The facility in Point Mugu, California, started as a United States Navy anti-aircraft training center during World War II[2] and was developed in the late 1940s as the Navy's major missile development and test facility.

In 1963 the U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program was established on a sand spit between Mugu Lagoon and the ocean.

The body was flown to Point Mugu aboard presidential aircraft SAM 28000 two days later.

Known as Channel Islands Air National Guard Station, the annex was constructed at a cost of more than $70 million and was fully activated in April 1990.

The annual Point Mugu airshow began in 1960 and is presently Ventura County's largest public event.