US Military

Military Bases

Although British hegemony declined rapidly in the early twentieth century, its bases were retained as long as the empire itself continued, and its base system even expanded briefly during the Second World War. In the immediate aftermath of the war, however, the British Empire crumbled, and the great majority of bases had to be relinquished.

The fall of the British Empire was accompanied by the rise of another, as the United States took Britain’s place as the hegemonic power of the capitalist world economy. The United States emerged from the Second World War with the most extensive system of military bases that the world had ever seen. This overseas basing system at the end of the Second World War consisted of over thirty thousand installations located at two thousand base sites residing in around one hundred countries and areas, and stretching from the Arctic Circle to Antarctica. U.S. military bases were spread over all the continents and the islands in between.

The official stance of the United States toward these military bases after the war was that they should be retained to whatever extent possible, and further bases should be acquired. At the Potsdam Conference on August 7, 1945, President Harry Truman declared:

Though the United States wants no profit or selfish advantage out of this war, we are going to maintain the military bases necessary for the complete protection of our interests and of world peace. Bases which our military experts deem to be essential for our protection we will acquire. We will acquire them by arrangements consistent with the United Nations Charter.

Militarypay.com provides detail information for US military bases (Air Force Bases, Navy Bases, Marines Bases, Coast Guard Air Stations and Army Air Fields) all over the world. Detailed address information and maps are included as far as available. The data records include the airport codes of the International Civil Aviation Organization and the International Air Transport Association (ICAO / IATA).

US AIR FORCE BASES, ARMY AIR FIELDS, NAVAL AND COAST GUARD AIR STATIONS.