Air Force Days
-
Lockheed Super Constellation
I worked on a military version of this aircraft in the Air Force.
-
The Super Constellation – the plane I worked on in the Air Force
I was in the active U.S. Air Force from Dec 1972 until Jan 1976. I was stationed at McClellan AFB in Sacramento, CA. Our group’s planes were located in 3 places; Sacramento, Thailand and Iceland. We supported the war in Viet Nam with our radar planes. Here is a wonderful documentary on the Super Constellation airplane.
-
Chanute Air Force Base
After basic training, I was stationed at Chanute. This was about 2.5 hours south of Chicago in the corn fields of Illinois. This is where I did my Autopilot technician training. This video (not my video) was made with photos from 1973. That is also when I was there from the end of January to June.
-
McClellan Air Force Base
McClellan AFB in north Sacramento was where I was stationed during my time in the active Air Force. It was decommissioned in 2001 and is now a business park. Actually it is it’s own industrial center now with its own area code. Here is a short video about McClellan today.
-
EC-121 Super Constellation, the aircraft I worked on in the Air Force
I was stationed at McClellan AFB in Sacramento as the Vietnam War was ending. We had planes in Thailand that supported the Vietnam War effort as airborne air traffic control. I was an autopilot tech. The autopilot system for these planes was a very simple and antique unit – the PB-10 made by Bendix.