wfooshee
O, Woe is me!!
After coming over yesterday from the Big Easy and staying the night, Patriot dragged himself out of bed (off the couch, actually) and we rode over towards Eglin AFB, about an hour west of here.
First, of course, is breakfast. Almost got ourselves in trouble when we were told at the register that it was a cash-only establishment. Oops. We each had enough, barely, to cover the bill, so we were not imprisoned.
One of the things Mike wanted to see was the EOD Memorial somewhere on Eglin. (EOD is Explosive Ordnance Disposal, the guys that disarm bombs and unexploded ordnance.) We were searching for it on the web last night, and while it has a web site, there is no information as to its actual location, other than across from the EOD school. Eventually I found that the memorial has a facebook page, and on there its exact location is marked on a map, so I set it up in my 2720.
We set out after losing all our cash at the breakfast joint and discovered how poorly our GPSs, both of them, understand the roads around Eglin once you leave the town of Niceville. Finally found the right road, and come across a gate and ominous signs about military installation, closed areas, no admittance, and then a gatehouse. Well, Mike got his info about this memorial from a friend, who says it's publicly accessible, just along the road we're on. Well, the gates were open, and the guardhouse was unmanned, so after a bit of a chat, and an eye towards what was obviously a camera, we proceed onwards. We're less than a mile from the place, after all.
We arive at the memorial, which is located immediately across the street from the school, which although on an Air Force base, is operated for all four branches by the Navy. The memorail is situated so that anyone exiting the school's building will be looking directly at it as they leave, which I'm sure has a certain motivational factor. The memorial lists names of EOD personnel who lost their lives in performance of their duties. There are four panels, one for each service branch, Army, Marines, Navy, and Air Force. The names begin during WWII, and run into 2010. The paved area in front is filled with many sponsor bricks, names of families, businesses, military units, etc.
There's a walkway that goes behind the memorial, to the flagpole and a stairway up to the back of the wall, and on the steps was a little girl's bicycle. I'm sure there's a story there, but of course we have no idea what it is.
We make our escape from behind the fenceline, pass back out through the gate onto the civilian roadway, and head towards the main base and the museum. But first a snack at Wendy's, a Frosty and a Coke. No pics, you all know what a damn Frosty looks like.
The Air Force Armament Museum is actually on the highway outside the base rather than in the gated area of Eglin so it's very accessible. There are many aircraft and missiles on static display outside the building, and inside are bombs, guns, ammunition, missiles, and some more aircraft. There is a gun locker with cabinets displaying arms carried by hand and mounted to aircraft, from the current 9mm Beretta and Colt 1911 pistols, to the 40mm gun used in the Spectre gunship, and the 30mm gatling used in the A-10.
Lots of high-tech equipment in this pic:
The business end, or side, of the AC-130 gunship. There was a reunion for AC-130 crews and pilots today, so the aircraft was open to walk through the interior.
This was a room set up in the center of the aircraft starboard side, no clue what went on in here.
B-17. I was struck by how clean all the outside displays were. It seems they've been out there with the spray gun since I was last here!
A special SR-71, this one had a long tail-boom added to carry specialized photo equipment. Turned out it upset the balance of the aircraft a bit, and upgraded stuff in the regular locations made it redundant anyway, so only one long-tail was made.
A MIG-21 sitting in front of a B-47.
Giant bomb developed at Eglin. MOAB does not stand for mother of all bombs, although it is; it stands for massive ordnance air blast. It is the largest conventional bomb ever developed by the U.S. All the articles I find say one was delivered to the Persion Gulf but never used, and up to 17 actually exist.
P-51 and P-47 inside:
A "Thud" (F-105) surrounded by several examples of smart bomb guided munitions, and a shot of the rotary gun of the left side at the nose:
This is the interior of an airborne module that served as a battlefield command post. It was a single module carried in a C-130 and used to direct ground units during action.
Before parting ways to our respective homes after the museum, we dropped in on the nice people at Po Folks for yet more grub. After wolfing this stuff down I went east and he went west. Well, he actually had to go north first to get to I-10, then go west to New Orleans and home. It was a good day to be out and about, and we saw lots of other riders on various type of bikes, a lot of them even wearing gear and helmets! We got rained on very briefly, but for the most part it was sunny and high 70s/low 80s all day.
