wurtsmith air force base housing

1970 - The Air Force knew that some of the Webb Air Force Base Family Housing units, located in Big Spring Texas, were contaminated with and the occupants exposed to a large quantity of chlordane. Wurtsmith Air Museum - Facebook This bunker compound housed, the flight crews on ready alert, the three B-52 bombers ready to take off at a, moments notice, and the accompanying KC-135s ready to top off the B-52s after takeoff. This is heinous, and my heart goes out to so many. [5] However, the B-52H aircraft maintained nuclear alert at WurtsmithAir Force Base. The letter never said what I was objecting to, but that I was refusing to for a lawful order. In 1955 Wurtsmith Air Force Base became an official permanent post in the United States Air Force, which meant that many new services were implemented on base. Aug 24, 2021. Download Images of Wurtsmith air force base - Free for commercial use, no attribution required. Even studies on fish have been done, where it was found that PFOA is a liver carcinogen in rainbow trout. This is very dear to my heart and want to get involved however I can. This year, we went out diving, and we could see these points of interest from the surface, Losinski said. [1] Wurtsmith Air Force Base was 2nd Lt. Nortons firstpermanent duty station in the United States Air Force.[1]. Most individuals are not educated on what the base did before and after World War II, what is currently happening at this location, or how the historical space is impacting the land and local citizens today. We thought that was kind of unbelievable.. At Oscoda Army Air Field, from the Group Historian: Over the sandy pine shores of Lake Huron, pilots of the 332nd Fighter Group polished up their flight and gunnery tactics for threat inevitable test of their skill and courage which will eventually lead them to pursuit and battle in the skies of Europe and Asia. By the end of November 1943 all training for the 332nd had been completed at Oscoda and the Group departed for overseas. Anyone know the status on this? WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. One of the unfortunate risks in flying is a crash. Weve done quite a bit of documenting and measuring, David Losinski said. David Losinski said he and his son were assisting the state Department of Environmental Quality with a barge that sank in Lake Huron in July 2012. It was also possible for these missions to originate in the United States. All Rights Reserved. Wurtsmith Air Force Base, Michigan Redevelopment Profile In 1942, three 5000x150 concrete runways were built. When the Gulf War started in 1990, the 379, Bomber Wing sent B-52s as well as their accompanying KC-135s into the Middle East. He was stationed at the base. Because of the restriction of being close to the Christmas tree theyresorted to playing cards, working out, reading, and sleeping while they werenot conducting recurrent training to stay up to date and proficient on theirequipment. Drinking Water At Wurtsmith AFB Contaminted. [5] One crew flew 29, mission out of Jeddah, setting the record for most missions flew by a bomber, crew in theater. The P-6 Hawk (1932-1937) Aircraft was @ Oscoda. In 1960 it became part of the Strategic Air Command . It had a commissary, a gas station, a hospital, housing, a bowling alley," said veteran Michael Grogan. 379th Air Expeditionary Wing | Military Wiki | Fandom The Wurtsmith base closed in 1991, sending the Harrises to Plattsburgh, N.Y., where friends and neighbors remembered the boys as Scouts and Little Leaguers, and their parents as being involved in . A ground-water divide cuts diagonally across the Base from northwest to . [1] Mr. Norton also landedthe first KC-135 in operation Southern Watch. Thisflight crew would spend one week in the bunker and be confined to an undiscloseddistance from the bunker. Im slowly working my way up from 1924 to the present. The Air Force . The good speed of the P-6E was counterbalanced by some unsatisfacory handling characteristics which made it sluggish in response to controls. [1] This includes on base housing, a daycare center for children, a doctor's office, a . This would cause some big problems for the fish and other life that lives beneath the surface. [4] On August 1st 1958 the 4026th Strategic Wing was formed at Wurtsmith Air Force Base. There is an ongoing project to decontaminate the area. Wurtsmith Air Force Base | Military Wiki | Fandom [1], Over the course of Mr. Nortons career as both a KC-135 Navigator, and a DC-10 Pilot, Mr. Norton served as a flight