Just now as I was going through the aircraft forum on Mother’s computer, some F-16’s flew right over her house! She lives not too far from Luke AFB near Phoenix, Arizona (Here come some more!) The planes flying over suddenly inspired these questions: How many of you live within ten miles of an air force base? A naval air station? A Marine Corp air station? An Army helicopter base? What kind of aircraft do they fly over your house? Let’s see how many of us modelers live near where their favorite aircraft are stationed!
Jim,
Hill AFB is about 50 miles north of me so get to see F-16’s, C-17’s and the occasional C-130. The Air Guard unit is based at Salt Lake International so the KC-135A’s get in the pattern with the commercial aircraft. I also have an Army Guard unit about 2 miles from home and see a lot of Apache’s and Blackhawks.
It is a lot different from when I used to live on base (AF Brat) and could take my bike down to the flight line and watch all kinds of planes come in.[sigh]
Well, I remember when CFB Edmonton was still an air base, a number of years ago, its an army base now, but CH-146 Griffon helicopters still fly out of there.
Back in the air force days, the usual birds flying over town were C-130s, Twin Otters, Twin Hueys, Kiowas and Chinooks.
We also saw quite a bit of other air traffic as it was a transport base. C-141s were frequent sights, the odd C-5 came in. I remember one day being at the base and seing a couple of Apaches come in along with a trio of HH-3s.
Well, I am about a half hour to forty five minute drive away from Mirimar. We went to the airshow this year, and just had a ball. Even my little girs (4.5 years) enjoyed herself. We don’t usually see too many jets flying over, but quite often some helos will be buzzing by. Blackhawks and the like. I’v only been in CA for a couple of years now, so and I’m guessing there are airshows pretty regularly because some saturday afternoons I will be in the garage, and a mitchell or mustang will go buzzing by, almost turning around for another pass wherever they came from. The sound of a twin engine warbird will really get your attention!
Well,
I live about 4 miles from Saber Army Heliport at Ft. Campbell Ky. In addition to that about 9 miles away is the actual Campbell Army Airfield. Until August of last year I was stationed on CAA as a Flight Operations Specialist.
I have dealt with and seen OH-5’s, OH-58’s, UH-1’s, UH-60’s, AH-1’s, AH-64’s, CH-47’s, all in various models.
The Air Force uses Campbell Army Airfield also, so flying in and out at any given time you can see just about anything. On a regular basis, you see C-5’s, C-130’s, A-10’s and many others. It’s pretty neat really, you never know what is going in and out of there. Ive seen everything from Air Force One to the Space Shuttle piggy-backing on its Jumbo 747. You see alot of NASA aircraft pass through out there.
I’ve had a chance to fly in most of these things, and the ones I didnt get to fly in, I could usually atleast get into to get a look around.
If anyone ever needs detail shots of some of this stuff (the helicopters especially) let me know. Once the 101st is finished redeploying back from Iraq and their equipment gets back, I’ll do what I can to get them for you.
when i was growing up there was RAF finningly and RAF church fenton near by (both training bases) where i am now is underneath a rout followed by tornados from RAF leeming (i think) also i am directly underneath the flight path for Leeds Bradford airport and we get some military air traffic going into there.
Greg
I live 15 miles away from Langley AFB, where I believe the 1st TFS will be getting the first fleet of F22s…,I’ve seen Delta Darts and T80s fly from there back in the early 70s, then switch to F15s and 16s. C5s , 141s, C130s used to be regular flyovers and warbirds fly overhead when there is a show. Oceana Naval Station is 25 miles away and when I’m on that side I watch the F14s make some thunder. Ft. Eustis, the Army transport base is 15 miles away. There I see OH58s, Blackhawks, and MH53s fly frequently. Ft. Monroe is 20 miles away …that is a TRADOC HQ base; but they have the Casemate Museum which is interesting…
Regards, Dan
Shaw AFB is about 8 miles from my home and I am on the base at least 2 to 3 times a week. Their primary mission is F-16s and they are over my home almost every hour of every day. The neat thing about Shaw is they have static displays of some of the aircraft that they used to have. P-47, 0-2, RB-66 and F-4 and there is one more that I haven’t identified yet. It probably would be possible for me to get photos of these planes. If anyone is interested in close ups I will check it out for you would like.
Regards,
Richard
I live six miles from Tyndall AFB Florida, new home of the F/A-22 and three F-15 sguadrons. I do not live near the flight path but I do make several trips to the base each week. I have seen many AF and Navy aircraft as well as aircraft from foreign countries fly in and out of the base.
While in the Corps I have lived at MCAS Cherry Point, Bouge Field, El Toro, Futema, Iwakuni. Seen F-8’s,F-4’s, RF-4’s, A-4E, A-6A ect. This was from 1971 when Navy and Marine birds were still wearing Gull Gray and White paint jobs with colorful markings. Now retired (1992), I’m about 30 minutes north of Davis Mothan AFB, well out of the flight path of the A-10’s, F-16’s and C-130’s. My 3 yr old granddaughter just loves walking around and touching the various aircraft the base have on static display.
I live about 10 miles away from what used to be Glenview Naval Airbase outside of Chicago. It was primarily a Coast Guard station for Lake Michigan in the 70s and early 80s. I remember a French test plane (or something like that) crashing in the landfill across Willow Rd. from that base. The base is now a compilation of a golf course (as is the landfill [;)]), a few strip malls with a Super Target and name a dozen chain family restaurants, and a few housing developments.
