Sorry, but I am from Alamogordo, 12 miles east of Holloman AFB/WSMR, and I can assure you, that base has been around FAR longer than 1991.
The F-117 is based there, and perhaps special facilites were built at Holloman for the F-117's in 1991, but the base itself has been there for decades. In fact that base has been there since the 1940's. and played a part in the first atomic bomb tests at Trinity site 20 miles to the north.
WSMR is also the emergency landing site for the space shuttle. In the early 1980's one of the shuttles had to land out there because of bad weather in Florida and the landing site at Edwards was also experiencing some unusual weather conditions, so WSMR was selected as the 3rd emergency landing site.
The official Holloman AFB website
From website:
Holloman Air Force Base was originally established in 1942 as Alamogordo Air Field six miles west of Alamogordo, New Mexico. It was re-named in 1948 after Col. George Holloman, a Rich Square, N.C., native, who was a pioneer in early rocket and pilot-less aircraft research. The base supports about 21,000 active-duty, Guard, Reserve, retirees, DoD civilians and their family members. Personnel from Holloman have participated in numerous operations, such as Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, and many more.
Cheers!!!!
[edit on 18-1-2009 by RFBurns]