First, of course, is breakfast. Almost got ourselves in trouble when we were told at the register that it was a cash-only establishment. Oops. We each had enough, barely, to cover the bill, so we were not imprisoned.
One of the things Mike wanted to see was the EOD Memorial somewhere on Eglin. (EOD is Explosive Ordnance Disposal, the guys that disarm bombs and unexploded ordnance.) We were searching for it on the web last night, and while it has a web site, there is no information as to its actual location, other than across from the EOD school. Eventually I found that the memorial has a facebook page, and on there its exact location is marked on a map, so I set it up in my 2720.
We set out after losing all our cash at the breakfast joint and discovered how poorly our GPSs, both of them, understand the roads around Eglin once you leave the town of Niceville. Finally found the right road, and come across a gate and ominous signs about military installation, closed areas, no admittance, and then a gatehouse. Well, Mike got his info about this memorial from a friend, who says it's publicly accessible, just along the road we're on. Well, the gates were open, and the guardhouse was unmanned, so after a bit of a chat, and an eye towards what was obviously a camera, we proceed onwards. We're less than a mile from the place, after all.
We arive at the memorial, which is located immediately across the street from the school, which although on an Air Force base, is operated for all four branches by the Navy. The memorail is situated so that anyone exiting the school's building will be looking directly at it as they leave, which I'm sure has a certain motivational factor. The memorial lists names of EOD personnel who lost their lives in performance of their duties. There are four panels, one for each service branch, Army, Marines, Navy, and Air Force. The names begin during WWII, and run into 2010. The paved area in front is filled with many sponsor bricks, names of families, businesses, military units, etc.
There's a walkway that goes behind the memorial, to the flagpole and a stairway up to the back of the wall, and on the steps was a little girl's bicycle. I'm sure there's a story there, but of course we have no idea what it is.
We make our escape from behind the fenceline, pass back out through the gate onto the civilian roadway, and head towards the main base and the museum. But first a snack at Wendy's, a Frosty and a Coke. No pics, you all know what a damn Frosty looks like.
The Air Force Armament Museum is actually on the highway outside the base rather than in the gated area of Eglin so it's very accessible. There are many aircraft and missiles on static display outside the building, and inside are bombs, guns, ammunition, missiles, and some more aircraft. There is a gun locker with cabinets displaying arms carried by hand and mounted to aircraft, from the current 9mm Beretta and Colt 1911 pistols, to the 40mm gun used in the Spectre gunship, and the 30mm gatling used in the A-10.
Lots of high-tech equipment in this pic:
The business end, or side, of the AC-130 gunship. There was a reunion for AC-130 crews and pilots today, so the aircraft was open to walk through the interior.
This was a room set up in the center of the aircraft starboard side, no clue what went on in here.
B-17. I was struck by how clean all the outside displays were. It seems they've been out there with the spray gun since I was last here!
A special SR-71, this one had a long tail-boom added to carry specialized photo equipment. Turned out it upset the balance of the aircraft a bit, and upgraded stuff in the regular locations made it redundant anyway, so only one long-tail was made.
A MIG-21 sitting in front of a B-47.
Giant bomb developed at Eglin. MOAB does not stand for mother of all bombs, although it is; it stands for massive ordnance air blast. It is the largest conventional bomb ever developed by the U.S. All the articles I find say one was delivered to the Persion Gulf but never used, and up to 17 actually exist.
P-51 and P-47 inside:
A "Thud" (F-105) surrounded by several examples of smart bomb guided munitions, and a shot of the rotary gun of the left side at the nose:
This is the interior of an airborne module that served as a battlefield command post. It was a single module carried in a C-130 and used to direct ground units during action.
Before parting ways to our respective homes after the museum, we dropped in on the nice people at Po Folks for yet more grub. After wolfing this stuff down I went east and he went west. Well, he actually had to go north first to get to I-10, then go west to New Orleans and home. It was a good day to be out and about, and we saw lots of other riders on various type of bikes, a lot of them even wearing gear and helmets! We got rained on very briefly, but for the most part it was sunny and high 70s/low 80s all day.
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