AN OVERGROWN AIRFIELD ON A small island in the Pacific, once instrumental in America’s role in ending World War II, is being reclaimed by the U.S. Air Force as it prepares for a future fight with China.
The remote island of Tinian, which is less than 40 square miles, is one of three principal islands in the Northern Mariana Islands, a string of sparsely populated islets in the Western Pacific Ocean that make up the U.S.’s westernmost frontier, along with the major military hub of Guam some 100 miles to the south.
Tinian was known for its strategic value during the war. Due to its proximity to Tokyo—less than 1,500 miles—it later became a staging base to launch bomber attacks on mainland Japan. The island is a similar distance to China and other flashpoints in Asia, with a U.S. Defense Department plan costed at nearly $500 million now preparing it to help the United States deter, or defeat, the Chinese military.
After the Allies captured Tinian in 1944, the Navy began constructing what was then the world’s largest air base, building over
