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What type of F-89 resources are out there?

Mon Sep 03, 2007 8:34 am

I'm looking into a crash site of an F-89J 53-2485 in the Catskill Mountains of NY and was wondering if anyone could help me find out some information on it or units that flew them in the Northeast.

I'd want to know:
When it crashed
Who was flying it
What unit they were in
Where they were fling out of.

I have what it is and where it is now.
Thanks
Tim

Mon Sep 03, 2007 9:39 am

Just from the location, I can guess that it was fling out of Griffis AFB near Rome, NY. They used to operate the F-89 back in the day.

Mark H

Mon Sep 03, 2007 12:42 pm

Tim,

The following web site lists all of the ADC units, bases, aircraft, and dates operated:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerospace_ ... _Squadrons

As for that specific acft, I'll poke around some more and see what I can find...

Mon Sep 03, 2007 12:47 pm

Fella name o' Jay was asking about that same acft:

I am interested in finding information about a particular F-89J that I found in a crash site in the Catskill Mtns of NY. The particular crash is on the west face of Panther Mtn, a bit west of Phoenicia. I have pictures (I can provide upon request) and the following information from the wreckage site.

F-89J
Ser 53-2485
MFGR 4-22-5? (I couldn't make out the last digit of the year)
FV-485 is the tail number (the 5 was partially cut off but I'm pretty sure it's a 5).

I also have a picture of Mickey Mouse as the insignia, which I believe would be on the tailfin of the F-89 not the nose cone which I have seen in many bombers of that era.

Can anybody give me more information about this particular plane, like perhaps if you can recall a particular AFB of FIS, that would be great in finding info.

I have GPS coordinates and I know where it is in the woods, it's about a 2 mile bushwack from the nearest road on state land.

Jay


He lists his email address as: cycleslug@yahoo.com

His post was in May of this year on Aeroweb

Mon Sep 03, 2007 1:52 pm

Old SAR pilot wrote:Tim,

The following web site lists all of the ADC units, bases, aircraft, and dates operated:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerospace_ ... quadrons...


The one drawback of that list as it mentions, is the lack of Air National Guard Squadrons which were very numerous in the Northeast and other parts of the country flying Air Defense Command/Aerospace Defense Command attached fighter interceptor squadrons. I know that the Vermont and the Maine ANG both flew F-89J Scorpions in the sixties.

Mon Sep 03, 2007 3:37 pm

I got an F-89 T-shirt and a can of Moxie from a Maine Wixer once.

I dont think that is any help to you though!

See you, K.L.

Mon Sep 03, 2007 4:16 pm

krlang wrote:I got an F-89 T-shirt and a can of Moxie from a Maine Wixer once.

I dont think that is any help to you though!

See you, K.L.


I also got that gift box from Maine. Is Moxie a gift? I would consider the T-shirt a gift but the Moxie? :lol:

I saw that post from Jay and was going to look him up but he seems to be looking the same info as me so I figured I poke some brains here and see if I could give him some info when I contacted him.

Tim

F-89J Panther Mountain NY

Sun Sep 16, 2007 9:41 am

F-89J 53-2485 was a 465th FIS bird out of Griffis AFB. It crashed for reasons unknown while running practice intercepts on a B-47 on 22 November 1958, killing Pilot Capt. Roy Schellhous and RIO 2LT John Hartzfeld.

Sun Sep 16, 2007 3:55 pm

There's an excellent book called The First Line--Air Defense of the Northeast 1952-1960 by Bill Green that has a lot of material on F-89 flight operations, units and history. I bought it on Amazon a few years ago for my dad.

Re: F-89J Panther Mountain NY

Sun Sep 16, 2007 8:44 pm

petef86a wrote:F-89J 53-2485 was a 465th FIS bird out of Griffis AFB. It crashed for reasons unknown while running practice intercepts on a B-47 on 22 November 1958, killing Pilot Capt. Roy Schellhous and RIO 2LT John Hartzfeld.


Thanks, I hope to hike to the site tomorrow and I'll be sure to post pictures. That might be the last event for the day so I'll have to see if I get to it.

Tim
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