Trip Report: Rapid City Maneuvers
First published in 2001-02. Reformatted 2025. I've been a member of the Council on America's Military Past (CAMP) for several years. They have their annual conference in a different city each year, and for the first time I was able to attend. Three of my frequent correspondents also attended, and we had some adventures together. 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.Monday, 7 May 2001
Forbes AF Missile Site #4 KS, PIN 6965. Getting an early start, I took I-35 north past Wichita, Kansas, then I-335 and US 56 to reach my first stop of the day, an Atlas E missile site. I had a glimpse of the site behind the gates and no trespassing signs.View from gate Forbes AFB KS, PIN 1091, ILC GUQE, 38-57, 95-40. US 56 north, then east to US 75, then US 75A, to Forbes Field (FOE). Back in WWII this was Topeka AAFld, becoming Topeka AFB in January 1948, and Forbes AFB in June 1949. Forbes closed in the mid 1970s, although it is still home to an ANG outfit. The Combat Air Museum is also on the airport, and well worth a visit. They have quite a few aircraft on display or under renovation, including an EC-121 that you can walk through.
Building
Hangar
EC-121 museum aircraft
Maintenance dock
Building Topeka AFS KS, PIN 1749, 38-56-40, 95-41-30. West of the airport, across US 75A, is this former depot. Starting life in WWII as the 832nd AAF Specialized Depot, it was renamed in 1955, disposed of in 1968, and is now a civilian industrial park.
Gate and warehouse Fairview L-3 Switching Station KS, 39-45-31, 95-44-01. US 75 north toward Fairview, on the west side of the road. This facility actually has two distinct components. To the southeast is a partly underground structure with drive-in door and an entry portal, inside a fenced compound. A few antennas are mounted at the rear (west end) of this facility. Tim Tyler tells me the two matching monopoles are soft UHF units, while the third hardened one is an AS-1735/SRC UHF MUX GEP. To the northwest is a larger AT&T facility, unfenced, with a tall microwave tower. It also has an underground facility, which I was told is three stories deep and very large. The entry portal, ventilation shaft, and a nuclear blast detector were still in place. I chatted briefly with an AT&T technician, who told me this had been a switch for L-3 coaxial cable running from Blue Rapids, KS, to Offutt AFB. Also, the coax had long since been inactivated, the microwave tower had recently been sold, and the only function of the facility now was a single fiber optic cable.
View from gate
Structure
Antennas
Building and antenna
Entry portal
Nuclear blast detector
General view
Top of tower
Structure
Access portal
Vehicle storage building Lincoln AF Missile Site #4 NE. US 75 north to Nebraska City, and a short jink to the west on SR 2 to this former Atlas missile F site. New structures have been built and it is not easily recognizable from ground level.
View at gate This was the longest day of the trip--15.75 hours, 822 miles.
Tuesday, 8 May 2001
Sioux City AAB IA, 42-24-30, 96-22-55. Back to the interstate, and I-29 north to Sioux City and the current Sioux Gateway Airport (SUX). During WWII this was Sioux City AAB, under 2AF. It was known as Sioux City Municipal Airport starting in 1948, hosting ADC units. The ANG has had a presence on the field since 12 September 46, except for two years during the Korean War (thanks to Bernie Shearon for this information). I was somewhat surprised to find a Capehart housing area (formerly 290 housing units, according to a 1961 document).Hangars
Hangar and buildings
Family housing
Fighter-interceptor aircraft ready shelter
Chapel Sioux City AFS IA, ILC VSRB, 42-23-53, 96-22-19. The airport was also home to a SAGE direction center (DC-22).
SAGE DC-22
SAGE DC-22
SAGE DC-22
SAGE DC-22
SAGE DC-22 Sioux Falls AAFld SD, 43-34, 96-44. I-29 north to Sioux Falls and Joe Foss Field (FSD). This field was active during WWII, and has hosted ANG flying operations since 20 September 46, with a hiatus during the Korean War.
T-33 display aircraft Mitchell AAFld SD, 43-46, 98-01. I-90 west to Mitchell, then north to the Mitchell Municipal Airport (MHE). During WWII this was a 2AF base, active from about 1942 to 1944.
General view
Elevated water storage tank Ellsworth AF Missile Site D-01 SD, ILC FXFB, 43-52-40, 101-57-41. This site, along with D-09, is being transitioned from the Air Force to the National Park Service. Within a few years they should be open to tourists! This was a Minuteman Launch Control Facility (LCF), later called a Missile Alert Facility (MAF)..
