Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant passages that can help answer the question.
Query: What is the largest naval base in the world?
Naval Station Norfolk, is a United States Navy base in Norfolk, Virginia. It supports naval forces in the United States Fleet Forces Command,[1] those operating in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and the Indian Ocean. The installation occupies about 4 miles (6.4km) of waterfront space and 11 miles (18km) of pier and wharf space of the Hampton Roads peninsula known as Sewell's Point. It is the world's largest naval station, with the largest concentration of U.S. Navy forces through 75 ships alongside 14 piers and with 134 aircraft and 11 aircraft hangars at the adjacently operated Chambers Field and [2] Port Services controls more than 3,100 ships' movements annually as they arrive and depart their berths.
President Theodore Roosevelt arrived by water in the harbor of Hampton Roads, as did other notable persons such as Mark Twain and Henry Huttleston Rogers, who both arrived aboard the latter's steam yacht "Kanawha". A major naval display was featured, and the U.S. Great White Fleet made an appearance. The leaders of the U.S. Navy apparently did not fail to note the ideal harbor conditions, as was later proved.
Beginning in 1917, as the United States became involved in World War I under President Woodrow Wilson, formerly rural Sewell's Point became the site of what grew to become the largest Naval Base in the world which was established by the United States Navy and is now known as the Naval Station Norfolk.
Originally announced in 1923, the construction of the base proceeded slowly at Sembawang until the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931. It was completed in 1938, at a staggering cost of £60 million – equivalent to £2½ billion in 2006. The base covered and had what was then the largest dry dock in the world, the third-largest floating dock, and enough fuel tanks to support the entire British Navy for six months.
U.S. and Cuban troops placed some 55,000 land mines across the "no man's land" around the perimeter of the naval base creating the second-largest minefield in the world, and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. On 16 May 1996, U.S. President Bill Clinton ordered the demining of the American field. They have since been replaced with motion and sound sensors to detect intruders on the base. The Cuban government has not removed its corresponding minefield outside the perimeter.[58][59]
Virginia Beach is home to the U.S. Navy's Naval Air Station Oceana (NAS Oceana) and Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek (NAB Little Creek). NAS Oceana is the largest employer in Virginia Beach, and both bases there, like the Norfolk Navy Base, are considered to be the largest of their respective kinds in the world. Furthermore, adjacent to Oceana is NAVSEA Dam Neck. Virginia Beach is also the home of Joint Expeditionary Base East, operated by the United States Navy, which is located at Cape Henry.
Jinnah Naval Base is a strategic naval base of the Pakistan Navy located at Ormara, Balochistan, Pakistan. It is named after Pakistan's founder, Mohammad Ali Jinnah. It is Pakistan's second largest naval base.
Ground was broken on the naval reservation in March 1942, and its first phase opened in early August; by September the base had a population of 55,000, making it the largest "city" in the state. At the time, Farragut was the second-largest training center in the world (behind Naval Station Great Lakes near Chicago), and liberty trains ran three times daily to Spokane, Washington, about an hour away. 
Beginning in 1917, as the United States became involved in World War I under President Woodrow Wilson, formerly rural Sewell's Point became the site of what grew to become the largest Naval Base in the world which was established by the United States Navy and is now known as the Naval Station Norfolk.
Naval Base San Diego was started on land acquired in 1920. San Diego has become the home port of the largest naval fleet in the world, and includes two supercarriers, as well as U.S. Marine Corps stations, U.S. Navy ports, and U.S. Coast Guard installations. Naval Base San Diego is the largest base of the United States Navy on the west coast of the United States, in San Diego, California. Naval Base San Diego is the principal homeport of the Pacific Fleet, consisting of 54 ships and over 120 tenant commands. The base is composed of 13 piers stretched over of land and of water. The total on base population is 20,000 military personnel and 6,000 civilians.
The United States Navy had no base at the Port of Jacksonville until shortly before World War II when two facilities were constructed. Today, the Naval Station Mayport, Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Blount Island Command (Marines) and nearby Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay form the third largest military presence in the United States.
Early in the 20th century, two developments at Sewells Point would have a long-lasting effect on its role in US history. Each laid the groundwork for founding of what was to become the world's largest naval base.
