dozens of P-38's buried in Nashville

[marine air]

During World War II there was an aircraft factory in Nashville, Tennessee owned by Consolidated Vultee. They built Vultee Vanguards, Vengeances and BT-13's initially. They also had a subcontract to build a few hundred P-38's , or so I'm told. At war's end their contract was cancelled on the P-38's and the aircraft were taken off the assembly line, as well as inventoried parts and dumped in what was then the factory's dump pile, which was a "sink hole" that once filled was covered up and made into a parking lot as you see in the picture. They used this spot for about thirty years. Other aircraft built included the L-5, the L-13, and contracts to upgrade the B-29, Martin Mauler, Curtiss C-46, the C-47,and the SNJ to the -5 model around 1950 for the U.S.Navy. the factory has changed hands and was also called AVCO, and now Vought Aircraft. Earlier this year Vought announced they are phasing down their Nashville operations.
The photo was taken today at the intersection of Briley Parkway and Vultee Blvd. and the landfill area is in the right of photo.

[setter]

Col Rohr

You are still not well - get off that Bulldozer NOW !!!

I will agree to do the digging here and tell you all about it later OK - after all age before beauty.

I REALLY like the sound of this one !!

It should all be able to be verified and at least we won't be getting shot at/ arrested /catch a fatal tropical disease etc for a change

Seriously marine air and Rob - you have to follow this one up - how deep is the hole- I don't like the sound of the "sink hole" . I dug up some aircraft "parts" at Williamtown RAAF base here in Australia and they were in a sink hole and were corroded beyond useless so you need to do your research about salinity/ water table etc.

Regards and good luck
John P

[O.P.]

Hi All,

This is the photo that Marine Air took,

https://webmail.maine.rr.com/attach/~MA ... AP0000.jpg

Hi Rob! I'm getting "Not found " on the pic. I think its still in your webmail box, maybe.

[airnutz]

Yuup..same here..not found.

But if the parking lot in question, is empty at certain hours of the day..then surface radar surveys would be a "walk in the carpark".

[Haggerstone]

Does sound promising doesn't it? Sink hole implies the plant sits on a very thick layer of limestone or chalk. These things can be both huge and very deep so the idea of using one as a dump is not beyond the bounds of possibility. Be ironic if the P-38 went from being one of the rarest US warbirds to one of the most common in the space of a couple of years!

[setter]

Hi

And the nice thing about car parks is ...........theres nothing in the way when you dig em up!! and you don't get shot at or a tropical disease while you dig em up!!

Regards
John P

[Originalboxcar]

Vought Aircraft Industries Inc-Personnel Employment
1431 Vultee Blvd, Nashville, TN 37201
Phone: (615)360-5325

http://terraserver.homeadvisor.msn.com/image.aspx?T=1&S=10&Z=16&X=2637&Y=19987&W=1&qs=%7cnashville%7ctn%7c

[Originalboxcar]

interesting links:


http://tennessean.com/learn-nashville/a ... D=46440772

http://www.voughtaircraft.com/newsFactG ... hville.htm


regards,

t~

[Cees Broere]

Aaah, don't you just love these stories about buried aircraft wrecks. Just like the old days of WIX. Great to see these coming back again.

TONY!!!!!!!!!!

Cheers

Cees

[wendovertom]

Lets see. . . . backhoe - check! Crane - Check! Funding . . . . ah, funding? - close enough! Check - the wagons from out west are ready to go!

Tom P

[setter]

Hi

Now everyone before we start please assure me there's nothing not even a plastic duck in this hole owned by the US Navy - Promise fellas !!!

Regards
John P

[tom d. friedman]

same scenario of planes shoved in a pit at cleveland ohio's warbird plant adjacent to cleveland hopkins int. airport at the end of the war that built navy aircraft, but nothing substansiated other than rumor or alleged scuttlebutt. tom