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Picture of Sewart AFB Flt Line


Spectre623
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Was looking thru the Lockheed Service News # 27 on this site and saw a picture of the Sewart AFB flight line back in 1961 on the front cover. It looked the same as when I signed in April 1963. The 314 th Herks occupy the first half of the flt line closest to the camera. The back half of the flt. line belonged to the 4442 CCTW/ 4445/46thCCTS. "I" row which was the maint eng run row was to the extreme left of the pic. The fuel pits (10 each) are closest to the camera and run from left to right. Most all training flights ended on the pits where they were debriefed, fueled and launched for the evening sorties. Along the right extreme side was the 6 nose docks. In the fatherest far view were the two Periodic Insp docks and next to them was the "Big Hanger" which could hold four Herks at once. I think you can count 60 or 70 C-130s in the pic and there are a few more parking spots not shown. I spent 4 great years there as a C/C in the 314th OMS and a scanner in the 4445thCCTS. 18 miles from Nashville. What a HUGH shame for that base to be closed! It WAS the AF's best kept secret!!! Bet a lot of you OLD guys remember this scene also. Bill

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I see 3 Pope nose birds.

In the Transit area looks like a C-47, and when I was there

A T-33 sat close to the tower in the transit area.

We had an alert one morning and when all the planes got airborne,

We got bags of Oil Dry and spread it every where thare was oil

that was under an engine.

I was in D section working for Wysocki.

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Muff, would that be the Davy Crocket Motel?

While I was there a cmsgt went missing and he was found in that motel. Rumer had it he drank himself away.

I was there Sept 63 till June 65.

Last time I was there was about 89 and all the big hangers had been torn down.

Most everything was gone except the 2 brick Barricks and the chow hall between them, and there was a fence around them that looked like a prison.

It was a sad site.

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In the picture the maint. hangers for the 61,62,4442 are not built yet they where between I row and the big hanger looks like they are under construction Isee there is a plane on the wash rack. I stayed in the brick barricks they where top of the line at that time drive by that place 4,5 times a year but don't have time to stop, The Sewart Alumni are going to have there reunion May 21 22 23 24 at airport Marrrott. You can go to SAFB.comfor more details

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Hey Eclark I remember the washrack well, all of us APG jeeps had to spend our first 30 days at Sewart washing Herks. I remember a huge brush with wheels on a long curved handle we used to scrub the belly with. We put skin brightner on them after we washed them. They were shiney alum at that time. I remember the washrack NCOIC was a 20 year SSgt who changed into civvies after work and hitch hiked home everyday. Remember washing the red and blue water paint off the wings after the wargames. What a mess. Bill

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Here ya' go!

[ATTACH]12[/ATTACH]

That looks like the picture that is in my book. Someone sent it to me when I was working on it but I can't remember for sure who it was. In 1961 the 463rd was still at Sewart - it moved to Langley in 1963. (What's a "Pope Nose"? Did you mean "Roman Nose"?)

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Sam, have I seen you mention an SSGT Edgar Evers??

He was in the 35 tcs in Feb 66. He was on a flight crew.

I went as CC on a flight that he was on.

We went to Danang and Nha Trang.We were at Naha at that time.

According to the orders we were gone about 25 days.

Edited by donwon
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Sam, have I seen you mention an SSGT Edgar Evers??

He was in the 35 tcs in Feb 66. He was on a flight crew.

I went as CC on a flight that he was on.

We went to Danang and Nha Trang.We were at Naha at that time.

According to the orders we were gone about 25 days.

Yeah, I know Ed. In fact, I saw him in San Antonio in November. He lives in Florida and his Email address is [email protected]. But be careful - Ed forwards about 10 Emails a day!

I probably knew you. I got to Naha in February 1966 from Pope and was there until August 1967.

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They may well have been called Roman Nose.

For some reason I am thinking Pope Nose.

I was thinking they didn't have the apporiate Radar to fly over the ocean, but when I got to Naha, there was at least one there.

They were called Roman Nose. We had 53-3135 at Naha and it was assigned to the 35th. For some reason they didn't take it in-country and it mostly flew locals, but I was thinking it didn't have any tip tanks and didn't have enough fuel to make the trip. It had some kind of radar but not the same as all the others - (APN-59?) There were about four or five of the 53 models that weren't modified with the porpoise nose. I've heard why but don't remember now. I believe most of them were assigned to the school squadron at Sewart.