commander, served numerous, deployments during the Gulf War escorting fighter squadrons from the United, States into theater, supporting fighter squadrons and bomber squadrons in, theater, served multiple temporary duty assignments to England, Spain, Saudi, Arabia, Alaska, and other Air Force Bases around the globe. A brief history of Wurtsmith Air Force Base - WAFB [3] Search Superfund Site Information. EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, 28 Dec. 2016, cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/csitinfo.cfm?id=0503675. They resumed the investigation last spring. The 379th was reassigned to Wurtsmith Air Force Base, Michigan without personnel or equipment in January 1961, assuming the aircraft, personnel and equipment of the discontinued 4026th Strategic Wing. After all of that great history, the Wurtsmith Air Force Base is still standing as a place that is visited by a plethora of people. The history of Oscoda Military Aviation is the same as the History of the Air Force. P-6E, serial number 32-156, 17th Pursuit Squadron from Selfridge Field Michigan. I saw a big splash, and then the plane went out of sight.. Leaking chemical storage tanks and waste disposal operations contaminated soil and groundwater with hazardous chemicals. Peters, Stabenow, Kildee, Slotkin Press | Senator Gary Peters Most Air Corps/Force types used Oscoda at one time or another. Welcome to The WAFB Historical Site dedicated to preserving the history and heritage of Wurtsmith Air Force Base and the units assigned there. Maximum speed was 178 mph at sea level, 171 mph at 10,000 feet. [1]After one week in the bunker on ready alert the flight crew would be relieved. As soon as an assignment went over 180 days it was considered a permanent change in duty station. These are simply the specific . Posts and surveys made on this website are opinions or suggestions of users of this website and are not representations, opinions or suggestions of U.S. 1942 -- Camp Skeel is renamed Oscoda Army Air Field and becomes a P-47 fighter base. Smoke started coming from the tail of the second plane, and I could see it was in trouble. The cockpit was fairly easy to enter and exit, but the doors had a tendency to fly open in midair at high speed if improperly secured. Dover Air Force base, Delaware. The views and opinions expressed in this website/articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency of the U.S. government, We are the men and women of the U.S. Military, Wurtsmith AFB is a Superfund Site. ircraft operated from Oscoda Army Airfield. Heart condition, prostate cancer, diabetic, sometimes confused in making decisions. Because of this KC-135 squadrons would routinely fly 175 day assignments and return to their home base. Mr. Norton would occasionally return to fresh fish left by his neighbor on his porch. [5] Wurtsmith AFB, Mich SAC 379th Bomb Wing B-52, www.strategic-air-command.com/bases/Wurtsmith_AFB.htm. Theyre looking for other divers who can assist with the effort. This, flight crew would spend one week in the bunker and be confined to an undisclosed. Philippines -- Clark Air Base Maps, Charts, and Blueprints According to Robert Delaney, a Michigan Department of Environmental Quality specialist, If you pull the water out of the ground in that training area, it still foams, theres so much in there. Since this entire problem stems from the fact that the foam used to extinguish fires on the base is what carried the toxic chemical, that goes to show just how invasive and problematic this contamination can be. I didnt know anything about the Tuskegee Airmen until we got into this.. I was born on base November 1978, and lived on base with my mom, brother born 1989 on base, and my dad, a civil engineer stationed on base until oct 1982. [1] This was followed by one and a half weeks of normal day to day activitiesuntil the flight crew relieved crew on ready alert in the bunkers.