Vintage Photos - Santa Ana Naval Air Station / Marine Corps Air Station Tustin - Lighter-than-Air (LTA) Base with Blimp Hangers

This base was built in 1942 as the Santa Ana Naval Air Station.  The blimps were used to patrol America's coastline primarily to watch for enemy submarines.  We will be posting more historical information on the blimp hangers soon. The "Santa Ana" designation was included because it was located in unincorporated territory.   According to some sources, in the early 1950s the facility was known as "Hanger City" during a period between being operated by the Navy and then the Marines. Later the name was changed to the Marine Corps Air Station Tustin.

Most of these photos are from the collection of the Tustin Area Historical Society. A few are from the Library of Congress. More information on the LTA base can be found at

• California Military Museum

• Paul Freeman's Abandoned & Little-Known Airfield site.

• Global Security (background info)

Click the thumbnail images to see the full photo. Contact our webguy if you have any questions or have additional photos or information to add.

Here are links to recent historical works on the base and the hangers:

• City of Tustin's film titled "The Tustin Hangers," which documents the history of the base

• PDF of The Tustin Hangers: Titans of History historical report by the City of Tustin and the County of Orange

Click here for modern photos of the base as it currently looks today.

© Tustin Area Historical Society; 395 El Camino Real; Tustin, CA 92780