Trip Report: New York Reunion Visit
First published in 1998. Reformatted 2025. I hadn't been to New England in longer than a decade. A family reunion sounded like fun. Adding a few days to the schedule allowed me to mix research with family. Just a reminder PIN means Permanent Installation Number and ILC means Installation Location Code; I include these for Air Force properties when I know them.Thursday, 17 August 1995
Flew from Shreveport to Greater Buffalo International Airport (BUF). I rented a car and headed to Niagara Falls. The airport, not the waterfall! Niagara Falls AGS NY, ILC RVJV (ANG) and Niagara Falls IAP NY, PIN 1492, ILC RVKQ (AFRES). These two installations are located at Niagara Falls International Airport (IAG). The former BOMARC missile facility, Niagara Falls AF Missile Site, has been demolished. I noticed a munitions magazine west of the former BOMARC site.Airfield
Munitions storage magazine
Munitions storage area
Munitions buildings
Munitions buildings
Munitions buildings
Buildings Lockport AFS NY, PIN 1447, ILC NMWM, 43-08-30, 78-50-00. Several Air Force buildings remain. A sign advertised an ongoing Corps of Engineers cleanup project. A large, windowless building shows the characteristic humped roof of an Army Missile Master facility.
General view
Dormitories
Dormitory
Building
Building
Radar tower supports
Facility 126 - Missile Master building
Facility 126 - Missile Master building
Facility 126 - Missile Master building
Facility 126 - Missile Master building
Facility 126 - Missile Master building
Facility 127 - Sewage Treatment
Facility 127 - Sewage Treatment
Facility 134
Tank field Nike NF-16C NY, 43-09-32, 78-50-23. Then I had a short drive to a Nike missile control site. It now houses a business, and the owner welcomed me to look around. Quite a few of the buildings and towers are still in good shape.
General view
General view
Radar tower
Radar tower foundation Nike NF-16L NY, 43-09-43, 78-49-08. The launcher site is used by the town highway department. A sign on the fence announced a Corps of Engineers cleanup project.
General view
Sign
General view
Building
Drainage feature Nike BU-09C NY, 43-03-14, 78-43-14. I found and explored another Nike missile control site, now used for municipal records storage. Next to one building, underground storage tanks had been removed recently.
Building
Gate and sentry box
Building
Building
Building
Building
Building
Building
Building
Building
Area of removed storage tank
Gate
Signage
Unidentified feature I made it to Sampson AFB at sunset--too late for photos. I spent the night in Ithaca.
Friday, 18 August 1995
Sampson AFB NY, 42-44, 76-55. I returned to Sampson AFB by daylight. It is now a state park with a small portion held by the Army as a recreation area. Sampson AFB has a great scenic view overlooking Seneca Lake. I found lots of abandoned buildings out in the far reaches of the former base. A gate house is still standing, keeping watch on a former base gate. I approached one odd-looking structure, and as I rounded the corner discovered it was the sewage treatment plant. The vegetation was thickly overgrown and the effect quite spooky, the circular tanks filled with green slime and the sound of running water still audible from the pipes and manholes. A red-and-white water tower is near the former airfield. The airfield was across the highway from the main part of the base. It was transferred to the Army and is still part of the Seneca Ordnance Depot NY, ILC VHAV, 42-44-30, 76-52-50, which was gated and seemed to be inactive.General view
Gate house
Gate house
Gate house
Gate house
Gate house interior
Building
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings
Elevated water storage tank
Army recreation area
Army recreation area
Sewage treatment plant
Historical marker Griffiss AFB NY, ILC JREZ, 43-13-30, 75-25-00. The base was about to close (on 1 October), and it was pretty quiet. I noticed some warehouses and several hangars, including former alert barns.
General view
Warehouses
Hangars
Fighter-interceptor alert hangars Hancock Field NY, PIN 4605, ILC KBHT, 43-07, 76-07. Then it was back toward Syracuse and Hancock Field. The large concrete SAGE Direction Center (DC-03), is still in use by either ANG or AFRES. A lot of buildings were abandoned and in disrepair. There is an Air National Guard F-16 unit on the airport, physically separate from any of the above facilities.
Sign
SAGE Direction Center (DC-03)
Radar tower
Air National Guard area
Air National Guard area
Building
Building
Firing range access gate Griffiss Family Housing Annex NY, ILC GRBY, 43-07-30, 76-05-00. On the northeast side of the field is this former Air Force housing area. Two months after my visit, it was declared excess and transferred from Griffiss AFB to Hanscom AFB pending disposal.
