C-97F 51-0391, Illinois Air National Guard
She started life as a tanker, but was eventually modified to a straight trash-hauler. When this photo was taken at Boeing Field, the plane was part of the 126th Air Refueling Group. Aircraft was scrapped in 1964.
YC-97 at Boeing Field
This hand-tinted YC-97 belongs to the 1st Strategic Support Squadron at Biggs AFB. The 1st Strategic Support Squadron had the interesting mission of hauling atomic bombs from point A to point B. The squadron’s mission was not dropping the bombs, but transporting them.
Société Pour L’Aviation et ses Dérivés S.XIII (The Spad)
RF-4C 65-0879, 16th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron
The B-52 arrives at Mather AFB, 1958
Dubbed “The City of Sacramento”, this B-52F (57-0163) arrived to great fanfare to become part of Mather’s 4134th Strategic Wing. The original post was supplemented by the later contribution of the photo seen at the top. Such contributions from readers are always welcome.
(Photo #1, courtesy of Max Pashnev, Jim Webb Collection)
B-52D 56-0687
Seen here with it’s .50 cal guns getting a look over, 687 was the last B-52D to fly when it arrived in 1984 for permanent display at Orlando Airport (AKA former SAC base, McCoy AFB.)
F3B (7726) of NAS San Diego Parked on Its Home Turf
Beautiful F3B (7763) of the Marine Corps
Photo looks to be taken at Langley Field. Check out the snazzy wheel pants.
Life with “Willy Victor”
The Lockheed WV (later the EC-121) flew the Pacific Barrier missions during the Cold War. Operating from places such as the Midway Islands, the Lockheed WV (Willy Victor) crews flew long missions over the north and central Pacific. Plenty of good info at sites such as WillyVictor.com. Photos here show:
1. Pilots at NAS Barbers Point, Hawaii.
2. Willy Victor raft and survival gear. Despite the humor (“Royal Hawaiian”, as in the fancy hotel on Waikiki), the Pacific Barrier flights consisted of endless hours flown over endless seas. This raft and related equipment seen here were not to be taken for granted.
3. Barbers Point with plenty of WV’s to gawk at.
4. Lower radome of a WV after taking out a goony bird at Midway. Having flown in and out of Midway a time or two myself, I can attest that bird strikes there are a common occurrence.
BT-14 of the 52nd School Squadron
The uniquely shaped air base in the background is it’s home : Randolph Field. Photo taken in the pre-urban sprawl year of 1940. Now the area around Randolph is home to thousands.
It’s time for a Clipper-rama
Boeing’s first three 314’s bob along the shores of Lake Washington in 1939. In the next photo, taken the same year, the fourth 314 is seen tied alongside log rafts on the Duwamish River next to Boeing’s plant in Seattle.
Excellent shot of a Marine Corps F4B (9242) and its stalwart pilot
EP-2H after an eventful arrival at NAS Whidbey Island in the 1970’s.
The nose wheel failing on landing resulted in a nice furrow through the runway concrete courtesy of the wheel-less nose strut. Assigned to Composite Squadron Eight (VC-8) based at NAS Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico, this unfortunate Neptune (148338) was repaired and eventually made its way back home.
PBY of VP-6
VP-6 took their sweet time in getting to Hawaii, but the fact they could do it at all was a major achievement in aviation. Average speed during their 21 hour, 45 minute flight? 115 MPH (so says the handwritten caption on the back).
Spotless FJ-2 Fury (132093), VMF-312
The squadron flew the Fury for a few years of the 1950’s from their home base at MCAS Miami.
Let’s visit the 1930’s flightline at Wheeler Field in the Territory of Hawaii
There are A-3 Falcons and A-12 Shrike’s of the 26th Attack Squadron. The 6th Pursuit Squadron is still flying P-12’s.
Brand new B-25 Mitchells, 34th Bomb Squadron
For those in peril on the sea (or a local lake)
Survival training in the late 1940s. Here is the scenario: this crew of a “downed” PBY Catalina are no doubt “miles behind enemy lines” and their only hope of salvation is the timely arrival of a rescue aircraft. Naturally, they utilize every trick in the survival kit to attract rescuers.
Luckily for them, an eagle-eyed PBY pilot from their own squadron has them in sight.
Swooping in just when all hope was lost…
It was a close call, but help has arrived – and no doubt just in time for lunch.
So, this training was accomplished on Lake Washington, a body of water upon whose littoral there was once NAS Seattle (both the men in the raft and those in the PBY are, of course, from said air station.) A lot has changed since then: the naval base is no more, and the forested slopes along the lake are crammed with houses.
Another spiffy ad
The Jive Bomber 