Hobbs Army Air Field
Base Newspaper October 9, 1942
Below are pages from the first issue of a newspaper published especially for the base under
the title A.A.F.A.F.S. which stood for Army Air Force Advanced Flight School.
Later, the title of the newspaper was changed to The Bomb Blast.
Photo courtesy Col. Michael J. Nugent (ret.)
Employees of the Hobbs News-Sun, who printed the base newspaper on the News-Sun press
are shown with Pvt. Harry M. (Bud) Nugent (center), editor-in-chief of the base newspaper.
The issue Pvt. Nugent is holding is the same issue shown below.
From left to right, Belver Davis, J.R. Wilhite, Pvt. Harry M. (Bud) Nugent, Clifford May, James Grundy.
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Hobbs News-Sun's
Salute to Hobbs Army Air Field (circa 1945)
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Hobbs Army Airfield, located near Hobbs, New Mexico was primarily used for training B-17 pilots during World War II.
For a great website on the B-17
airplane visit the Northstar
Gallery at this link.
Photo courtesy
USAF Historical
Research Center
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Did you know?
Did you know that bomber
training targets for air bases in New Mexico, including Hobbs Army Air
Field included large, elaborate geoglyphs constructed by grading away
topsoil in patterns to resemble large bullseyes, ships and even
swastikas? Some targets were also constructed by building berms
of dirt and rock several feet high and wide to make the shapes to be
seen from the air. Many of these targets are still visible from
the air today, or from satellite views using Google Earth. Visit
the Military
Geoglyphs of New Mexico website for more information
and dozens of fascinating current-day aerial photos of the targets.
 The above view from Google
Earth shows a typical bombing range target approximately 23 miles west
of Hobbs Army Air Field as it appears today. This particular
target is about 330 yards across. Note the roman numerals
directly below the target (upside down from this angle).
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This website was created and is maintained by Mark Cotton, who is solely responsible for its content.
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Copyright © 2007 - Mark Cotton