[1]. [6] 379th Bomb Wing Homestead AFB B-47 Wurtsmith AFB B-52, www.strategic-air-command.com/wings/0379bw.htm. A total of 15,683 Thunderbolts were produced by wars end, more than any other U.S. fighter. Wurtsmith earned recognition during the war as the leader of the group of pilots using P-40 and P-38 fighter . History Wurtsmith Air Force Base, Michigan, served primarily as a combat crew and bomber training base throughout its 70-year history. Bert E. Skeel was a WWI pilot who died in an air race in Ohio. There are many people who were exposed to the Wurtsmith water that are now coming out and blaming the chemical filled drinking water for their health problems. Pieces include the engine, the tail, part of the door and the 37-millimeter cannon that fired through the propeller hub. There is no amount of PFOA that is officially recognized as harmful. However, many studies have shown otherwise. Today, the Wurtsmith Air Force Base has a museum where you can learn about its history. We offer visitors three hangars full of military (all branches) and aviation history, static aircraft displays, artifacts, equipment and lots of WAFB memorabilia. [1] Wurtsmith Air Force Base was 2nd Lt. Nortons first, permanent duty station in the United States Air Force. During the Gulf War these planes were run practically 24/7, landing only to swap flight crews to meet the flight crew rest requirements. For example a KC-135 could take off from Wurtsmith Air Force Base, fly across the Pacific Ocean, land in Spain, have the flight crew be relieved by a fresh crew, fly into theater, complete the mission and return to Spain, where the original crew would be rested and ready to fly the KC-135 back to Wurtsmith Air Force Base. Environmental context Total organofluorine and known fluorosurfactants were quantified in 11 aqueous film forming foams (AFFFs) used to extinguish fires in Ontario, Canada, and one commercial AFFF product. But these days, the county is becoming a haven for retired people such as the Kuhlmans . Eielson Air Force base, Alaska. Six Are Killed in Crash Of an Air Force Tanker. The New York Times, The New York Times, 11 Oct. 1988, www.nytimes.com/1988/10/12/us/six-are-killed-in-crash-of-an-air-force-tanker.html. I am not a doctor or attorney, and cannot give medical advice or legal advice. There were frequently extremely large and loud airplanes taxiing, taking off, and landing in the base. During the Pacific conflicts personnel and the KC-135Stratotankers were deployed to forward bases in the Pacific to support landoperations. [5] While the 379th, Bomb Wing was stationed at Wurtsmith Air Force Base they were part of the Ready, Alert Nuclear Strike Force. At just after 10 pm on the 30 th October, on-duty personnel at Wurtsmith Air Force Base would report seeing a strange object hovering over the . Mr. Norton experienced this first hand while being station at Wurtsmith Air Force Base when he had his Squadron Commander help him hang drywall in his house. All kind of special chemicals that Boeing told the USAF we had to have. Theseplanes would regularly fly missions from Wurtsmith Air Force Base during thecold war. Congress set a May 2022 deadline for the DOD to report on the cleanup status of these bases, the Filthy 50, with extremely high levels of PFAS contamination. Contribute to chinapedia/wikipedia.en development by creating an account on GitHub. [1], The northern tier Strategic Air Command Ready Alert Strike Force bases were considered less than desirable duty stations for one main reason. [6] The 379th Bomb Wing wasdisbanded on June 30th 1993. Aircraft was at Camp Skeel, Oscoda Michigan for Aerial Gunnery training. Since, 2010 sampling by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) and the U.S. Air Force has identified elevated levels of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination in drinking water wells and some locally caught fish and deer. In a nutshell, this is what were trying to do get permission to relocate the parts so they would resemble a plane, David Losinski said. Airplane nosed over when landing gear tire casing failed, locking the right wheel. In their letter, the members expressed their concerns that the Air Force's proposed remediation plan . One of the unfortunate risks in flying is a crash. empty, 3310 lb gross. At this time Wurtsmith Air Force Base was still part of theStrategic Air Commands bomber fleet. Groundwater data collected in 1999 at Wurtsmith Air Force Base (Michigan), Tyndall Air Force Base (Florida) and Naval Air Station Fallon (Nevada), where PFC concentrations ranged from below detection limit to over 14,000 g/L, suggest that any military site where AFFFs have been used is likely to have a dissolved plume containing . The landing gear was changed from rubber-block shock absorbers inside the fuselage to oleo-and-spring units mounted in the outer forward strut. [5] The 379th Bomb Wing immediately continued the 4026th, During the Pacific conflicts personnel and the KC-135, Stratotankers were deployed to forward bases in the Pacific to support land, operations. There were also problems with the complex nose-mounted reduction gear, which caused reliability problems and