When completed in 1939, at the very large cost of $500 million, the base boasted what was then the largest dry dock in the world, the third-largest floating dock, and having enough fuel tanks to support the entire British navy for six months. It was defended by heavy 15-inch naval guns stationed at Fort Siloso, Fort Canning and Labrador, as well as a Royal Air Force airfield at Tengah Air Base. Winston Churchill touted it as the "Gibraltar of the East" and military discussions often referred to the base as simply "East of Suez"
The mission of the Naval Amphibious Base is to provide required support services to over 15,000 personnel of the 27 homeported ships and 78 resident and/or supported activities. The base's combination of operational, support, and training facilities are geared predominantly to amphibious operations, making the base unique among bases of the United States and Allied Navies. The Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek is the largest base of its kind in the world.
Naval Base Subic Bay was a major ship-repair, supply, and rest and recreation facility of the Spanish Navy and subsequently the United States Navy located in Zambales, Philippines. The base was 262 square miles, about the size of Singapore.[1] The Navy Exchange had the largest volume of sales of any exchange in the world, and the Naval Supply Depot handled the largest volume of fuel oil of any navy facility in the world.[2] The naval base was the largest overseas military installation of the United States Armed Forces after Clark Air Base in Angeles City was closed in 1991.[3] Following its closure in 1992, it was transformed into the Subic Bay Freeport Zone by the Philippine government.
Naval Base San Diego was started on land acquired in 1920. It is the largest base of the United States Navy on the west coast of the United States. Naval Base San Diego is the principal homeport of the Pacific Fleet, consisting of 54 ships and over 120 tenant commands. The base is composed of 13 piers stretched over of land and of water. The total on-base population is 20,000 military personnel and 6,000 civilians. San Diego has become the home port of the largest naval fleet in the world, and includes two supercarriers, as well as U.S. Marine Corps stations, United States Navy ports, and U.S. Coast Guard installations.
The Jamestown Exposition held in 1907 at Hampton Roads, featured an extensive naval review, including the Great White Fleet. Beginning in 1917, the former exposition site at Sewell's Point became a major base of the United States Navy. Currently, Norfolk Navy Base is the base supporting naval forces operating in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Indian Ocean. As of 2018, it is the world's largest naval station by number of military members supported.
During World War I and World War II Fort Monroe and Fort Wool were used to protect Hampton Roads and the important inland military and civilian resources as part of the Harbor Defenses of Chesapeake Bay. The fort installed the first anti-submarine net in America in February 1917 stretching to Fort Wool.
Tirpitz's ultimate goal was a fleet capable of rivaling the Royal Navy. As British public opinion was turned against Germany, Admiral Sir John Fisher twice – in 1904 and 1908 – proposed using Britain's current naval superiority to 'Copenhagen' the German fleet, that is, to launch pre-emptive strikes against the Kiel and Wilhelmshaven naval bases as the Royal Navy had done against the Danish navy in 1801 and 1807."[12] Tirpitz argued that if the fleet could achieve two-thirds the number of capital ships possessed by Britain then it stood a chance of winning in a conflict. Britain had to maintain a fleet throughout the world and consider other naval powers, whereas the German fleet could be concentrated in German waters . Attempts were made to play down the perceived threat to Britain, but once the German fleet reached the position of equalling the other second-rank navies, it became impossible to avoid mention of the one great fleet it was intended to challenge. Tirpitz hoped that other second-rank powers might ally with Germany, attracted by its navy. The policy of commencing what amounted to a naval arms race did not properly consider how Britain might respond. British policy, stated in the Naval Defence Act of 1889, was to maintain a navy superior to Britain's two largest rivals combined. The British Admiralty estimated that the German navy would be the world's second largest by 1906.[13]
Virginia has one of the highest concentrations of veterans of any state, and is second to California in total Department of Defense employees. The Hampton Roads area has the largest concentration of military personnel and assets of any metropolitan area in the world, including the largest naval base in the world, Naval Station Norfolk. In its state government, Virginia employs 106,143 public employees, who combined have a median income of $44,656 .
