NAVAL BASE GUAM

OVERVIEW

Naval Base Guam, located on Apra Harbor on the western coast of the U.S. territory of Guam, is the United States Navy's westernmost American homeport and one of the most strategically significant installations in the Indo-Pacific. As an unincorporated U.S. territory, Guam is sovereign American soil — meaning the base operates under U.S. federal law, requires no passport for U.S. citizens, and is not subject to a foreign Status of Forces Agreement.

The base is the home of Submarine Squadron 15, which operates three forward-deployed Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarines along with the submarine tender USS Frank Cable. Apra Harbor — one of the largest natural protected deepwater harbors in the Western Pacific — also supports the helicopter squadron HSC-25, Coastal Riverine forces, and rotational visits by U.S. and allied surface combatants and submarines. Naval Base Guam is the headquarters of Commander, Naval Forces Marianas (COMNAVMAR) and, jointly with Andersen Air Force Base, of Commander, Joint Region Marianas (CJRM).

Approximately 6,000 active-duty Sailors are stationed at Naval Base Guam alongside civilian employees and dependents. The installation continues to expand as part of the Marine Corps' realignment from Okinawa to Guam, anchored by the new Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz at Dededo — the first new Marine Corps base activated in 70 years.

KEY FACTS

• Forward-Deployed SubmarinesHomeport of Submarine Squadron 15 — three Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarines forward-deployed to the Western Pacific
• Strategic LocationClosest sovereign U.S. soil to East Asia — about 1,500 nm from Tokyo and 1,800 nm from the South China Sea
• Apra HarborOne of the largest protected deepwater harbors in the western Pacific
• Joint RegionOperates jointly with Andersen Air Force Base under Joint Region Marianas
• Future Marine PresenceMarine Corps Base Camp Blaz (Dededo, Guam) activated 2020 — first new Marine Corps base in 70 years

HISTORY

Guam has been continuously associated with American naval power since 1898, when the island was ceded to the United States by Spain at the close of the Spanish–American War. From 1899 until 1941, the U.S. Navy administered Guam as a naval government, with the senior naval officer serving simultaneously as island governor. Apra Harbor served as a coaling station, cable relay, and waypoint on the Pacific clipper routes, and a small Marine barracks and Insular Patrol kept order on the island.

The Pacific war reached Guam on December 8, 1941 (December 10 local time), when Japanese forces invaded just hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The small American garrison was overwhelmed within three days, and Guam endured a brutal 31-month Japanese occupation marked by forced labor, internment of the Chamorro population, and atrocities including the Tinta and Faha massacres. The U.S. liberation, beginning July 21, 1944 (now observed annually as Liberation Day), was led by Marines of the III Amphibious Corps and soldiers of the U.S. Army's 77th Infantry Division. Three weeks of combat killed approximately 1,800 Americans and over 18,000 Japanese.

Following liberation, Guam exploded into the largest U.S. military complex in the Pacific. Apra Harbor became a fleet anchorage and supply hub for the final assault on Okinawa and Japan, while a chain of B-29 airfields on the northern plateau — including the future Andersen Air Force Base at North Field — launched the Twentieth Air Force's strategic bombing campaign against the Japanese home islands. After the war, the Navy consolidated its facilities at Apra Harbor while retaining administrative responsibility for the island until passage of the Guam Organic Act in 1950, which made Chamorros U.S. citizens and established a civilian territorial government.

Modern Naval Station Guam was formally established in 1956. During the Vietnam War, the harbor served as a turnaround port for fleet auxiliaries and a stopover for Operation Linebacker B-52 strikes flown from Andersen. In 2002 the Navy stood up Submarine Squadron 15 at Apra Harbor, forward-deploying Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarines and the tender USS Frank Cable to increase Pacific submarine presence. Joint Region Marianas was established in 2009, consolidating installation support for Naval Base Guam and Andersen AFB. The activation of Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz at Dededo in 2020 — supporting the relocation of approximately 5,000 Marines from Okinawa under the U.S.–Japan defense realignment — is the largest military construction effort on Guam in 75 years.

MAJOR COMMANDS & TENANT UNITS

• Commander, Naval Forces Marianas (COMNAVMAR)
• Commander, Joint Region Marianas (CJRM)
• Submarine Squadron 15 (CSS-15) — homeport for forward-deployed Los Angeles-class attack submarines
• Coastal Riverine Group 1 Detachment Guam
• Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 25 (HSC-25 "Island Knights")
• U.S. Naval Hospital Guam
• Military Sealift Command Far East Detachment

LOCATION & GEOGRAPHY

HOST NATION CONTEXT

Guam is an unincorporated organized territory of the United States, acquired from Spain in 1898 and governed under the Guam Organic Act of 1950. Chamorros — the indigenous people of the Marianas — are U.S. citizens by birth, and the island has an elected governor and unicameral legislature. Guam sends one non-voting delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives.

Because Guam is U.S. soil, Naval Base Guam operates under U.S. federal law without a Status of Forces Agreement. U.S. military personnel and dependents do not need passports, command sponsorship, or host-nation visas, and on-base civil and criminal jurisdiction follows the same federal framework as any CONUS installation. Off base, military personnel are subject to the Government of Guam's territorial laws.

The military presence is the largest single sector of Guam's economy and a major employer of Chamorro citizens, but it has long been a subject of local political debate. The ongoing Marine Corps relocation from Okinawa to Camp Blaz, along with planned live-fire training range construction, has prompted extensive U.S.–Government of Guam consultation on environmental impact, cultural-resource protection, and infrastructure capacity.

NOTABLE EVENTS

1. 1898
   U.S. Acquisition

   Guam ceded to the United States by Spain following the Spanish–American War. The Navy administers the island as a coaling station and naval government for the next 50 years.
2. 1941
   Japanese Occupation

   Japanese forces seize Guam two days after Pearl Harbor. Occupation lasts until liberation in 1944.
3. 1944
   Liberation

   U.S. Marines and Soldiers liberate Guam after three weeks of combat. The island becomes a major staging base for the final Pacific campaigns and B-29 raids on Japan.
4. 1956
   Modern Naval Base

   Naval Station Guam consolidated at Apra Harbor as the central U.S. Navy installation in the Marianas.
5. 2002
   Submarine Forward-Deployment

   Submarine Squadron 15 stood up at Guam, beginning the modern forward-deployment of Los Angeles-class attack submarines to Apra Harbor.
6. 2009
   Joint Region Marianas

   Naval Base Guam and Andersen Air Force Base consolidated under Joint Region Marianas for installation support.

NEARBY BASES

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

SOURCES

• Wikipedia: Naval Base Guam
• CNIC — Naval Base Guam
• Joint Region Marianas
• Guampedia — Liberation of Guam