Pax River

In the early 1940’s an isolated community was transformed into a center of cutting-edge military aviation.

Built rapid-fire in just a year, Naval Air Station Patuxent River displaced families after hundreds of years of quiet rural living. Immediately upon opening, the base became home to the development of aviation resources necessary to provide victory in WWII and secure the U.S. spot as a world leader. Within 16 years it produced some of the first astronauts, including Alan Shepard, the first American in space.

Pax River is a historical series chronicling the World War II commissioning of Naval Air Station Patuxent River, the families it displaced, and the birth of the United States Naval Test Pilot School, home to the world’s boldest and most elite aviators.

We tell the story of the history of this unique location, the people who have lived and worked on the land it occupies, and the aviators, engineers and others who are still carrying on the legacy today.

We will be releasing a trailer for the history project in September.

Until then, enjoy these videos from a Women in Aviation project that we did for an exhibit at the Patuxent River Naval Air Museum using some of the interviews filmed for the Pax River History project.