Aircraft boneyards of the world

[Thorough Pro]

Why can't they just melt and re-use the metal?

 

[Aamir Hussain]

Great images -- thanks for putting them up for all to view.

 

[Developereo]

I am surprised to find one in snow-covered Ukraine. I thought the whole point of putting one in Arizona was because of the 'bone dry' climate.

Why can't they just melt and re-use the metal?

Spare parts.

 

[Manticore]

 

[Manticore]

Great images -- thanks for putting them up for all to view.

it was interesting to find the european boneyards-- i really feel sorry for these fighters, all alone , out n the open and rusting

 

[Safriz]

As far as i know,these American and soviet bone yards were part of their weapons reduction treaties.The rule of the game was that they had to disintegrate the aircraft or missile and then leave it in the open for the other side's spy satellites to take pictures and confirm the decommissioning of the said military hardware..Since these remain part of the cold war international treaty..these planes will remain there in their open graveyards until a new deal is agreed between Russia and USA,as removing the planes may be considered as breach of the treaty..

 

[Last Hope]

So sad to see this loss. May they all RIP

 

[Safriz]

soviet space shuttles after USSR

 

[yousaf goebbels]

i read hollywood buys planes from these scrapyards and then use them in movies

---------- Post added at 12:13 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:13 AM ----------

any F-16'S in there??

 

[haskhai]

Amazing. Imagine how much money and resources were spent to design, develop and make so many planes.

+2
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[Chogy]

There are hundreds of F-14/15/16 in the Davis-Monthan bone yard. Anyone who loves these airplanes hurts a bit to see them.

But there is good news. There is a big difference between static display aircraft, like you'd see hanging in a museum, and the boneyard aircraft. Those int he boneyard get hundreds of hours of preperatory work for storage. All fluids are drained, pyrotechnics removed, anti-corrosives added, and the canopies are whitewashed to keep the heat down. Any one of those boneyard jets could fly again without too much trouble.

But jets for static display are stripped. Engine removed, everything... they are gutted and will never fly again.

 

[The HBS Guy]

There are hundreds of F-14/15/16 in the Davis-Monthan bone yard. Anyone who loves these airplanes hurts a bit to see them.

But there is good news. There is a big difference between static display aircraft, like you'd see hanging in a museum, and the boneyard aircraft. Those int he boneyard get hundreds of hours of preperatory work for storage. All fluids are drained, pyrotechnics removed, anti-corrosives added, and the canopies are whitewashed to keep the heat down. Any one of those boneyard jets could fly again without too much trouble.

But jets for static display are stripped. Engine removed, everything... they are gutted and will never fly again.

Chogy, don't such discarded planes have any useful role to play in Homeland Security?

Any other uses?

 

[Haseebullah]

Any chance of me getting a F-14 on ebay?

 

[Chogy]

Chogy, don't such discarded planes have any useful role to play in Homeland Security?

Any other uses?

Yes, they are a source for parts, most of all. There are enough B-52 parts out there to keep the current fleet flying for decades.

In strategic terms, these are technically assets in the remote chance of a drawn-out conflict, but the nature of war has changed. The direct army-on-army wars of the past have shortened. Nations fight with what is on hand. Any subsequent fighting is insurgency of the sort that we see today.

You can be sure the USSR had these boneyards targeted for nuclear destruction.

Decades ago, it was U.S. policy to sell surplus warplanes after demilitarization. Enthusiasts purchased P-51 Mustangs, B-17 bombers, etc. In the 1950's, you could buy a P-51D for $5,000. Now, a flyable example is million$. The number of beautiful WW2 warplanes that were shredded was astronomical, though, and those that can still fly are national treasures.

But the policy changed. There are hundreds, thousands, of T-37, T-38, A-4, T-33, awesome jets that private owners drool over and would pay well for, but the U.S. no longer allows this. That is why you can go on "Trade-a-plane" and find a MiG-21 for $150,000, but there simply are no T-38's in private hands except for about 3 or 4 examples built from separate parts.

It's a shame, IMO. A T-37 with new Garret engines would be an amazing sport airplane!

 

[Jango]

those are C5 galaxys man!!!......those aircraft must can be restored in someway???....billions of dollars worth of machinery here