resulted in fairly low serviceability rates as compared with other fighters. [1] The KC-135s had many more opportunities to travel because they would fly in support of any craft capable of refueling in flight. He was training with fellow pilots out of what was then Selfridge Field when his plane crashed. He said the wreckage from the plane is scattered across the lake bottom. As seen, in the picture of the runways, there is a Christmas tree coming off of the, beginning of the runway with a building next to it. Oscoda-Wurtsmith Airport became a public airport in 1993. Report also stated that the Oscoda Michigan gunnery field was very rough and sandy and notoriously hard on wheels, landing gears etc. Lee N. 2023 Aspyre Media Group, LLC. Veterans of the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda from the 1970s, and their families who lived with them on the base, face increased risks of leukemia and other harmful effects from prolonged exposures to toxic volatile organic compounds that were in the now-shuttered base's water supply at the time, a federal health agency has found. Theyve seen lots of things underwater, but the story of the P-39 fighter lost just off the Port Huron beachfront touched them. the first KC-135 in operation Southern Watch. This unfortunately happened on October 11. , 1988 when KC-135 crashed with 6 crew members and 10 passengers on board. Wurtsmith Today The former Wurtsmith Air Force Base (AFB) properties are being reutilized by 28 businesses and agencies that collectively employ more than 1,660 workers (representing 240 percent of civilian jobs lost). Wurtsmith Air Force Base has been an integral part of the United States Air Force from the 1920's to June 3rd 1993. . 1944 -- Maj. Gen. Paul B. Wurtsmith, born in Detroit in 1906, led U. S. Army Air Corps training flights to Camp Skeel near Oscoda prior to World War II. I have always scheduled an apt with my dr to talk about the possibility of how this may have affected me. purposes only, and is not legal advice. The Allison V-1710-85 liquid-cooled V-12 engine behind the pilots seat drove the propeller by means of a driveshaft mounted under the pilots seat. The Realignment of Griffiss Air Force Base - Spectrum News However, the drawdown was fairly rapid after that and they were quickly replaced by P-38s, P-47s and P-51s. They are surely exposed to this chemical nearly every day, whether it be playing outside on the playground or from being exposed to the chemicals via drinking the water. The single officers who lived on base lived in a dorm type building. Section 107, the written material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed an interest in receiving the included information for educational purposes. I worked on the flight line. These bases wereresponsible for a housing a Ready Alert Nuclear Strike Force. Learn how your comment data is processed. Contaminated water has been shown to be the main way that humans get exposed to this chemical, which is exactly whats going on in Oscoda. These chemicals have been shown to cause problems with thyroid, liver, kidney, reproduction, and other health problems. View All Homes - Homes for Rent Wurtsmith got its start in 1923 as Loud-Reames Aviation Field, a soft-surface landing site for Arm Air Corps aircraft from Selfridge Field. The aquifer overlies a thick clay layer at an average depth of 65 feet. Residents of the Oscoda area raised $600 to clear 40 acres of land next to the lake as a spot for a training camp and target range. He brought this idea to the attention of his squadron commander Major Carl Spaatz. [4] In the lateryears of World War II Wurtsmith Air Force Base was used as a fighter-interceptor training base and housed the 332d fighter group, which was part of the famous Tuskegee Airmen. There were four planes, and I was watching them from our front window, as I usually do when theyre engaged in gunnery practice. The water table is about 10 feet below land surface in the western part of the Base and about 25 feet below land surface in the eastern part. They included chemicals like MEK, PD 680, TRI CHLOROFLOIANS, ACIDS, ALODIANS, ALL KINDS OF PAINTS, SPECIAL MISSILE SKIN REPAIR KITS. Beginning in July 1944, the P-47 Thunderbolt was used extensively to train Free French Air Force pilots at Oscoda Army Air Field (AAF). In 1955 Wurtsmith Air Force Base became an official permanent post in the United States Air Force, which meant that many new services were implemented on base. Wurtsmith Air Force Base - Oscoda, MI - Civilian Exposure I recall we lost a