Former 8th AF bases dump site digs...

Punisher05 · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 1:51 am

You know, it ain't crates of M1's, but it does get the mind going...

Awesome find!

B-17 Buff · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 5:33 am

RAMC181 wrote:

Thank's for the link to our forum too, it's been the busiest night for visitors ever, and had generated a fair few new members.
Please have a browse through the other sections while you're there, I'm sure you'll find something else interesting as well.

Sorry Paul, I couldnt resist getting the thread over on here for our American cousins to feast their eyes on!

I was one of thoses that finally signed up last night

...though I have been viewing the forum for sometime! :wink:

Would love to get involved if I was a bit closer and had some free time(!), just to help out during something like this must be quite something to remember!!

sgt hawk · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 7:47 am

Keep it comming! My Father was with the 331st Sqdn, 94th BG at Burry St Edmunds (Rougham). Some of that stuff could have come off his aircraft.

DoraNineFan · **Joined:** Fri Aug 12, 2005 3:37 pm **Posts:** 672

retroaviation wrote:

I'm guessing that the first tree-hugger that sees that picture of the "oily muck" in a few of those pictures, will have a come-apart. What are the crews gonna do about the "environmental hazard" they've uncovered? :roll:

Gary

Actually, I've been thinking that for this reason, a rational argument could be made for recovery and removal of war surplus. This includes submerged aircraft with fuel and oil that will eventually leak out--say into a freshwater European lake---or the Lake Mead B-29.

the330thbg · **Joined:** Wed Nov 14, 2007 3:06 pm **Posts:** 2713

Fantastic find!.., can not wait to find the dump on Guam.., although I am sure with that soil.., all is dust by now!!!!

ZRX61 · **Joined:** Tue Jun 14, 2005 10:16 am **Posts:** 2308

I used to live in Rougham & know the local landowners. If you go to Brick Kiln Farm & look behind the large barn/workshop there is a German undercarriage laying there. John Agnew can point it out to you but he's a funny bugger to deal with.

Warbirdnerd · **Joined:** Fri Apr 30, 2004 7:34 pm **Posts:** 2923

If you can take the heartbreak, ask Mike (aka Helldivers) about the dump he found in Hawaii.

tom d. friedman · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 11:41 am

RAMC181 wrote:

Holedigger wrote:

WOW! Bunch of great stuff coming out of the earth there! I wonder about bases here in the States? Was the protocol for discarded bits organized and efficient in scrapping and getting the usable metals back to the factories to make more AC, or was there a bunch of this,"Just bury it in a hole and forget about it" mentality going on, especially at the end of the war when people just wanted to get back to their lives?

The majority of surplus US materiel in the UK at the end of WWII (when most of this stuff was collected and put in the hole we found it in) was not allowed to be returned to the USA, so as not to affect the market price of raw and scrap metals.
Hence a program of destruction and dumping commenced, with the engine blocks of those vehicles that didn't have a buyer from one of the European governments were normally smashed with sledgehammers, wrenches were bent at right angles to make them unuseable etc.

that makes perfect sense, i never considered that angle!! 1 question....... does that make the u.s. guilty of war profiteering??

All the best,
PB

Django · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 11:44 am

OH

MY

GOD.

That is AMAZING!

tom d. friedman · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 11:56 am

dig baby dig!! but be careful of any live ordinance in the ground. what provisions / plans / strategy is your team taking to steer clear of any live ordinance?? like you said in so many words..... "you don't have ground penetrating xray equipment". it's 1 thing to be lucky enough to find a bomb the safe way, but when your digging you are literally working in the blind!! as to the possibility of finding a bomb safely i'm certain you have a bomb disposal squad!!

jet1 · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 11:57 am

i have been in europe for 2 weeks and will be leaving paris for london on friday. unfortunately I have only a few days in london.had I known, i would have spent my 4 weeks in England 'supervising' (digging holes)and generally helping out
:roll:

lestweforget · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 12:00 pm

I was browsing this on the Planetalk forum last night. Absolutely amazing stuff. Makes you wonder what else is lurking under the soil. Well done to all involved.

RAMC181 · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 12:07 pm

tom d. friedman wrote:

dig baby dig!! but be careful of any live ordinance in the ground. what provisions / plans / strategy is your team taking to steer clear of any live ordinance?? like you said in so many words..... "you don't have ground penetrating xray equipment". it's 1 thing to be lucky enough to find a bomb the safe way, but when your digging you are literally working in the blind!! as to the possibility of finding a bomb safely i'm certain you have a bomb disposal squad!!

Ta Tom,

Regards ordnance, the site is remarkably devoid of it.
Out of the 40+ tons of items initially removed from the trenches, there was a grand total of four .50cal shell cases, three of which had been fired.

It would appear that, as this was an off-base dump, all the parts came from the base workshop areas and are a mixture of items removed from aircraft during repair and surplus parts left over when the base stores were closed down.

All the best,
PB

RAMC181 · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 3:47 pm

Would anyone have a photo or drawing of a B-17 intercooler?
I'd like to make sure the ones we found are actually what we think they are.

Thanks in advance,
Paul

DryMartini · **Posted:** Tue Oct 20, 2009 5:57 pm

Outboard on top,
Inboard on bottom

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Former 8th AF bases dump site digs...

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