Grissom Air Museum - Peru, Indiana

[john_pifer]

Visited Grissom Air Museum in Peru, Indiana, a couple of weeks ago.

The museum is on Grissom Air Reserve Base, which is home to the 434th Air Refueling Command, as well as a number of other commands.

This was a SAC base during the Cold War, and, to me, the definite star of the show here is the B-58 Hustler, a 4-engine, delta-wing, Mach 2-capable bomber, whose mission would have been to dash into the Soviet Union and deliver 9-megaton nuclear bombs in the event of WWIII.

I took my girlfriend's 14-year-old brother along. He wants to be an astronaut and airline pilot.

One of the highlights was when we climbed the guard tower and a KC-135R started doing touch-and-go's! I was able to get a cell phone video, which I'll post below.

 

[john_pifer]

More pics

 

[john_pifer]

More photos

 

[john_pifer]

KC-135R, filmed doing touch-and-go's from the guard tower at Grissom Air Museum

 

[FADEC]

Great pics and video. Thanks for sharing!

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted by FADEC
Great pics and video. Thanks for sharing!


Thanks. No idea why the forum software rotated or turned a couple of the photos upside down.

I like this forum but I hate the software.

 

[RTexasF]

Thanks for all of the pictures. I'm surprised so many came out correctly......seems like sideways is the norm on this site for some reason.

Agreed about the B58, awesome looking futuristic aircraft.

 

[Win]

Very nice bunch of airplanes! LR AFB was the other SAC Hustler Base ( came to LR from Fort Worth, I think ) , and LR AFB has one for display purposes, but it is not open to the public, AFAIK.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted by Win
Very nice bunch of airplanes! LR AFB was the other SAC Hustler Base ( came to LR from Fort Worth, I think ) , and LR AFB has one for display purposes, but it is not open to the public, AFAIK.


I didn't know that. Seems to me they would have chosen somewhere farther north to base the B-58. But, I suppose, with in-flight refueling, it doesn't really matter.

Wow. If WWIII had ever happened, Arkansas would have been blown off the face of the earth, what with Blytheville (that's where you're talking about, right?), as well as the Titan II silos.

 

[Win]

Blytheville was ( Ira? ) Eaker AFB in northeast Arkansas, and was a SAC B-52 base, closed in the 90's. All the B-52's went to Barksdale, AFAIK.

LR AFB is actually in Jacksonville, a few miles away from Little Rock proper.

So, between the ANG bunch at Fort Smith municipal ( I can recall F-100, F-101, F-4, F-16, and A-10 ), LR AFB, all the Titan silos, and Eaker AFB, just the aviation assets alone would have made AR the subject of a lot of attention. The naval air station at Millington would have attracted some attention also, I would think. I think B-57's might have flown out of LR AFB, but I was pretty young back then, and on the other side of the state, so not really sure ...

edit; Wiki says the B-57's were at Blytheville, not LR ...

 

[JetStar]

Nice museum, it's about 40 miles away from me, I visit often. Completely privately funded with a dedicated crew of volunteers, many whom served at the base.
They are fundraising for a building to cover the TB-58. 50 years of sitting outside is taking it's toll.
The building will resemble the Alert shelters.
Grissom AFB (formerly known as Bunker Hill AFB) was a nuclear armed cold war alert base.
The Alert ramps and the alert buildings still exist on the base. Yes there were nukes in Indiana.
In 1964 there was a broken arrow incident resulting in the loss of one crew member.
The nuclear armed aircraft caught on fire resulting in the HE portions of the weapons cooking off.
The radioactive remains of that B-58 were buried on base and remained there until the early 2000's when they were recovered and hauled away.
The Navy planes are there, because during WWII Bunker Hill was originated as a Navy training base.
There is an open house at the refueling wing in September featuring the Thunderbirds.
Also on base is the American 369 Huey museum, paying tribute to the role the Bell UH-1 Iroquois played in the Vietnam war, They have 3 restored flying examples.

 

[Tikka]

Hi
I am a military aircraft enthusiast so thank you for posting the excellent photos. Nice to see the next Generation taking interest too.

If I may.
Should any others find themselves in England be sure to try visit Imperial War Museum Duxford. Former home of Eighth Air Force's VIII Fighter Command.
Home also of the American Air Museum.
https://www.iwm.org.uk/visits/iwm-duxford

As a side note Duxford is where the film 'Battle of Britain' was filmed. They blew one of the Hangers up making the film but the others remain.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted by JetStar
Nice museum, it's about 40 miles away from me, I visit often. Completely privately funded with a dedicated crew of volunteers, many whom served at the base.
They are fundraising for a building to cover the TB-58. 50 years of sitting outside is taking it's toll.
The building will resemble the Alert shelters.
Grissom AFB (formerly known as Bunker Hill AFB) was a nuclear armed cold war alert base.
The Alert ramps and the alert buildings still exist on the base. Yes there were nukes in Indiana.
In 1964 there was a broken arrow incident resulting in the loss of one crew member.
The nuclear armed aircraft caught on fire resulting in the HE portions of the weapons cooking off.
The radioactive remains of that B-58 were buried on base and remained there until the early 2000's when they were recovered and hauled away.
The Navy planes are there, because during WWII Bunker Hill was originated as a Navy training base.
There is an open house at the refueling wing in September featuring the Thunderbirds.
Also on base is the American 369 Huey museum, paying tribute to the role the Bell UH-1 Iroquois played in the Vietnam war, They have 3 restored flying examples.


Awesome! Might try to make that Thunderbirds open house.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted by Tikka
Hi
I am a military aircraft enthusiast so thank you for posting the excellent photos. Nice to see the next Generation taking interest too.

