T

he  rst port of call on Wednesday,

May 1, 1974 was George AFB in

California and, under clear blue

skies, we walked out onto the

ramp where there were 17 Republic F-105G

Thunderchiefs of the 561st Tactical Fighter

Squadron (TFS). Behind them were 19

McDonnell Douglas F-4C Phantom IIs, 23

F-4Ds and 29 F-4Es of the 35th Tactical

Fighter Wing (TFW), plus seven West

German Air Force (WGAF) F-4Fs assigned

to the 20th Tactical Fighter Training

Squadron. What a sight!

We then headed to the coast for NAS

Point Mugu and our route took us past

Palmdale, where Lockheed had a facility.

The L-1011 TriStar production line was here

and we saw three each in the colours of

Delta Air Lines and TWA and a pair for All

Nippon Airways. Also on the  eld were

around 20 Northrop F-5E Tiger IIs, none of

UNCOVERING

THE USA

PART 2

In 1974, air bases in America were packed with aircraft that are now

considered classic types. In this concluding part of Peter Foster’s trip,

he and his fellow enthusiasts visit more bases in California and Arizona

such as Miramar, Davis-Monthan and Nellis.

58 Aviation News incorporating Jets March 2018

TALES FROM THE LOGBOOKTALES FROM THE LOGBOOKTALES FROM THE LOGBOOK

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TALES FROM THE LOGBOOK

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West German Air Force F-4Fs assigned to the 20th Tactical Fighter Training Squadron were resident at George AFB, now called Southern

California Logistics Airport, at Victorville in California, to train West Germany’s Phantom aircrew. The USAF had three F-4 units at the base,

plus a squadron of F-105F/G ‘Wild Weasel’ Thunderchiefs of the 561st Tactical Fighter Squadron.

58-63_tales_part2_1974DC.mfDC.mfDC.indd 58 05/02/2018 14:48