General view from outside gate
General view
Entrance
Entrance
Entrance
Launch Control Building
Launch Control Building
Launch Control Building
Launch Control Building
Launch Control Building
Launch Control Building
Launch Control Building
Helipad
Sewage lagoons
Hardened Ultra-High Frequency (UHF) antenna
Hardened UHF antenna
Hardened UHF antenna detail
Hard high frequency (HF) transmit antenna
Hardened HF receive antenna and satellite television dish
Hardened HF receive antenna Because of my participation in the Council on America's Military Past conference, I was able to arrange a brief but fascinating tour of the underground facility. I kept quiet about this part of my visit until after the September 2002 transfer of the property to the NPS, to prevent the over-tasked Ellsworth civil engineers from being inundated with requests for similar tours. The captions were kindly written by Bill Huey, SAC missileer 1964-68. Thanks Bill! Photo 1 Great view of the "Room." From left to right: Sleep Mod, Communications Rack, Shock Isolator, Power Supply Group, Launch Control Console, Shock Isolator, Three Digital Data Racks. Note the "rearview mirror" on the ceiling so the crew commander could see his deputy. Also note the TV mounted on the ceiling. The TV was way after my time. The unit above the crew chair with the round black dials is the HF Radio Control Panel. The Panel was equipped with two metal shields to keep your active HF frequency selection from the prying eyes of visitors. In every LCC I was ever in the crew had rotated the covers 180 degrees so that they had a clear view of the HF frequency dials. I see that these two shields are rotated up just like we all used to do. Photo 2 The launch control center. You can see the refrigerator below the stainless steel cabinet. Originally the refrigerator was the "Oven-Refrigerator" with a small electric oven made into one unit with the refrigerator. The blue curtain shields the bed from light and is what we called the "Sleep Mod." Charlie Flight at Whiteman got the Sleep Mod in about 1966, and the mod was never installed at another Whiteman LCC until after I left in 1968. We hung army blankets by paperclip "hooks" from the cable racks every night to fashion our own Sleep Mod. Visible on the ceiling are emergency lights (they look like small sun lamps). They are not on in this photo, but in actual service they always remained on. Photo 3 Tube bringing chilled air through the inlet blast valve to the LCC equipment racks from the surface environmental equipment. To the left of the yellow tube is an Emergency Shut-Off Valve. It automatically closes off a plumbing line if the room "bounces" inside the capsule during an attack. Two shock isolators are in the view. Photo 4 View outside the LCC "Room." Probably a view of the housing for the Surge Arrestors. Photo 5 View from outside the "Room" looking at the bottom of the capsule. Photo 6 Emergency Escape Hatch Cover. The Dash-One had a big warning that this cover weighs more than 500 lbs. I never did figure how I would remove it without killing one of the crewmembers. Photo 7 Steps from walkway to right side of LCC, outside the "Room." Photo 8 LCC Entry Tunnel and Blast Door. To the right is the Hydraulic Control Unit used to open and close the LCC Blast Valves. Photo 9 LCC Blast Door taken from outside the LCC. The door weighs 16,000 lbs. There is no power to the door. Opening, closing, and "pinning" the door are all done manually. Photo 10 Elevator Shaft and Emergency Ladder. Note that the Emergency Ladder was equipped with a Safety Landing half way up to the surface. Photo 11 Security Control Center / Flight Security Controller's office. The door behind the chair was electrically controlled by the missile crew, although the FSC had a key to use if the power went out. That little door was the only locked door between the surface and the LCC Blast Door. Here is additional information about Photo 11 from Steve Lente, a long-time friend of mine, who was a SSgt Flight Security Controller at Ellsworth in 1980. "In photo 11 of the security control center, look at the angled top of the desk area. I built those consoles (15, one for each LCF) when I was assigned there. The tables were originally the standard issue gray desks that we modified to look like the one in the photo. The angled tops of the desks were originally made from plywood and painted black. There were Plexiglas surfaces for writing with grease pencils which covered the area maps and the most used checklists." Thanks, Steve! Ellsworth AF Missile Site D-09 SD, ILC FXFK, 43-55-53, 102-09-36. I-90 west to exit 116 and D-09, one of 10 sites controlled by D-01. This site originally housing a Minuteman I missile, replaced by a Minuteman II in 1973. The silo lid and other items are visible from outside the fence. Nearby, I located an azimuth marker and a pair of markers for the Hardened Intersite Cable System (HICS). HICS was the web of hardened, pressurized cables that connected launch facilities to launch control facilities, and to Ellsworth AFB. This month (May 2001) it was announced that the HICS cable in the Ellsworth AFB missile field is to be abandoned in place.
