Naval Base Trinidad | |
---|---|
NAS Port of Spain | |
Coordinates: 10°41′01″N 61°35′41″W / 10.683546°N 61.594780°W | |
Country | Trinidad and Tobago |
United States Navy | Naval Base Trinidad |
Commissioned | June 1, 1941 |
Decommissioned | 1977 |
Government | |
• Body | United States Navy |
Population | |
• Total | Peak 135,000 Troops on Island |
Time zone | UTC-4 (AST) |
Naval Base Trinidad, also called NAS Trinidad, NAS Port-of-Spain, was a large United States Navy Naval base built during World War II to support the many naval ships fighting and patrolling the Battle of the Atlantic. The fighting in the area became known as the Battle of the Caribbean. Naval Base Trinidad was located on the Island of Trinidad in West Indies of the Caribbean Sea.
The base also supported the United States Army Air Forces, United States Coast Guard, US Marine Corps and US Army. Naval Base Trinidad was a US Naval Advance Base built to protect the shipping lanes to and from the Panama Canal from U-boat attacks, by sea and air. The base did fueling, loading and unloading of cargo ships. The base also became a repair depot, with auxiliary floating drydocks that were able to repair boats and ships in the field. Naval Base Trinidad was commissioned on June 1, 1941, and at its peak it had 135,000 troops on the island.[1][2][3][4]