Howard Air Force Base, Panama
A former United States Air Force installation located on the western bank of the Panama Canal on the Pacific side, adjacent to the city of Panama. In the UAP context, Howard AFB has been theorized as a staging location for a dedicated South American UAP crash retrieval team, given its position as the premier US military hub for operations throughout Central and South America during the Cold War.
Role as US SOUTHCOM Hub
Howard AFB served as the headquarters for US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) air operations throughout much of the Cold War, operating as the primary US military air gateway for the entire South and Central American region. Operations conducted under SOUTHCOM jurisdiction — including counter-narcotics missions like Operation Laser Strike in Peru, which involved up to 20 agencies — routinely staged personnel and equipment through Howard.
Theorized UAP Retrieval Staging
Researchers theorizing about how a dedicated UAP crash retrieval team could have rapidly deployed to the 1997 Peru crash site have identified Howard AFB as the most plausible staging location. Its proximity to South American airspace, its role as a SOUTHCOM logistics hub, and its access to the classified contractor and intelligence elements that participated in Operation Laser Strike make it a logical forward base for a rapid-reaction recovery unit.
Howard AFB was formally transferred to Panamanian control in 1999 following the implementation of the 1977 Panama Canal Treaties, and is now known as Marcos A. Gelabert International Airport.