It was consolidated with two adjoining US Army and Navy facilities to become part of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst (JB MDL) on 1 October 2009.

[6] The wing also provides mission-ready, expeditionary Airmen to support Unified Combatant Commanders in ongoing military operations.

The base was named after Major Thomas B. McGuire Jr., Medal of Honor recipient, and the second leading ace in American history.

[9] March 3, 1960, while returning home from his army stint, Elvis Presley landed on McGuire Airforce Base, en route from Frankfurt, Germany and Glasgow Prestwick Airport, Prestwick, Scotland and Ernest Harmon Air Force Base, Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.

Many hundreds of thousands of Air Force, Army, Navy, and Marine Corps personnel have left the United States for overseas locations from McGuire AFB.

These same planes were also responsible for the Super Bowl XLVIII flyover and missing-man formation which came at the end of opera star Renee Fleming's rendition of the National Anthem.

McGuire Air Force Base was established as Fort Dix Airport in 1937 and first opened to military aircraft on 9 January 1941.

Medal of Honor recipient and second place American flying ace of World War II, Major McGuire died on 7 January 1945 when his P-38 Lightning spun out of control and crashed on Negros Island in the Philippines as he attempted to aid his wingman during an aerial dogfight.

To meet the requirements for a possible world war, Rudd Field was renamed Fort Dix Army Air Base in 1939, and underwent massive expansion from 1940 to 1941.

Initially during 1941–42 the Group operated a wide range of aircraft, including the BC-1A, L-59, O-46, O-47, O-49 Vigilant, and O-52 Owl, engaging in antisubmarine patrols along the East coast.

Once organized and prepared for overseas duty, these units provided support and technical sections for the group requirements as a whole: Flying control, Ordnance, airfield security, firefighting, Post Exchange (PX), Special Services, Mail, Transportation ("motor pool"), Communications, Radar, Gunnery instruction, Personal Equipment, and Weather (Meteorology).

In late 1942, Army Air Forces Antisubmarine Command (AAFASC) took up tenant status at Fort Dix AAB.

This mission continued until the end of the war in 1945, then received returning aircraft from Europe and arranged their shipment to operational bases or to storage locations.

SAC activated the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at the newly re-designated McGuire Air Force Base on 10 November 1948.

Developed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) engineers and scientists, SAGE monitored North American skies for possible attack by crewed aircraft and missiles for 25 years.

The Bomarc site was located 4 miles (6.4 km) ESE of the main base 40°02′06″N 074°26′29″W / 40.03500°N 74.44139°W / 40.03500; -74.44139 (46th ADMS) in a separate facility, and was staffed by the 46th Air Defense Missile Squadron, activated on 1 January 1959.

Within a year of becoming operational, a Bomarc-A with a nuclear warhead caught fire on 7 June 1960 following the explosive rupture of its onboard helium tank.

While the missile's explosives didn't detonate the heat melted the warhead, releasing plutonium which the fire crews then spread around.

The Air Force and the Atomic Energy Commission cleaned up the site and covered it with concrete; fortunately, this was the only major incident involving the weapons system.

After its closure in 1972, the accident resulted in the site remaining off limits to the present day, primarily due to low levels of plutonium contamination.

Due to the accident, the McGuire complex has never been sold or converted to other uses and remains in Air Force ownership, making it the most intact site of the eight in the United States.

The large SAGE DC-01 blockhouse is now the headquarters of the 621st Contingency Response Wing and previously housed the 21st Air Force/Expeditionary Mobility Task Force.

For the next 30 years, the 438th MAW and transported military cargo, mail and passengers worldwide, particularly in the Eastern United States, Atlantic, European and Mediterranean areas, with frequent special missions to the Arctic, the Antarctic, South America, the Far East, and to Southeast Asia combat areas during the Vietnam War.

In 1999, McGuire served as the lead staging base for the evacuation of Kosovo refugees in Operation OPEN ARMS; McGuire was the rally and staging point for FEMA operations in New York City after the 11 September 2001 attacks; in 2005, the base lent key support for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

In 2008, McGuire assumed responsibility for the no-fail "Red Ball Express" aerial port mission, supplying efforts in ENDURING FREEDOM.

McGuire hosted a rapidly assembled STRATCOM Joint Task Force satellite recovery team with no prior notice in February 2008, winning praise for its flexibility and support.

Additionally, the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) identified several units to be added to Team McGuire over the next few years, including contingents from every service branch.

Construction of many new facilities, a beautification effort, and new privately owned contract family housing, make McGuire one of the premier Air Force installations.

Cadets in encampment are educated on life in the military, careers in the United States Air Force, and principles of aviation.

[25] The U.S. Census Bureau lists "Joint Base MDL’s McGuire AFB and Fort Dix" in Burlington County as having its own school district.