If I may.
Should any others find themselves in England be sure to try visit Imperial War Museum Duxford. Former home of Eighth Air Force's VIII Fighter Command.
Home also of the American Air Museum.
https://www.iwm.org.uk/visits/iwm-duxford

As a side note Duxford is where the film 'Battle of Britain' was filmed. They blew one of the Hangers up making the film but the others remain.


Thanks!

Do they have any Lightnings there?

 

[Tikka]

Originally Posted by john_pifer
Originally Posted by Tikka
Hi
I am a military aircraft enthusiast so thank you for posting the excellent photos. Nice to see the next Generation taking interest too.

If I may.
Should any others find themselves in England be sure to try visit Imperial War Museum Duxford. Former home of Eighth Air Force's VIII Fighter Command.
Home also of the American Air Museum.
https://www.iwm.org.uk/visits/iwm-duxford

As a side note Duxford is where the film 'Battle of Britain' was filmed. They blew one of the Hangers up making the film but the others remain.


Thanks!

Do they have any Lightnings there?


Hi
The last European airworthy P38 crashed at Duxford in 1996. Tragically the Pilot was killed. My Brother witnessed the accident. I missed the show that year.

https://www.warhistoryonline.com/hi...-p-38-lightning-europe-july-15-1996.html

RIP Michael ( Hoof ) Proudfoot.

Tikka.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted by Tikka
Originally Posted by john_pifer
Originally Posted by Tikka
Hi
I am a military aircraft enthusiast so thank you for posting the excellent photos. Nice to see the next Generation taking interest too.

If I may.
Should any others find themselves in England be sure to try visit Imperial War Museum Duxford. Former home of Eighth Air Force's VIII Fighter Command.
Home also of the American Air Museum.
https://www.iwm.org.uk/visits/iwm-duxford

As a side note Duxford is where the film 'Battle of Britain' was filmed. They blew one of the Hangers up making the film but the others remain.


Thanks!

Do they have any Lightnings there?


Hi
The last European airworthy P38 crashed at Duxford in 1996. Tragically the Pilot was killed. My Brother witnessed the accident. I missed the show that year.

https://www.warhistoryonline.com/hi...-p-38-lightning-europe-july-15-1996.html

RIP Michael ( Hoof ) Proudfoot.

Tikka.



Oh, I'm sorry. I actually meant English Electric Lightning jets, not the Lockheed P-38.

 

[Tikka]

Originally Posted by john_pifer
Originally Posted by Tikka
Originally Posted by john_pifer
Originally Posted by Tikka
Hi
I am a military aircraft enthusiast so thank you for posting the excellent photos. Nice to see the next Generation taking interest too.

If I may.
Should any others find themselves in England be sure to try visit Imperial War Museum Duxford. Former home of Eighth Air Force's VIII Fighter Command.
Home also of the American Air Museum.
https://www.iwm.org.uk/visits/iwm-duxford

As a side note Duxford is where the film 'Battle of Britain' was filmed. They blew one of the Hangers up making the film but the others remain.


Thanks!

Do they have any Lightnings there?


Hi
The last European airworthy P38 crashed at Duxford in 1996. Tragically the Pilot was killed. My Brother witnessed the accident. I missed the show that year.

https://www.warhistoryonline.com/hi...-p-38-lightning-europe-july-15-1996.html

RIP Michael ( Hoof ) Proudfoot.

Tikka.



Oh, I'm sorry. I actually meant English Electric Lightning jets, not the Lockheed P-38.



Hi.
Yes the have an English Electric Lightening on static display.

https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/70000160

I think there is still one flying in south Africa.

 

[john_pifer]

Awesome story on that bird, there, on the home page, about how that RAF engineer "accidentally" flew it!

Yeah, I'd heard about Mike Beachy-Head and his fleet of Cold War-era jet fighters and bombers! Awesome! I didn't know he had died of a heart attack a couple of years ago. Tragic.

The Lightning is one badazz jet. Possibly my favorite jet fighter. Would be fun to see one flown against an F-104. Drag-race, air-to-air, time-to-climb, etc.

 

[john_pifer]

This guy lived a lot of people's dream (including mine!)!

https://www.saflyer.com/single-post/2017/06/21/Obituary-Mike-Beachy-Head

 

[Tikka]

Originally Posted by john_pifer
Awesome story on that bird, there, on the home page, about how that RAF engineer "accidentally" flew it!

Yeah, I'd heard about Mike Beachy-Head and his fleet of Cold War-era jet fighters and bombers! Awesome! I didn't know he had died of a heart attack a couple of years ago. Tragic.

The Lightning is one badazz jet. Possibly my favorite jet fighter. Would be fun to see one flown against an F-104. Drag-race, air-to-air, time-to-climb, etc.





Hi
With regards to the Starfighter if wiki is to be believed.

In 1984, during a NATO exercise, Flt Lt Mike Hale intercepted a U-2 at a height which they had previously considered safe (thought to be 66,000 feet (20,000 m)). Records show that Hale also climbed to 88,000 ft (27,000 m) in his Lightning F.3 XR749. This was not sustained level flight but a ballistic climb, in which the pilot takes the aircraft to top speed and then puts the aircraft into a climb, exchanging speed for altitude. Hale also participated in time-to-height and acceleration trials against Lockheed F-104 Starfighters from Aalborg. He reports that the Lightnings won all races easily with the exception of the low-level supersonic acceleration, which was a "dead heat".[77] Lightning pilot and Chief Examiner Brian Carroll reported taking a Lightning F.53 up to 87,300 feet (26,600 m) over Saudi Arabia at which level "Earth curvature was visible and the sky was quite dark", noting that control-wise "[it was] on a knife edge".[78]

Tikka