I live near the flight path for Los Alamitos Armed Forces Reserve Base in Orange Co. Calif.
Best sight was Air Force One on landing approach. Man, they use a lot of metal polish on that bird!
I used to work near El Toro M.C. A. F. About 20 yrs ago, some Soviet sub was dumb enough to get detected off the So. Calif. coast. A flight of Marine Corps F-18,s was scrambled. They went over low and bit the burners. What a sight and sound!! Hoorah!!
Tony Ryan.
Hey Jim,
I live about 20minutes away from our local joint AFRES/ANG base located at the Niagara Falls Int’l Airport. So I see a lot of air activity throughout the day.
My folks and I are about a 5 minute drive from each other but anywho when the a/c departed out of left traffic, they came right overhead. HOW sweet is that.
Now I know whay I had a sore next while I was growing up[:p].
The main group is the 107th ARW. They got their start back in WWII as the 339th Bombardment Group (Dive) then they were redesignated 339th Fighter-Bomber Group in Aug 1943. These bad boys relocated to Niagara Falls in 1948 and started out flying sports cars. Around the mid 90s(cant remember the exact date right now[:(]) they transitioned from F-16 ADF to station wagens. Yup we recieved KC-135Rs.
It was sad when the unit went from a fighter grp to a refueling grp but now we see a variety of a/c coming in from all the different branches[:D].
Lets see here we had F-51s, F-47s, F-84s, F-86Hs, F-100Cs, F-101s, F-4C/Ds and the F-16 as mentioned above. In all the tankers are cool even if they do pass gas a lot[:p].
Then theres the reserve unit which is the 914thAW. The unit started out flying C-47s in the CBI theater. Then they went to the C-119s then worked their way through the different variants of the C-130.
When the unit was called to duty for the first Gulf War, this unit flew more missions/carried more cargo then the allied forces did in WWII. Now thats a job well done…!!!
Our airstrip is in the top 5 for its size in the North East and is #3 on the list for the emergency landings for the Space Shuttle.
As you can tell I’m proud to have an air base basically right in my backyard[:p][;)]
Heres a breif history of the 914thAW
www.afrc.af.mil/914aw/
Flaps up, Mike
I live about twelve miles from Andrews AFB, so every once in a while, we see Air Force One. Lots of C-130s, C-141s. C-17s, F-16s, F-15s, all sorts of stuff. Lots of fun when they do airshows, we get to see the Thunderbirds and Blue Angels from our front yard!
You guys are fortunate. I used to get to see a fighter now and then myself as well as P3 Orion’s when Alameda NAS and Moffett Field NAS were open in my area. Thanks to Bill Clinton they are now closed. There is still Travis AFB north of us but we rarely see a C-5 or C-141 around these parts. [:(!]
Mike
I live about 6 or 7 miles away from the Oklahoma Air National Guard’s 138th Fighter Wing, which is in Tulsa (their web site — http://www.oktuls.ang.af.mil/). Currently they fly F-16s (not sure what variants off hand). If I ever catch them when they are out they are usually in pairs and I’ve only seen 2 pairs fly at one time. They are pretty loud and you can hear them scream pretty good when they get going. They used to fly F-4s back in the 80s, and at one time or another I think they flew A-6 or A-7s, can’t remember which though. When McDonnel Douglas was still up and running here I used to see all kinds of fighters and bombers, but now it’s just the National Guard F-16s that I see any more.
Grew up in the flight path to Plattsburgh AFB where FB 111’s and KC-135s were regularly flying overhead…I remember well not getting too much sleep the first 2 weeks of air strikes in Desert Storm as air traffic was constant…but sadly the base closed a while back. While I am not close to any bases now, I usually see a formation of 2-3 A-10’s fly over my house every day-- I believe their base is somewhere in the Adirondacks.
Boybuddho, I used to live in Grafton. I grew up there and graduated from Tabb High. I was stationed at Langley for 4 years so I saw plenty of F-15c’s up close. That is where I developed my love of the Eagle!
As to the question, I live now about 30 miles from Tinker and I work at Will Rogers Air National Guard base. I see C-130’s and C-23’s everyday. Also see AWACS and 135’s, B-1’s, B-52’s and other heavies on a regular basis. I used to work for a local contractor and we were doing grade work at a new housing addition in the Tinker flight path. It was nothing to see a B-1 or a B-52 or an AWACS fly over at a coupla hundred feet. You could hear them over the heavy construction equipment we were running!
HOORAH AIR FORCE!!!
Wade
Hey thenothing,
The 138th is currently flying the Charlie and Delta models. Thanks for posting their link, I want to do a Viper in their markings. I have a few after market decal sheets that are from Super Scale that give this group as a choice.
Flaps up, Mike
I’m 20 minutes away from MCAS Miramar, where I was stationed working on CH-53E’s…ten minutes away from Palomar airport, which is a civilian airport, and 45 minutes from where I work at Ramona Airport, home of the CDF Firetankers,as an avionics tech…AHHH to live the dream, eh!!? Believe me, everywhere I go I’m followed by jets, planes, and helicopters!!![:P]