In May 1942, the Army Air Corps chose this site for the Punta Gorda Army Air Field, and construction began that October at a cost of $700,000. The Army Air Corps activated the field on December 11, 1943, to train pilots for overseas duty, and the first student pilots arrived in February 1944. Average class size was 30 students per squadron, including the 490th Fighter Squadron and the 502nd Fighter-Bomber Squadron. More than 750 student pilots completed 15 weeks of training at the base, where pilots flew the Curtis P-40 Warhawk and the North American P-51 Mustang, and there were six training-related deaths. The Army Air Corps assigned 44 officers and 1,097 enlisted men as permanent staff. The base had 61 service buildings, including hangars, repair shops, chapel, theater, mess hall, and classrooms, and personnel lived in 268 hutments with wooden lower halves and canvas tops. The field contributed to victory in World War II and was deactivated on September 1, 1945, one day before the official surrender of Japan. Today the Punta Gorda Airport serves the community through both private and commercial aviation.