Fort Allen (Puerto Rico)


Fort Allen, officially Fort Allen Training Center, is a Puerto Rico National Guard military installation located on a 921-acre facility in Juana Díaz, Puerto Rico.

History

Losey Field was established by the Army Air Corps in 1941 and was used during World War II by fighter & bomber units. It was named for Captain Robert M. Losey, an aeronautical meteorologist who in April 1940 became the United States' first military casualty in World War II. Units assigned were:
Subsequently:
Since the Navy left Fort Allen in 1980 there's been no regular Active Duty military personnel assigned on post, but the Puerto Rico Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve do have permanent Active Guard Reserve personnel present. Fort Allen still a federal owned facility operated by the Puerto Rico National Guard. Its mission is educational in scope and that of providing support to the Puerto Rico Army National Guard and Army Reserve units stationed in southern Puerto Rico. There is not a Commissary at Fort Allen but NGX operates a PX on base for authorized patrons.

Units and tenant units

LTC Hernan G. Pesquera United States Army Reserve Center is located on 39 acres within the grounds of Fort Allen, Puerto Rico. This facility is named after Army Reserve Lieutenant Colonel and federal judge Hernan Gregorio Pesquera.

Armed Forces Reserve Center

On March 4, 2011 a Armed Forces Reserve Center was inaugurated at Fort Allen to relocate the U.S. Army Reserve 8th Multifunctional of the 180th Division and retention office. The Puerto Rico Army National Guard 201st Regiment Multifunctional Training Brigade was located to the Fort Allen Armed Forces Reserve Center. A Unheated storage building was also built. It also has a fitness room, locker rooms, weapons simulator, classrooms and private offices and an armory/vault. The Fort Allen Armed Forces Reserve Center can accommodate 150 Guard and Reserve Soldiers on a rotating basis, 126 military personnel per weekend.
This facility was dedicated posthumously to the 6th Adjutant General of the Puerto Rico National Guard and founder of the Language Center at Fort Allen, Major General Salvador Padilla Escabi.

Officer Candidate School, NCO Academy & Language Center

The Puerto Rico Army National Guard Officer Candidate School, NCO Academy and the Language Center for the Puerto Rico Army and Air National Guard recruits are located at Fort Allen.

Over-the-horizon radar

The U.S. Navy Relocatable Over the Horizon receiver site was built in 1997 on government land at Fort Allen as part of a surveillance network which is designed to monitor flights over an area encompassing more than in South America. The radar consists of 34 antennas and support structure from 71 to tall.

Youth Challenge Program

The National Guard Youth Challenge Program Community Outreach Youth Program came aboard to Fort Allen in 1999 to intervene and reclaim the lives of 16- to 18-year-old high school dropouts, producing program graduates with the values, life skills, education, and self-discipline necessary to succeed as productive citizens. Participants of the Youth Challenge Program live in Fort Allen during the program.