Warbird Information Exchange

I'm not sure when these were taken, but sure some interesting stuff.
Have fun googleing the serial numbers...

More:

When were the photos taken?
bill word

Very cool photographs! Where were these taken, and when? Are they still there? That F7U should be pulled out if it still exists... there are so few of them. Thanks very much for sharing.

Best, Richard

Richard,

I'm almost 100% sure that the F7U was pulled out and that is the plane that went to Weisbrod Museum and is now with the Vought Group.

Jim

What is the fuselage (4th photo from the bottom) spray painted with the number b5724.

Looks to be a B-57 Canberra, perhaps even a RB-57.

Shay
____________
Semper Fortis

If there is an accurate physical location for these wrecks, please let me know. I would like to try to go and take a look, if that is doable. I was told last years that they had all been destroyed with explosives, but who knows?

Saludos,


Tulio

That explains why there are so few F-102s around at least...

The aircraft in the pictures may be gone but the remaining F-105s at AMARC were allocated to the school at Socorro in 2002-2003. They may be there now.

bummer if all these planes were blown to kingdom come.

Our museum was told that the line to get a "gate guard" plane fromthe air force is years long - maybe we should tell them that we are going to test explosives on them to!

Tom P.

Found the mag where I originally saw the article.

The current issue of "combat aircraft" with an F-14 on the cover.

Its a 2 page article, with a number of pics.

Here's a bit of the text:

Of about 600 aircraft present some years ago, only about 180 remain today. These last airframes have been picked ver by museums for spare parts, and will soon all have been scrapped. Most of the sites occupied by aircraft at Socorro have been cleared, leaving only Blue Canyon, Jet Engine Test Facility, Ball park, and Runway in use today.

The Runway (not actually a runway, but only called that for an unknown reason) is used for the actual scrapping of aircraft, and is the only part of NMT's vast desert test facility visible from the outside. Hulks present represent many types - the F-4, F-8, F-84/RF-84, F-89, F-86, F-101, F-102, F-105, B-45, B-50, RA-5, T-33, and H-21. Many of the RF-84Fs formaly flew with the Royal Norwegian AF, whose colors they still sport. Most of the RA-5C vigilantes have been heavily reclaimed for museums for spare parts. Some of the rarer types, like the B-45, and B-50 pieces, are destined not to be scrapped, as some people at NMT realize how rare some of these aircraft have become, many airframes, however, are well beyond recovery.


THe article also states that most of the hulks were owned by the Naval Surface warfare center, and recently ownership was transferred to the USAF.

Hope this helps!

Charlie

That means that they are actually owned by the NMUSAF and all the red tape that that entails.

Did the article include any pics of the B-50 bits??