tanker on touch and goes which had to be extinguished with a massive amount of this chemical. Over the 50 years of operation Wurtsmith Air Force Base had manydifferent missions. One example of this is autocross racing. Did Wurtsmith Air Force Base cause health woes? - Detroit Free Press What they had was a one-seat warplane piloted by 2nd Lt. Frank H. Moody, of Los Angeles. The 1st Combat Evaluation Group (initially "1CEG", later "1CEVG") was a Strategic Air Command (SAC) unit. Its poor high-altitude performance was a result of a critical decision to remove the turbo-supercharger. These planes arrived at dawn on the first day of the Gulf War. These high levels of PFOA elevate the risks of kidney cancer, mesothelioma, and diabetes. "The Department of Defense is evaluating [cleanup standards], and we take our lead from what the Department of Defense says," said Stephen TerMaath, who leads the Air Force division in charge of Wurtsmith cleanup. Members of the Tuskegee Airmen, trained at Oscoda for several weeks and stayed on the base. [1]These KC-135s were necessary because the B-52 could not take off with both afull load of ordnance and a full tank of gas. The Strategic Air Command activated a wing there on August 1, 1958. In addition, it would facilitate the installation of nose cannon since the armament could be mounted near the centerline, minimizing the effects of recoil forces. To all who are interested in the Camp Skeel/Oscoda AAF/Wurtsmith AFB History. A bomber squadron for example would be sent out to destroy a target and return to its home base within a week. On April 1, 1960, Strategic Air Command assumed operational control of what was then Wurtsmith Air Force Base from Air Defense Command; on Jan. 9, 1961, the 379th Bombardment Wing, flying B-52H's and KC-135A's, became the host unit. This is a short video about the small museum located at the decommissioned Wurtsmith AFB in Oscoda Mi.http://www.rv-project.com The former base includes 4,626 acres (1,872 ha) located approximately two miles west of Lake Huron in the Charter Township of Oscoda, bordered by Van Ettan Lake, the Au . On January 18, 1994 it was listed as a Superfund due to extensive groundwater contamination with heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds, including trichloroethylene, 1,1-dichloroethane, 1,1,1-trichloroethane . Since its establishment in 1923, Wurtsmith played an important role in World War II, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War, hosting the 134th Army Air Force Base Fighter Unit and 379th Bombardment Wing respectively. With this long list of negative effects it is clearly a big health issue for local residents. 'We've been betrayed:' Veterans blame Air Force base water for - mlive Continued study of ground-water contamination at Wurtsmith Air Force Base, Michigan, defined the movement and distribution of volatile organic compounds in the glacial sand and gravel aquifer at known sites of contamination, and has defined new plumes at two other sites. Someone who works in a place that uses these chemicals and is exposed to them can have up to 100 parts per million, or 0.01%, in their blood. This air field was in dire need of a gunnery range because they being forced out of their gunnery range on Lake St. Clair. It was also possible for these missions to originate in the United States. Home - Wurtsmith Air Museum Wurtsmith Air Force Base - Wikipedia People who are exposed every day for an extended period of time are the ones who start to see real problems, some of which I mentioned above. Military bases are known for significant staffing turnover. Then everything happened so fast it seems unbelievable. The 379th Bomb Wing moved to Wurtsmith Air Force Base in June of19661. Located in Iosco County, Michigan, Wurtsmith Air Force Base operated from 1923 until decommissioned in 1993. Although in the past the Wurtsmith Air Force Base was extremely successful there are some prevalent issues with it today. The KC-135s would finish one mission and there would be another one waiting for them as soon as they were available. She also has many other irregular health problems including bone death, fibromyalgia, irregular heartbeat, gastrointestinal problems, and underdeveloped reproductive organs. [1], While these crews were on ready alert they did not have a whole, lot to do. There are many good photos of P-39s at Selfridge Field (Posted below), but none of P-39s at Oscoda. The tire bead failed, allowing the casing to slip over the rim on one side and bind on edge of the wheel fairing on takeoff.