Book excerpt: Mountain Home Air Force Base began inauspiciously as a small effort to support and train B-24 combat aircrews for the rigors of World War II. Today it represents the only active-duty air force installation in the heart of Idaho. From its shadowy rebirth in the late 1940s to its buildup under Strategic Air Command, the base housed some of the cold war's most important assets in the battle against communism. Mountain Home's most recent and longest-serving tenant is the world-famous 366th Fighter Wing "Gunfighters." Under the stewardship of the Gunfighters, Mountain Home has been transformed from a remote, dusty World War II airstrip to one of the air force's premier training facilities, readying aircrews and their support agencies for the demands of modern warfare.