The year was 1928. The place—640 acres near Yuma covered with cactus, brush and desert wildlife. It was that year that Col. Benjamin F. Fly persuaded the federal government to lease the land from Yuma County. A 20-year lease with an option for an additional 20 years at $1 per year, was signed. Fly Field became a reality.

 Aviation was in its infancy, and Fly Field became the center of attention in Yuma. During the summer of 1928, it was used as a stopover point for 25 planes in a New York to Los Angeles air race. It was used sporadically by private aircraft until 1941 when the U.S. government, through the Civil Aeronautics Administration, authorized an expenditure for permanent runways.

When the United States entered World War II, an air base was erected with the astounding speed which characterized the war effort. By early 1943, Yuma Army Air Base began graduating classes of pilots. The base became one of the busiest flying schools in the nation, training pilots of AT-6 single engine trainers, T-17 multi-engine trainers and B-17 Flying Fortresses.

At the end of the war, all flight activity here ceased and the area was partially reclaimed by the desert. During the period of inactivity, it was controlled successively by the War Assets Administration, the U.S. Corps of Engineers and the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Reclamation, which used it as a headquarters for its irrigation projects.

On July 7, 1951, the Air Force reactivated the base, and the 4750th Air Base Squadron resumed training as part of the Western Air Defense Forces. The airfield was named Yuma Air Base, but was renamed Vincent Air Force Base in 1956 in memory of Brig. Gen. Clinton D. Vincent, a pioneer of bombing techniques, who died in 1955.