Shafter Airport , also known as Minter Field and formerly known as Air Corps Basic Flying School, is a public use airport located east of the central business district of Shafter and 14 miles northwest of Bakersfield, a city in Kern County, California, United States. Originally a World War II primary training facility for pilots, it is currently a public airport owned by the Minter Field Airport District. This airport is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a general aviation facility. History Lerdo Field, as the airport was initially known during World War II, was first opened in June 1941 when the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) dispatched a small garrison of airmen to open an airfield at Shafter. The name was derived from close proximity to the highway of the same name. The airfield commander utilized Bakersfield College as his headquarters, while airmen were quartered in temporary facilities from Bakersfield to Wasco while barracks and other structures were being built. As construction proceeded through the rest of the year, the Minter Sub-Depot was established as a branch of the Sacramento Air Depot. In August, the first operational training units (OTUs) began arriving at Lerdo Field, the airfields mission being advanced pilot training of USAAC bomber, attack, transport and pursuit pilots. In April 1942, contracts for the construction of more than 65 on-base buildings were let, while the constantly increasing numbers of cadets were housed in a large tent city erected as temporary shelter. With the relative completion of construction in July 1942, the airfield was renamed Minter Field Army Airfield after a member of the locally prominent Minter family, First Lieutenant Hugh C. Minter. Lieutenant Minter, a World War I veteran, was killed in a mid-air collision over March Field on July 8, 1932. The airfield was placed under the overall command of the United States Army Air Forces West Coast Training Center. Known sub-bases and auxiliaries of Minter Field were: Wasco Auxiliary Airfield (No.1) – now Wasco-Kern County Airport Pond Auxiliary Field (No. 2) – – abandoned Famoso Auxiliary Airfield (No.3) – – abandoned Dunlap Auxiliary Airfield (No.4) (AKA Jasmin Landing Field) – – abandoned Semi-tropic Auxiliary Airfield (No.5) – – abandoned Poso Auxiliary Airfield (No.6) – now Poso Airport Lost Hills Auxiliary Airfield (No.7) – now Lost Hills Airport Coalinga Municipal Airport (Old) (closed) – The primary