Editing Tinker Air Force Base (section)

===Operational history===
In 1940 the [[United States Department of War|War Department]] was considering the central United States as a location for a supply and maintenance depot. Oklahoma City leaders offered a {{convert|480|acre|km2|adj=on}} site and acquired an option for {{convert|960|acre|km2}} additional land. On 8 April 1941, the order was officially signed awarding the depot to Oklahoma City. The Midwest Air Depot was formally activated later in 1941.

The depot was the site of a [[Douglas Aircraft]] factory producing approximately half of the [[C-47 Skytrain]]s used in [[World War II]]. The site also produced a number of [[A-20 Havoc]]s. Production ceased in 1945.

The [[1948 Tinker Air Force Base tornadoes|first successful tornado forecast]] in history was issued on 25 March 1948 from Tinker, about three hours before a tornado hit the southeast corner of the base. A granite marker in the Heritage Airpark on the base commemorates the event.

On September 29, 1957 [[Buddy Holly]] and [[The Crickets]] recorded "An Empty Cup", "Rock Me My Baby", "You've Got Love", and "Maybe Baby" in the Tinker Air Force Base Officer's Club.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xni1qJOOfZE |title=Maybe Baby – Buddy Holly Lives! 2002 |date=27 October 2007 |publisher=YouTube |access-date=25 March 2012}}</ref>

The base hosted the [[Space Shuttle Columbia|Space Shuttle ''Columbia'']] and its carrier 747 on April 27, 1981, after its first mission ([[STS-1]]) during its journey back to [[Cape Canaveral]]. Oklahoma governor [[George Nigh]], Oklahoma City mayor [[Patience Latting]] and [[Apollo 10]] Commander [[Thomas P. Stafford|Tom Stafford]] were there to greet the crew. The visiting personnel included [[Deke Slayton]], who traveled beside the craft in a T-38 chase plane. An estimated 100,000 people were allowed to enter the base and take pictures.<ref name="Columbia">{{cite news|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1981/04/27/The-space-shuttle-Columbia-arrived-at-Tinker-Air-Force/5065357192000/|title=The space shuttle Columbia arrived at Tinker Air Force...|last=Zizzo|first=David|publisher=[[UPI]]|date=27 April 1981|access-date=17 February 2020}}</ref>
 
On 14 November 1984, a massive fire that burned for two days destroyed or damaged over {{convert|700000|sqft|m2}} in the Air Logistics Center, Building 3001. The resulting repairs cost $63.5&nbsp;million.

During much of the 1990s, Tinker was home to the Automated Weather Network switching facility, which consolidated all U.S. military weather data worldwide. Originally located at [[Carswell Air Force Base]], this unit was later moved to an [[Air Force Weather Agency]] facility at [[Offutt Air Force Base]].

In May 1992, Tinker became home to the Navy's "Take Charge and Move Out" (TACAMO) wing, which provides maintenance, security, operations, administration, training and logistic support for the Navy's E-6B Mercury aircraft fleet. TACAMO<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tacamo.navy.mil |title=TACAMO – TAke Charge And Move Out |publisher=Tacamo.navy.mil |date=12 June 1981 |access-date=25 March 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120316135848/http://www.tacamo.navy.mil/ |archive-date=16 March 2012 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> was the first Navy Air Wing fully integrated on an Air Force base, carrying out a Navy mission in joint operations.

On 3 May 1999, a [[1999 Bridge Creek–Moore tornado|deadly tornado]] caused extensive damage to the northwest corner of the base and surrounding communities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=5705287|title=Storm Events Database - Event Details - National Centers for Environmental Information|last=NCEI|website=www.ncdc.noaa.gov|access-date=18 October 2017}}</ref> For many days afterwards, Tinker personnel helped by providing shelters, search and rescue, and clean-up efforts.

The Oklahoma Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul Technology Center (MROTC), a public-private partnership, was started in 2003. MROTC is managed by Battelle Oklahoma and owned by Oklahoma Industries Authority (OIA), a public trust housed in the offices of the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce. The first hangars were completed in 2007.
[[File:Boeing E-3A Sentry (707-300), USA - Air Force AN1423667.jpg|alt=Boeing E-3A Sentry (later upgraded to an E-3B) of the 552nd Airborne Warning & Control Wing, seen in 1981.|thumb|[[Boeing E-3 Sentry|Boeing E-3A Sentry]] (later upgraded to an E-3B) of the [[552nd Air Control Wing|552nd Airborne Warning & Control Wing]], seen in 1981.]]
Tinker celebrated the 30-year anniversary of the [[E-3 Sentry]] from 29 June to 1 July 2007. Past and present airmen were invited to swap stories and learn about the latest upgrades.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.af.mil/News/story/storyID/123059395/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121011062814/http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123059395|url-status=live|title=Airmen honor 30 years of AWACS|date=21 July 2012|archive-date=11 October 2012|website=af.mil|access-date=18 October 2017}}</ref>

On 13 May 2008, [[Oklahoma County, Oklahoma|Oklahoma County]] voters voted in favor of $71.5&nbsp;million in general obligation bonds, the majority of which has been used to purchase the former General Motors [[Oklahoma City Assembly]] plant which is located on the southwest section of the base, next to the runway. A 50-year lease-purchase agreement was executed in September 2008 between Oklahoma County and the Air Force, covering the 3.8&nbsp;million square foot (353,000 m<sup>2</sup>) facility and surrounding acreage. Oklahoma County officials paid $55&nbsp;million to buy the plant from General Motors, which is now called the Tinker Aerospace Complex.

From 2008 to 2015, the [[Oklahoma Air National Guard]]'s [[137th Air Refueling Wing]] also assumed an aerial refueling mission in accordance with the [[Base Realignment and Closure, 2005|2005 BRAC]] Recommendations. The then-137th Airlift Wing (ANG) relocated from [[Will Rogers Air National Guard Base]] to Tinker AFB, was redesignated as an air refueling wing, and associated with the 507 ARW while its C-130H aircraft were redistributed to other ANG airlift wings.  In 2015, the 137th ended its associate relationship with the 507th, was redesignated as the [[137th Special Operations Wing]] (137 SOW), and returned to Will Rogers ANGB, where it operates the [[MC-12 Liberty]] aircraft, operationally gained by [[Air Force Special Operations Command]] (AFSOC).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.137sow.ang.af.mil/ |title = 137 SOW Home}}</ref>

In 2015, it was announced that the Tinker was in the running for a squadron of the new [[KC-46A Pegasus]]. In October, it was announced that the base would not be receiving the plane, which instead was given to the [[916th Air Refueling Wing]] at [[Seymour Johnson Air Force Base]]. Tinker was also in competition with [[Westover Air Reserve Base]] and [[Grissom Air Reserve Base]] for the plane.<ref name=Pegasus>{{cite news|author1=Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs|title=Seymour-Johnson chosen for first Reserve-led KC-46A basing|url=https://www.afrc.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/626528/seymour-johnson-chosen-for-first-reserve-led-kc-46a-basing/|access-date=14 January 2016|work=Air Force Reserve Command|date=29 October 2015}}</ref>