Kokan Airfield (Ching Chuan Kang Air Base Predecessor)

Kokan Airfield (公館飛行場, also romanized Kong-kuan or Kung Kuan) was an Imperial Japanese Navy airfield situated on the Dadu Plateau (大肚台地) in what was then Taichū Prefecture, colonial Taiwan. The site spans the modern Taichung districts of Qingshui (清水), Shalu (沙鹿), Daya (大雅), and Shengang (神岡).

The origins of the base date to 1936, when an airfield was laid out in the Kōkan (公館) area of Toyohara District (豊原郡). A 200-hectare site on a former horse-training ground was developed with basic runway facilities; press reports of February 1936 describe it as a new airfield in Daya Village, and it was also known as Toyohara Airfield (豊原飛行場).

With the escalation of the Pacific War, the facility was requisitioned by the Imperial Japanese Navy in 1943 and reorganized as a naval airfield. The conversion involved massive land requisition: settlements across Kōkan and surrounding areas — including Gozhuangcuo, Xucuiliao, Huding, Yangcuiliao, Quanzhoucuo, and Datuliao — totaling approximately 1,400 hectares were seized, displacing 656 households and 8,123 residents.

By October 1944, American aerial reconnaissance identified the facility as an active naval airfield. A satellite airfield was being constructed to the west of the main base; by July 1945, this western extension was nearing completion. US military intelligence designated the main field as 'Toyohara Airfield' and the western satellite as 'Taichu West Airfield.'

On January 3, 1945, aircraft from USS Ticonderoga (CV-14) launched a major strike against the airfield. The attack force comprised 14 SB2C-3 Helldiver dive bombers from VB-80, 6 TBM-3 Avenger torpedo bombers from VT-80, and 12 F6F-5 Hellcat fighters from VF-80. Six dive bombers turned back due to bad weather, while two torpedo bombers became separated and attacked Suao instead. The remaining aircraft bombed buildings and hangars on the eastern perimeter and strafed the runway diagonally. Reconnaissance photographs captured during the raid showed Japanese A6M Zero fighters on the ground.

The base also figured in the broader Formosa Air Battle (台湾沖航空戦) of October 12-16, 1944, when US Navy Task Force 38 carrier groups struck airfields across Taiwan in a massive pre-invasion air campaign. These raids severely degraded Japanese air strength on Taiwan, destroying hundreds of aircraft and cratering runways.

After Japan's surrender in August 1945, the Republic of China Air Force took over the facility, initially naming it Kung Kuan Air Base. Following the 1954 Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty, the base was selected for massive expansion under the 'Yangmingshan Project' (陽明山計畫), with construction completed in 1959. A 12,000-foot (3,658 m) runway — one of the longest in East Asia — was built to accommodate heavy jet aircraft.

On March 20, 1966, the base was renamed Ching Chuan Kang Air Base (清泉崗空軍基地) in honor of ROC Army General Qiu Qingquan (邱清泉), who died in the 1949 Huaihai Campaign. During the Vietnam War, CCK became one of the largest US Air Force bases in the Far East — by some accounts second only to Clark Air Base — hosting the 314th Tactical Airlift Wing (1966–1971), then the 374th Tactical Airlift Wing, and various fighter and reconnaissance units. The 1,750-acre installation was a critical logistics hub supporting combat operations in Southeast Asia. US forces departed in 1979 following the normalization of US-PRC relations.

In 2004, civilian aviation operations were transferred from the old Taichung Shuinan Airport to CCK, which was redesignated as Taichung Ching Chuan Kang Airport (台中清泉崗機場). Today the facility operates as a joint military-civilian airport, home to the ROCAF 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing with its AIDC F-CK-1 Ching-kuo indigenous fighters, while the civilian terminal handles domestic and international flights as Taichung International Airport.