Base closings

Pat Carry · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 10:34 am

Does anyone have a list of the Air Force bases that may be closed with the new round of base closings nationwide. The only one I heard about was Ellsworth AFB in South Dakota. I wonder what will happen to the gate guards at the affected bases!

JBoyle · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 10:47 am

Friday USA TODAY had a complete list on their website...you could do a seach and get it.

As far as air bases...Ellsworth and Cannon are the two main bases to be closed. Ellsworth does have a nice museum. Willow Grove NAS is also on the list and as we all know they used to have some very rare stuff.

AS I'm sure you know, there doesn't seem to be a standard pattern about statics. Some places, the airparks remain as museums (Castle, March).
In others some airplanes stay while others leave (the B-36 going from Chanute to California). In others, all the planes go..I was surprised they took out the pylon mounted T-37 and T-38 in front of the HQ building when Williams became an industrial park. I can see the F-80 and rarer stuff being moved...they were on the ground near the base entrance, but removing and shipping the 37 & 38 seemed more trouble then it was worth. The 37...with no gear and reportedly filled with cement, ended up in the small museum at the former Big Spring, Texas base.

mlenoch · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 10:51 am

The Illinois ANG at Springfield IL, has a F-4, F-86 and F-84 on plyons. The base is slated to be closed as well. I wonder the fate of these gate guards. They are not located near the main airport entrance, somewhat removed.

Jack Cook · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 11:11 am

The big one out here is the Portland Guard/Reserve base. They plan on scattering the 123rd FS 's F-15 here and there along with their history going back to pre WWII.
Also affectioned is the KC-135s which are going to Tinker and Forbes. This affects JCW greatly has he's been flying out of Portland for 20+ years. I'm sure he has no interest in OK a few years before his retirement. At the airbase are a F-101, T-33, F-4 Mig killer and maybe a F-89 not sure.

Warhawk · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 1:47 pm

I think this is what you are looking for.

http://www.defenselink.mil/brac/pdf/App ... pdated.pdf

wls3 · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 5:14 pm

Very sad to see Willow Grove on the list. They have an airshow scheduled
in 2 weeks and a nice line-up planned to fly including Blue Angles.

Willow Grove Airshow

They also have a static F-14 right on the other side of the fence from the
museum that houses the Me-262. Hope they just roll it over to the museum.

It has always been a nice trip to Willow Grove. I will miss it if it closes.

Bill

Warhawk · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 5:44 pm

I wouldn't start playing a dirge yet. the politcking has just begun. Check this out from MSNBC:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7809320/

krlang · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 5:57 pm

Hanscom has been spared again?
The AFB without an airplane! (Except for the F-86 at the flagpoles)

Otis is on the list?
An active guard F-15 base!

I dont get it!

Warhawk · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 6:18 pm

Maine finally succeeds in getting the courts to declare the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard is really in Maine and not New Hampshire so they can collect all that juicy tax revenue and it gets the axe.

Can you say irony :roll:

airnutz · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 6:39 pm

Diabolical!! Does this mean then, when HazMat is discovered..Maine gets
"stiffed" with the clean-up bill?

Warhawk · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 7:35 pm

Could well be. New Hampshire thought they were getting the shaft a couple years ago, but I bet they are secretly grinning now. Of course this is still all very tentative and may change. In fact I'm sure it will change somewhat before all is said and done.

RickH · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 10:39 pm

They are saying that the 147th FW in Houston won't be axed... but they'll lose their F-16s. Doesn't sound much like a fighter wing without airplanes. They've been standing alert along the southern border from Holloman to New Orleans for over 50 years and they date back to the teens as an observation group. They are the outfit GWB flew F102s with, they won William Tell twice ( once with F101s and then with F-4cs ). How in the hell do you protect one of the nations largest petrochemical complexes and one of the nations busiest ports without air cover ! I also don't understand the draw down of the ANG assets across the country when they figure so heavily in the active duty strategy.

airnutz · **Posted:** Sat May 14, 2005 11:49 pm

Rick, from the reports, I understood that squadrons will be rotated through
Ellington..but this sounds more expensive to me than having a fixed
squadron! Maybe the Air Guard Wing infrastructure will remain for logistics
and support the outfits rotating thru. Can you imagine maintaining and
supporting various types as they come thru in their rotation???

RickH · **Posted:** Sun May 15, 2005 10:10 pm

Rob, I'm not syre how that tact will work with fighter units. Can you imagine a state supporting 18 F-16s without the pass thru on money from USAF. Also the 147th are flying Block 25s. Doggy when they were new, worse now.

Don Martin · **Posted:** Mon May 16, 2005 7:20 pm

DoD wont be Happy UNTIL they have just three BIG bases, one on the left coast(somewhere South of the Mason/Dixon line) one on the Right coast and ONE sucking out through the Bottom Coast. As I recall some smart person at Pearl Harbor said "Let's put all of our Ships and Aeroplanes into a tight little group so as to better protect them". Did the Imperial Navy ever sena a thankyou note to that person for making there job that day so much easier?! :shock:

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