Very few people know about the origin of those beautiful shiny and finely detailed aircraft models that they see in travel agents, airports and in the homes and offices of those involved with, or in love with, the Aviation Industry. Without wanting to sound condescending, very few people – particularly of the young generation would be able to stick a pin in the map and point to the Philippines, let alone Clark Air Base.
Clark Air Base was a former U.S. Air Force base on one of the three main islands in the Philippines – Luzon and is now known as the Clark Special Economic Zone. It is near the city of Angeles in the province of Pampanga and about 40 miles (60 km) northwest of Manila. Clark Air Base was arguably the most urbanized military facility in history, and was the largest American base overseas. The base was converted into a special economic zone after the American military left the Philippines in 1992. Clark Air Base was an American military facility from 1903 to 1991. The base covered 14.3 square miles (37 km