Facts

• Location: Lauderdale and Kemper Counties, near Meridian, Mississippi
• Website:
  Visit NAS Meridian Website ›
• Phone: (601) 679-2211
• Longitude:
  -88.605691
• Latitude:
  32.550844
• DSN:
  637-2602

The ground breaking of the $60 million Naval Auxiliary Air Station on July 16, 1957, it was named McCain Field at that time in honor of Admiral McCaine, Sr. The station served as the base for the hundreds of airplanes which were based in Florida in trying to escape the destructive hurricane Betsy. The exodus of 300 planes from Florida was repeated on 1968 and 1969 when Hurricane Camille and Hurricane Gladys struck Florida. Over the years, the base continues to show improvements and became a Naval Air Station with increase constructions of buildings and housing units for the family of the servicemen.

The NAS Meridian is also the base for Training Squadron NINETEEN, Training Air Wing, and the Marine Aviation training Support Squadron, the Naval Training Center and the training Squadron Seven. The NAS Commanding officer is the backbone of the station while the Administrative Services Department offers services like the processing of the personnel matters, processing of the command and evaluation communications, offers messaging systems and other administrative services in the entire station. The Air Traffic Control Department functions in the radar final control systems and the control tower, issue instructions to the pilots of the military flight operations in the entire base.

Gulfport Battalion Center Facts

• Location: Gulfport, Mississippi
• Website:
  Visit Gulfport Battalion Center Website ›
• Phone: (228) 871-2555
• Longitude:
  -89.072685
• Latitude:
  30.40634
• DSN:
  868-2555

The Gulfport Naval Construction Battalion Center is the home base of the construction units of the Naval Force which is found in Gulfport, Mississippi. It houses the 20th Naval Construction Regiment and the Navy Mobile Construction units such as the 1, 7, 74 and 133. The base offers home and services to the construction workers and is used as storage for the construction materials and equipment as well as a stand by force in time of emergency and insurgency.

The Gulfport Battalion Center was founded on June 2, 1942 as a base for the Navy Seabees who were civilians at that time in constructing the military equipment and installations and provides home to the US Navy Construction Battalions that were to be assigned to the battlefields in Europe and the Pacific during the World War II. The US Naval Training Center was launched on March 1944 which provides training in radioman, basic engineering, diesel, electrician and quartermaster knowledge.

During the World War II, the base was the center for training and construction works. It was then commissioned by the Navy and used as store house for the Navy and military facilities which until now serves the same purpose as well as the center for the various construction jobs in the military. On 1945, it became the US Naval Storehouse and was commissioned on 1946 as the Training Center. On 1948, it became the storage of the countries accumulated stocks such as copper, bauxite, sisal, abaca and tin. Bauxite is the largest stock the station has which occupies 24 of the stations 1,098 acres of land.

The Gulfport Battalion Center had ballooned to 183 military and 523 civilian employees in support of the 4,200 Seabees. It is now listed as one of the Navy’s excellent installations whose major concern is military’s readiness in the logistic support and mobilization of the US Navy.