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Bellows Air Force Base: Pearl Harbor History

Bellows Air Force Base: Pearl Harbor History

Bellows Field was a secondary target by the Japanese during the attack on Pearl Harbor. The primary airfield targets for the Japanese during the attack on Pearl Harbor were Hickam Field, Wheeler Field, and Ford Island. Kanoehe Naval Air Station and Ewa Marine Corps Station were all secondary targets.

Bellows Air Force Base B-17
Bellows Air Force Base with a B-17 bomber that was forced down into the airfield.

Bellows AAF
Created in 1917 as the Waimanalo Military Reservation, the base was renamed Bellows Field in 1933 after Lt. Franklin Barney Bellows, a World War I war hero. Bellows Field was made a permanent military post in July 1941, and it was one of the airfields attacked during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

Bellows AAF Fuel Trucks
Fuel trucks attacked by the Japanese at Bellows.

The Bellows reservation now serves as a military training area and recreation area for active and retired military and civilian employees of the Department of Defense.

Pearl Harbor Warbirds offers the best Hawai‘i flight adventure tours available. Be immersed in the details of the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor and soar above the important sites that played a part in the “Day of Infamy.” Relive history as you retrace the steps of the Army and Navy airmen in the days following the bombing. Fly on some of the same routes the Japanese attackers used into the airfields at Wheeler, Kāne‘ohe and Bellows. There are many air tours in Hawai‘i, but only one warbird airplane flight. Located in Honolulu, Hawai‘i Pearl Harbor Warbirds provides a personal historical experience making it one of the best O‘ahu attractions.

Experience an immersive two hour adventure that allows you to relive history as a Naval Aviator and fly Pearl Harbor like it was on December 10th, 1941. Learn more about the Admiral’s Warbird Adventure.

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