Following the National Security Act of 1947, the United States Air Force assumed control of the original Army Fort Richardson and Elmendorf Field, gaining full ownership of its facilities in 1951. The Alaskan Command, established 1 January 1947, and headquartered at Elmendorf, was a unified command under the Joint Chiefs of Staff, based on lessons learned during the war when a lack of coordinated effort hampered operations to drive the Japanese from the western Aleutian Islands of Attu and Kiska. Elmendorf officially became an Air Force base 28 March.