Since 1650, the City of Plymouth has grown to become the largest city in Devon, mainly due to the naval base at Devonport. Her Majesty's Naval Base (HMNB) Devonport is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy. HMNB Devonport is now the largest naval base in Western Europe. The large Portland Harbour, built at the end of the 19th century and protected by Nothe Fort and the Verne Citadel, was for many years, including during the wars, another of the largest Royal Navy bases.
After the First World War, the British built the large Singapore Naval Base as part of the defensive Singapore strategy. Originally announced in 1923, the construction of the base proceeded slowly until the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931. When completed in 1939, at the very large cost of $500 million, it boasted what was then the largest dry dock in the world, the third-largest floating dock, and having enough fuel tanks to support the entire British navy for six months. It was defended by heavy 15-inch naval guns stationed at Fort Siloso, Fort Canning and Labrador, as well as a Royal Air Force airfield at Tengah Air Base. Winston Churchill touted it as the "Gibraltar of the East" and military discussions often referred to the base as simply "East of Suez". Unfortunately, it was a base without a fleet. The British Home Fleet was stationed in Europe, and the British could not afford to build a second fleet to protect its interests in Asia. The plan was for the Home Fleet to sail quickly to Singapore in the event of an emergency. However, after World War II broke out in 1939, the fleet was fully occupied with defending Britain.
During World War II, the following squadrons were assigned to the airfield:In 1940, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt ordered the construction of a naval base in the Atlantic similar to Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The site was meant to provide anchorage, docking, repair facilities, fuel, and supplies for 60% of the Atlantic Fleet. The naval base, which was named U.S. Naval Station Roosevelt Roads’ became the largest naval installation in the world in land mass and was meant to be the Pearl Harbor of the Atlantic, however with the defeat of Germany, the United States concentrated all of their efforts to the war in the Pacific. In May 2003, after six decades of existence, the base was officially shut down by the U.S. Navy.
Established during World War I at historic Mulberry Island, the large base at Fort Eustis in modern times hosts the U.S. Army's Transportation Corps and other important activities. In adjacent localities, other U.S. military facilities include Fort Monroe, Langley Air Force Base, Naval Weapons Station Yorktown, and Camp Peary. Across the harbor in South Hampton Roads, the world's largest naval base, the Naval Station Norfolk and other installations are also located.
Also known as Naval Support Activity Souda Bay, and more commonly as the Souda Bay Naval Base (, "Naftiki Vasi Soudas"), it serves as the second largest (in numbers of battleships harboured) naval base of the Hellenic Navy and the largest and most prominent naval base for the United States and NATO in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Additionally, it features the only deep water port in Southern Europe and the Mediterranean Sea that is suitable and capable of maintaining the largest aircraft carriers (class "supercarriers"). The only other such options available for the US Navy are Norfolk Naval Station in the United States and Dubai in the Persian Gulf.
During World War I (1914–1918) the base was expanded again, and in 1917, a U.S. naval submarine base was established on the main island of Key West on what is now naval air station "annex" property. Its mission during World War I was to supply oil to the U.S. fleet and to block German ships from reaching Mexican oil supplies.
After the war, the British government devoted significant resources into building a naval base in Singapore, as a deterrent to the increasingly ambitious Japanese Empire. Completed in 1939 at a staggering cost of $500 million, the naval base boasted what was then the largest dry dock in the world, the third-largest floating dock, and enough fuel tanks to support the entire British navy for six months. It was defended by heavy 15-inch naval guns and by Royal Air Force squadrons stationed at Tengah Air Base. Winston Churchill touted it as the "Gibraltar of the East." Unfortunately, it was a base without a fleet. The British Home Fleet was stationed in Europe and the plan was for it to sail quickly to Singapore when needed. However, after World War II broke out in 1939, the Fleet was fully occupied with defending Britain.[54] Lieutenant General Sir William George Shedden Dobbie was appointed governor of Singapore and General Officer Commanding Malaya Command on 8 November 1935, holding the post based in The Istana until shortly before the outbreak of World War II in 1939. He was responsible for forming The Dobbie Hypothesis on the fall of Singapore which, had it been heeded, may have prevented the fall of Singapore during the Second World War.