Gunter Annex is a United States Air Force installation located in the North-northeast suburbs of Montgomery, Alabama. The base is named after former Montgomery mayor William Adams Gunter. Until 1992 it was known as Gunter Air Force Base or Gunter Air Force Station. It has been a military training base since its opening in 1940. Gunter Annex is a subordinate installation under the administration of the 42d Air Base Wing at nearby Maxwell Air Force Base. Overview Gunter Annex is the home of the Business and Enterprise Systems (BES) Directorate. The BES provides and supports secure combat information systems and networks for the United States Air Force, the Department of Defense and other Federal Government Agencies. The BES Directorate is a part of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC), which is headquartered at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, and its subordinate activity at Hanscom AFB, Massachusetts. The 26th Network Operations Squadron provides network defense for the Air Force Enterprise Network (AFNET). The 689th Network Operations Squadron is a Classic Associate Unit to the 26th NOS and is also located on the Annex but falls under Air Force Reserve Command. The host unit of Gunter Annex is the 42d Air Base Wing, headquartered at Maxwell AFB. The former 42d Bombardment Wing took over host duties at both Maxwell AFB and Gunter AFB on 1 October 1994 when the wing was redesignated and reassigned from the closing of Loring Air Force Base, Maine. History William Adams Gunter The facility is named after William Adams Gunter (1871–1940), a long-time mayor of Montgomery Alabama. Mayor Gunter was an aviation advocate who championed aviation and was a major force behind the construction of the original Montgomery Municipal Airport at this site in 1929. There were several efforts to have the airport officially named in his honor while he was still living. Although he successfully resisted these efforts, the site is still commonly referred to by residents as 'Gunter Field'. World War II In 1940, the 'Plan for the Expansion of the Air Corps Training Program' was published and indicated a need for a preliminary flying school in the Montgomery area. The Commandant of the Air Corps Tactical School at Maxwell Field, Colonel Walter Weaver, picked the Montgomery Municipal Airport and the surrounding area as the location for the flying school. This included a newly built, but as yet unoccupied state hospital for tuberculosis patients. In