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They were called Roman Nose. We had 53-3135 at Naha and it was assigned to the 35th. For some reason they didn't take it in-country and it mostly flew locals, but I was thinking it didn't have any tip tanks and didn't have enough fuel to make the trip. It had some kind of radar but not the same as all the others - (APN-59?) There were about four or five of the 53 models that weren't modified with the porpoise nose. I've heard why but don't remember now. I believe most of them were assigned to the school squadron at Sewart.

I just thought of something - it wasn't the radar. I've got a picture of a Roman Nose from Systems Command that I took at Recife, Brazil when I went through there in the summer of '66. They were using it for down-range missions overwater. I sort of think it was 53-3129, the first Herk. It was later modified into a gunship.

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Yeah, I know Ed. In fact, I saw him in San Antonio in November. He lives in Florida and his Email address is [email protected]. But be careful - Ed forwards about 10 Emails a day!

I probably knew you. I got to Naha in February 1966 from Pope and was there until August 1967.

Ed is also on Facebook, as is Doc Holloway and Walt (Cecil) Hebdon, who were all engineers in the 35th in 66-67.

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After looking at some orders I was in the 51st oms and in Aug 66

was transfured to the 21st along with about 50 other maint. types.

I was on 56-512 and worked for ssgt Leroy Shifflet.

I was gone TDY about every chance I got.

That was when the 374th Troop Carrier Wing activated at Naha and replaced the 6315th Operations Group. Before that all of the maintenance troops (except those assigned to the 21st for E Flight) were assigned to the 51st Fighter Wing, some in OMS and some in FMS. After the 374th activated flight line maintenance went to the squadrons and everybody else went to the 374th FMS.

I wish I could remember more names from maintenance. but since most guys worked in their T-shirts, I mainly knew people by face. One crew chief I remember was named Taylor, who went to the 35th. I remember seeing him again on Herky Hill one night after I got back to Clark. He was drunk as a skunk and singing "On the wings of a Herkybird, I (pooped) a big, black turd..."!!! There was one guy who hung out in the 35th bar, the Sunflower Club, that I knew pretty well but can't remember his name to save my life.

Jim Esbeck is a current friend of mine. He's on the board of the TCTAA and was with us in San Antonio and was in Galveston in 2006. Jim came to Naha from Langley in '64 to the 51st OMS and left around May '66. His Email is [email protected]. He's also on Facebook. He's a really great guy. He got out after he left Naha and worked for Lockheed for awhile, and is retired out of the Air Force Reserve from Davis-Monthan as an E-8.

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I worked for Lockheed for 11 months.

Went to work supposidly on C-130 for the first day and along with many others ths second day I was transfurred to the C5a.

They started bringing people from their plant in Calif. to Ga and we had to teach them our jobs and we got layed off.

I worked at a small airport in north Ga. part time after Lockheed and the manager showed me some ruts in the end of the runway where a C-130 had landed. They were about 6" deep.

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I worked for Lockheed for 11 months.

Went to work supposidly on C-130 for the first day and along with many others ths second day I was transfurred to the C5a.

They started bringing people from their plant in Calif. to Ga and we had to teach them our jobs and we got layed off.

I worked at a small airport in north Ga. part time after Lockheed and the manager showed me some ruts in the end of the runway where a C-130 had landed. They were about 6" deep.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Is this Stewart AF base in Newburgh,NY you're talking about? If so; I worked there in the late 70's after it was de activated. It became a alternate for the three metro NYC airports. MTA had a presence there as did a NYANG unit.

I worked in Hanger E. The company I worked for leased this hanger as a scenery fabrication shop for Broadway shows.

Evergreen, UPS and DHL had facilities there as did NY State Police. Around 1980 we were moved out of Hanger E so the ANG could set up shop for a C-5 unit that was being established there.

I remember many a flight of cadets from West Point flying out to Colorado for an Army Air Force game, or Air Force coming to West Point.

When Iran released the American hostages, they were flown into Stewart.

So, there has been a lot of use made of the base since it's Deactivation. I lived there for 12 years and been here for nearly 20, and still think of Newburgh as home.

Just thought I'd share this.

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  • 2 months later...

Was there 68-70. I was a bit unruly and had a good a time as possible under

the circumstances.

Spent a lotta time at the airmens club and yielded to temptation of the sirens

of Nashville.

Anybody remember the Scottish babe who worked at the restaurant?

Just stumbled onto this site and Pandoras box is now open in my head!

Regardz to everyone who ever laid their hands on a Herc.

Edited by juandicuad
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