The Scars of War

[DeltaRomeo]

Scott, I really look forward to these installments. I'm going to set aside some time this weekend to turn off my phone and slowly enjoy every word and picture.

Thank you for this.

v/r,dr

[Planecrazy232]

And a one day trip this time. I don't have to keep checking every hour for an update!! I love those big old wooden hangars, The greatest generation.

[Mike S]

Greatly enjoyed, thank you.

[snopercod]

You're a great story teller, Scott. Thanks.

[Marc Bourget]

I liked it very much.

Questioning why you chose "scars" of war rather than relics.

I'm curious, the pictures show aging, not battle damage.

Do you feel the old airfields should have been returned to their natural state?

FWIW

[jrs14855]

This is one of my favorite subjects. I have been to Tonopah many times. The wings in the fenced in hangar are Twin Cessna T50 wings. Out of several thousand build only a handful survive.
Tonopah was also a Bell P39 training base.
The late Harvey Mace trained on the P39 at Tonopah but then switched to P51.Harvey was one of the very earliest EAA members. He was a crop duster in Sacramento area and spent his final years in Ft Bragg area.
Don't give me a P39
with the engine mounted behind
They tumble and roll
and dig a big hole
don't give me a P39

[jbDC9]

Another great trip report Scott, thanks!

These old military bases just fascinate me for some reason, whether it's more recently closed Navy or Air Force SAC bases or from WWII, it's just eerie, cool stuff.

[Bevan]

Thanks Scott!

The way you tell it, is like being there. Thanks for capturing the atmosphere of a place once busy with men and machines but now at total peace, as it should be.

Bevan

[goatflieg]

This one spoke to me as well. It brought back memories of all the wonderful road trips I've made up and down the Owens Valley. I loved the way you used archival photos, then took current photos from the same vantage point. I look forward to the day when I make a similar journey in my RV-8, returning to CA and visiting all the places I love and miss.

[DanH]

Great read Scott.

I'm not sure what percentage of today's airports were originally built for war service between '41 and '45, but I suspect it may be a majority. Especially true here in the Southeast, where bases typically had multiple outlying auxiliary fields. A lot of them were handed over to local municipalities after the war. Wetumpka (08A) began as Gunter Auxiliary #2, one of seven, three of which still operate. Research says a lot of BT-13s met their end in the vicinity.

Sometimes history gets revised, on purpose or by accident. Most pilots are familiar with the story of the Tuskegee Airmen. Some years ago the National Park Service acquired and restored the hangars and base buildings at Tuskegee's Moton Field (06A). The museum is well worth a visit, but Moton was an auxiliary, a detail I suspect few visitors really grasp. The main base, Tuskegee Army Airfield, was much larger. It is a few miles to the NW, toward Tallassee AL, and remains quite obvious from the air.

http://www.airfields-freeman.com/AL/...y.htm#Tuskegee

Want to visit the original Tuskegee Airmen's hangars? They are at Clanton, Troy, and Dannelly Field, all still in use.