Your Tax Dollars at Work

Arrived in Tucson at our next day’s destination just before midnight.  Found a nice spot to park behind a light industrial site near the airport.   Got up early the Thursday morning and had breakfast at the Waffle House on the other side of the building we had overnighted at.  Heading down to our day’s destination – The Pima Air and Space Museum.  My Museum of Flight (Seattle) membership got me in for free.  But the museum had to wait. 

For seven dollars I bought a ticket for a bus tour of the nearby 309^th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) located on the grounds of the adjacent Davis-Monthan Air Force Base.  AMARG is a storage facility (boneyard) for all aircraft held by all the braches of the armed forces, NASA and many other federal agencies.  There are currently 4,400 aircraft stored here consisting of some eighty different types.  These aircraft cost the American taxpayers over 35 billion dollars when new.  The site is currently at 60% capacity.  Some of these planes are mothballed and can be put back into service if the need arises.  Others are held a source of parts for similar craft in service and some are in the process of being scrapped.  Most impressive is the rows of larger aircraft, C-5 transports, B-52 bombers, KC-135 tankers, C-141 transports, C-130 transports, and P-3 Orion sub chasers.  Of course there are scores and scores of fighters (F-16, F-15 and F-4) and helicopters as well.  The bus tour lasted about an hour and then returned us to the museum. 


Row upon row of Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers

Boeing B-52 bombers mothballed at AMARG as back up to those currently in service
First entered service in 1955 and are projected to remain in active service through the 2040's



F-117 Stealth Fighter

The Pima Air and Space Museum is the third largest such museum in the world.  It has always been on my list of museums to visit.  The site has about half a dozen buildings housing aircraft as well as a mammoth outdoor display area.  There are some 300 aircraft on display here.  The museum is also pet friendly, Piper and Quincy made several friends among the museum volunteers.

Convair B-36 Peacekeeper bomber

Convair B-58 Hustler bomber

Super Guppy transport

Boeing B-52 mothership for the X-15 space plane program

NASA KC-135A dubbed the "Vomit Comet" used to simulate zero-g for astronaut training

We spent the entire day at the museum and then headed to the Pima County Fairgrounds RV Park where we overnighted.