Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Miramar's history as a military base has stretched through all the services, from its days as Camp Kearny (an Army base), as a short-lived Navy dirigible base (shared pre-WWII by the Navy and the Marine Corps), followed by a long Navy ownership where it gained fame as the home of "Top Gun," the elite training school for fighter pilots. Now the 23,000-acre facility has recently been transferred back to the Marines. The facility is open for Fleet Week and for the annual Air Show; passes are mandatory at all other times.
