It is fairly incongruous isn't it? We had a switching engine just like this at Loring AFB, Maine. All of the maintenance buildings, hangars, offices, barracks, everything, was heated by one set of massive boilers which were coal fired. Bangor and Aroostook railway shipped coal to Loring all summer long to pile literal mountains coal to beat the base. The switching engines were used to snuggle coal cars around the heat plant, as well as the occasional flat or box car bringing supplies. Until the 1970s it was more practical to ship anything that had to go that far North by rail rather than by truck.
I guess they are classified. I mean maybe the technology of the drones, but the collected data is for sure.
But I was wondering what else odd or funny vehicles they might have over the years, and I bumped into Texas Towers. Turned into something very interesting I never heard of. Google it if I may suggest. I bet you will find it very interesting too - if you did not know about those already.
well, that's some history I've never heard of! I knew of the long range radars, and the cold war, it's radar outposts, but not that they'd had oil rig types protecting the Kennedy compound (how else would you explain Nantucket, Long Island, etc?) and no where else... like say, Alaska
Oh, I know the answer. When they started to develop and deploy those "radar rigs" they calculated with attacking bombers, not rockets. Such early warning system would gave about 30 minutes to scramble the fighters. Then the Soviets developed the ICBMs and the whole system would gave about a few seconds advantage. Simply does not worth it anymore. So USAF scrapped the remaining two platforms they have built. (Five was planned, three built, one was collapsed.)
It is fairly incongruous isn't it? We had a switching engine just like this at Loring AFB, Maine. All of the maintenance buildings, hangars, offices, barracks, everything, was heated by one set of massive boilers which were coal fired. Bangor and Aroostook railway shipped coal to Loring all summer long to pile literal mountains coal to beat the base. The switching engines were used to snuggle coal cars around the heat plant, as well as the occasional flat or box car bringing supplies. Until the 1970s it was more practical to ship anything that had to go that far North by rail rather than by truck.
ReplyDeleteHow about some USAF ships? ;-)
ReplyDeletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ships_of_the_United_States_Air_Force
whoa! Drone retrieval... huh! I wonder if they subcontract for ship operators
DeleteI guess they are classified. I mean maybe the technology of the drones, but the collected data is for sure.
DeleteBut I was wondering what else odd or funny vehicles they might have over the years, and I bumped into Texas Towers. Turned into something very interesting I never heard of. Google it if I may suggest. I bet you will find it very interesting too - if you did not know about those already.
well, that's some history I've never heard of! I knew of the long range radars, and the cold war, it's radar outposts, but not that they'd had oil rig types protecting the Kennedy compound (how else would you explain Nantucket, Long Island, etc?) and no where else... like say, Alaska
DeleteOh, I know the answer. When they started to develop and deploy those "radar rigs" they calculated with attacking bombers, not rockets. Such early warning system would gave about 30 minutes to scramble the fighters. Then the Soviets developed the ICBMs and the whole system would gave about a few seconds advantage. Simply does not worth it anymore. So USAF scrapped the remaining two platforms they have built. (Five was planned, three built, one was collapsed.)
ReplyDelete