North Field Tinian reactivated

[Bob Dedmon]

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Satellite imagery shows the extent of the massive amount of work that has been done in the past year to restore more than 20 million square feet of runways and other World War II-era infrastructure at historic North Field on the U.S. island of Tinian in the Western Pacific. The airfield was originally established as a launchpad for B-29 bomber raids on Imperial Japan, including the ones that saw atomic bombs dropped on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The facility has been refurbished to again offer a critical power projection node with its original grid-like layout presenting targeting challenges for a modern opponent, all of which could be especially valuable in a future high-end fight in the region against China.

A series of satellite images of North Field taken between Dec. 3, 2023, and Jan. 29, 2025, by Planet Labs starkly illustrates just how extensive the reconstitution of the derelict airfield has become. The images, as can seen below, show the progressive clearing of the previously overgrown runways, taxiways, and other infrastructure.
PHOTO © 2025 PLANET LABS INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION
Tinian’s North Field as seen in a satellite image taken on Jan. 29, 2025. PHOTO © 2025 PLANET LABS INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION

Additional satellite imagery from Planet Labs shows the ongoing work to expand Tinian International Airport further to the south of North Field, which is also to support U.S. military operations in the region. As seen below, a very large new apron and adjacent taxiway are being built to the north of the airport’s existing runway. Additional infrastructure, including new fuel storage facilities at Tinian’s main port at the south end of the island, is also included in the divert field project, as you can read more about here.
PHOTO © 2025 PLANET LABS INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION
A satellite image of Tinian International Airport taken on Jan. 29, 2025. PHOTO © 2025 PLANET LABS INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION

The U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force have been working together on the military construction across Tinian.

Tinian is one of the 14 islands that comprise the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). It is situated in the Western Pacific some 120 miles northeast of Guam, which is another U.S. territory, but is not part of the CNMI.
A map showing the general location of Tinian, at left, with Guam directly to its south. Wake Island, at center, and Hawaii, at right, are also marked. Google Maps

At the height of operations in 1945, North Field had four 8,500-foot-long runways and associated taxiways, ramp space for more than 500 B-29s, and other facilities to support the approximately 40,000 personnel stationed at the base, according to the U.S. National Park Service (NPS). U.S. Navy construction battalions, better known as Seabees, led the work to enlarge what had been a far smaller Japanese airfield following the island’s capture in 1944.
North Field seen during World War II. This picture was taken before the fourth runway was built. US Army Air Force

“Because the shape of the island was reminiscent of Manhattan, New York, the Seabees laid it out in a pattern, and with place names, based on the city streets there,” per NPS. By the time World War II ended, North Field was the largest airfield anywhere in the world. However, the massive drawdown that followed the conclusion of the war led what was then the U.S. Army Air Force to completely abandon the facility in 1947, and it sat largely idle for the next five decades.
A picture of North Field on Tinian in 1945. US Government

The U.S. military did some much more modest work to restore parts of North Field in the 2000s and 2010s to expand its utility for training purposes. The extent of this was using one of its runway areas as a semi-improved landing strip and an area for austere forward-deployed operations training.
A satellite image taken in June 2023 showing the more modest refurbishments at North Field. Google Earth
A US Marine Corps KC-130J tanker/transport aircraft lands at North Field on Tinian during an exercise in 2024. USMC Sgt. Jose Angeles

By 2020, the decision had been made to make the aforementioned improvements to Tinian International Airport, located south of North Field, primarily to expand its ability to serve as a divert field, especially in case Andersen Air Force Base on nearby Guam is put out of action for any reason. By the end of 2023, the U.S. military had decided to reclaim all of North Field, as well.

The Air Force highlighted what it described as the “adaptive rehabilitation work being done on the North Field” in a press release last April. “The Airmen [on the island] there are restoring over 20 million square feet of degraded World War II pavement so that ultimately the rejuvenated runway can serve as a power projection platform.”

[jemhouston]

We actually might be serious about a pivot to the Pacific.

[Belushi TD]

Or some contractor is trying to get his slush fund money before DOGE finds it!

*grin*

Just kidding. Its probably a good thing to have the Pacific island airfields usable.

Belushi TD