Keesler Air Force Base

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Keesler Air Force Base
Biloxi, Mississippi in United States of America
A C-130J-30 Super Hercules of the 815th Airlift Squadron takes off from Keesler AFB
Keesler AFB Show map of North America Keesler AFB Show map of the United States Keesler AFB Show map of Mississippi
Coordinates	30°24′41″N 88°55′25″W / 30.41139°N 88.92361°W / 30.41139; -88.92361
Type	US Air Force Base
Site information
Owner	Department of Defense
Operator	US Air Force
Controlled by	Air Education and Training Command (AETC)
Condition	Operational
Website	www.keesler.af.mil
Site history
Built	1941 (1941) (as Keesler Field)
In use	1941 – present
Garrison information
Garrison	81st Training Wing (host wing) 403rd Wing
Airfield information
Identifiers	IATA: BIX, ICAO: KBIX, FAA LID: BIX, WMO: 747686
Elevation	9.9 m (32.6 ft) AMSL
Runways Direction Length and surface 03/21 2,326 m (7,631 ft) PEM
Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1]

Keesler Air Force Base (IATA: BIX, ICAO: KBIX, FAA LID: BIX) is a United States Air Force base located in Biloxi, a city along the Gulf Coast in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States. The base is named in honor of aviator 2d Lt Samuel Reeves Keesler Jr., a Mississippi native killed in France during the First World War. The base is home of Headquarters, Second Air Force (2 AF) and the 81st Training Wing (81 TW) of the Air Education and Training Command (AETC).

The base has specialized in ground trade training since its opening in 1941 during World War II. It has had high-quality technical schools and absorbed units moved from other bases under the Base Realignment and Closure Act (BRAC).