[2] The air station is the former location of Pacific Fleet fighter and Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft (F-4 Phantom II, F-14 Tomcat, E-2 Hawkeye) and is best known as the former location of the United States Navy Fighter Weapons School (NFWS), its TOPGUN training program and the movie of the same name.

After the American Civil War, the land was divided and sold to people such as Edward Scripps, a newspaper publisher from the eastern United States, who developed a ranch on the site.

During World War I, the U.S. Army acquired 12,721 acres (5,148 ha) of land in the Miramar Ranch area, on a mesa north of San Diego.

During World War I, an airstrip was never built on the property, although Army and U.S. Navy aircraft from Naval Air Station North Island did land on the parade deck.

Lindbergh used the abandoned Camp Kearny parade field to practice landings and take-offs before making his historic solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean.

The Navy commissioned Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) Camp Kearny in February 1943, specifically to train crews for the Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer,[8] which was built less than 10 miles (16 km) away in San Diego.

Only the western half of Miramar's facilities were put to use; the old east station began to deteriorate, with many buildings sold as scrap.

The eastern half, former Camp Elliot, was used by the United States Air Force for Project Orion[12] (having been transferred temporarily),[13] and later by NASA;[14] it was the site of several launches.

[16] On 1 October 1997, Colonel Thomas A. Caughlan became the first Marine commanding officer of MCAS Miramar since World War II.

[17] In 2005, the BRAC Commission directed instructor pilots and support personnel from Miramar to Eglin AFB in Florida, sufficient to stand up the Marine Corps' portion of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter program (JSF) Training Site.

In 2006, the San Diego County Proposition A proposed obtaining 3000 acres (12 km2) at MCAS Miramar to develop a commercial airport.

It is surrounded on three sides by residential areas including Mira Mesa, Scripps Ranch, University City, Clairemont, and Tierrasanta.

To lessen the noise impact to the community, MCAS Miramar has made adjustments to their operations over the years, including the use of hush-houses, limitations on engine run-ups, and modification to flight plans.

There have been a number of aviation accidents: On 30 January 2010, the Department of Veterans Affairs dedicated a new National Cemetery at the northwest corner of MCAS Miramar.