Housing area with sign
Saturday, 19 August 1995
I spent the day at the family reunion, catching up with relatives I hadn't seen in years.Sunday, 20 August 1995
Burlington MAP VT, PIN 1519, ILC CURZ, 44-28-30, 73-09-00, Up before dawn, I headed east into Vermont. First stop was Burlington Airport, FAA code BTV. The airport is now home to an ANG flying unit.General view Ethan Allen AFB VT, PIN 1520, 44-30-00, 73-09-22. Then I sought out the nearby support base for the flying operation at Burlington MAP. Most of this former base is now the National Guard's Camp Johnson, and parts of it are apartments, a university, and other housing.
General view
Non-historic sign
Building
Industrial building
Vintage building and current signage St. Albans AFS NY, PIN 1454, ILC WAQR, 44-46-54, 73-03-54. This site is labeled "Radome" on Aeronautical Charts and the large white "golf ball" is quite visible from the Interstate. The FAA still operates an Air Route Surveillance Radar on the upper part of the site. Below that is the support area; dormitory, dining hall, base exchange, and bowling alley. All abandoned, empty, and falling apart. The noise from the FAA site was a loud buzzing hum. I don't know if it was the radar itself or generators or whatever, but it was very loud near the radome and still noticeable down the hill by the dormitory.
General view
General view
General view
General view
Operations area
Dormitory
General view
Bowling alley
Buildings
Building
Bulletin board
Signs
Non-historic signs
Non-historic signs St. Albans Family Housing Annex VT, ILC WAQS, 44-47-11, 73-03-42. Below the support area is a family housing annex with nine units.
Housing
Housing Driving north then west took me back into New York to Plattsburgh MAP NY, 44-41, 73-31. It is still in use as an airport.
General view Plattsburgh AFB NY, ILC THWA, 44-40, 73-28. This base was soon to close (on 1 October 1995), and was a ghost town. A state highway splits the "old" and "new" bases, and only the new side was guarded. I was told only a couple hundred people were left, and I literally had the roads to myself as I explored. Sadly, some building signs were missing an occasional letter. The golf course is already civilian-operated. The control tower overlooked an empty aircraft ramp. The scenery ranged from barracks to the futuristic SAC alert facility. The base theater had a farewell greeting from the AAFES staff.
Entrance sign
Gate
Sign
General view
Historic building
SAC alert facility
SAC alert facility
Aircraft shelters
Aircraft shelters
Aircraft shelters
Control tower and buildings
Chapel
Theater
Historic building
Historic building
Building
Buildings
Buildings
Historical marker
Historical marker
Historical marker
Historical marker
Monday, 21 August 1995
Saratoga AFS NY, PIN 1429, ILC UYEM, 43-00-45, 73-41-00. From Plattsburgh, then I headed south. This former radar site is owned by a construction company and is mainly used for storage, with various communication antennas in place on the towers. The sentry box had a large No Trespassing sign, but an employee welcomed me to look around and take pictures! I noticed several dormitories, administrative buildings, and a windowless operations building. A couple of radar towers were fairly intact, minus antenna. I climbed the winding staircase to the main level, then climbed the ladder to the upper level of the largest tower. From there I had a good view of the neighboring tower. One building showed a faded bicentennial logo--a popular project in 1976.Gate
General view
General view
General view
General view
General view
Dormitories
Operations building
Operations building and radar tower
Radar tower
Radar tower
Radar tower
Radar tower interior Saratoga Springs Family Housing Annex NY, PIN 5220, ILC UYEN, 43-00-42, 73-41-01. The family housing area is south of the radar station. Unlike the radar station, the housing annex does have the word "Springs" in its official name.
Westover AFB MA, PIN 4571, ILC YTPM, 42-12, 72-32. From Saratoga I drove into Massachusetts to Westover Air Reserve Base. One part of the base is civilian but most is still AFRES. The former alert facility is now the civilian airport terminal building.
Gate
Hangars and elevated water storage tank
Fighter-interceptor alert hangars
SAC readiness crew building
SAC readiness crew building
SAC readiness crew building
Communications building
SAC maintenance docks
SAC maintenance docks Bradley Field CT, PIN 5592, ILC CEKT, 41-56-00, 72-40-40. From there I headed into Connecticut to Bradley International Airport, FAA code BDL. This was a First Air Force fighter base during WWII, and since then was used by the Air Force Reserves, then the Air National Guard. The Guard is still based there today. There is a nice museum on the far side of the airfield. I took a quick look around the airport at dusk, and found the closest motel to the rental car place.
Museum
Museum I put 1,405 miles on the rental car in 4 days of driving. Good thing I had the unlimited mileage rate!
Tuesday, 22 August 1995
I flew from Bradley Field to La Guardia IAP (LGA), La Guardia to Atlanta Hartsfield (ATL), Atlanta to Monroe Regional (MLU), then to Shreveport Regional (SHV). Updated January 26, 2025If you like what you find here, please consider making a monetary contribution. Domain name registration, web hosting, and travel cost plenty. You won't find any ads here to annoy you.