 The USS Shenandoah crashed in Ohio in 1925, the USS Akron was destroyed in 1933 and the USS Macon in 1935, leading to the cancellation of the airship program.The base's upgrade to an air station began in September 1940, and on February 3, 1941 it was commissioned Marine Corps Air Station Ewa.By the onset of World War II, the air station had four runways and numerous hangars.