Silo door
General view from outside fence
Azimuth marker post
HICS markers
HICS markers
HICS markers
General view
General view
General view
General view
Silo area
Silo area Ellsworth AF Missile Site #1 SD, ILC FXDH. I-90 west to exit 84, detour a few miles on local roads to find the Titan I site near Wicksville. The gate was closed, with no contact information visible and no one around to ask for permission.
View from gate I-90 west to Rapid City, and the historic Alex Johnson Hotel. I met up with Tim Tyler and Ron Plante, and we plotted our strategy for the next few days. This was a "medium effort" day--9.67 hours, 521 miles.
Wednesday, 9 May 2001
After breakfast, Tim Tyler, Ron Plante, and I headed out to find some local communications sites. Tim was kind enough to drive us in his spacious command & control vehicle. Ellsworth Communications Annex (Transmitter) SD, ILC FXCV, 44-08-40, 103-07-38. The buildings looked intact, though no antenna were present. The fence was still up and marked with USAF signs, and a handwritten sign on the gate listing the acreage (2.37) seemed to indicate this site is going through the disposal process.General view
View from gate
Building
Building Ellsworth Radio Range Annex SD, 44-07-42, 103-06-34. This was a "four course," or A/N, radio range at one time. We were quite surprised to still find this empty field fenced with USAF signs! One post from the security fence still stands.
General view showing sign
General view Ellsworth Communications Annex (Receiver) SD, 44-07-48, 103-01-38. This one was still recognizable, although it has had some modifications since USAF use.
General view Box Elder Communications Annex SD, 44-10-20, 103-03-21. This site was not visible from public roads, so we located the landowner and gained permission to access the property. This annex was established in 1960, and construction was started on one building. Construction was stopped suddenly, and the property was disposed of in 1965. Until recently (within the last two years) the building shell sat as an open concrete framework with no roof or walls. Only recently has the building (which resembles the large building on the transmitter site) been modified.
Building
General view
Building
Building
Building Ellsworth ILS Outer Marker Annex SD, ILC FXNB, 44-03-20, 102-59-31. The fenced compound remains, but the original building has been modified beyond clear recognition. One mystery here--was the Ellsworth TVOR Annex co-located on this outer marker site, or was it at a different location nearby?
General view Then we went to Rapid City Regional Airport (RAP) to pick up Mark Morgan, completing our fearless foursome of gung-ho military base researchers.
Thursday, 10 May 2001
Ellsworth AFB SD, PIN 2564, ILC FXBM, 44-09, 103-05-30. Tim drove the four of us out to the South Dakota Air & Space Museum. This is an Air Force museum on the south edge of Ellsworth in the former fighter-interceptor alert hangar, relocated from the flightline. We met Ron Alley, Museum Director, and he very kindly gave us a tour of the base (we had arranged this well in advance through the Public Affairs Office).General view of museum
Fighter-interceptor alert hangar
Fighter-interceptor alert hangar Rushmore AFS SD, PIN 1759, ILC UNSB, 44-10-00, 103-06-20. This was one of the very early nuclear weapon storage locations, supporting the B-36 bombers at Ellsworth. It was activated in 1952, and merged back as part of Ellsworth AFB in 1962.
General view
Building Ellsworth AC&W Site SD, 44-09-14, 103-04-59. Now little more than an empty field on Ellsworth AFB. There is a raised mound of earth at this location, but we don't know if that was built up to support a radar, or if it is from later construction. No buildings from the radar site remain.
General view We also saw the Minuteman II Maintenance and Procedures Trainer (MPT). This is a mockup of a Minuteman II Launch Facility, or silo. We were able to see interesting features like the sighting tube that allowed a view of the North Star for calibration of the guidance equipment. Continuing our drive, we passed the former SAC alert facility and alert aircraft parking area, and also passed by the two experimental steel dormitories built in the 1950s. We also had a look inside the largest hangar on base, known to modern day base personnel as the Pride Hangar, but known to our crowd as a monolithic concrete B-36 hangar. After thanking Ron for his time, we made a mini-mart stop and headed west.
Silo door
Sighting tube
SAC alert facility
Alert aircraft parking area with security tower
Steel dormitories
Interior view of B-36 hangar showing thin-shell concrete roof
MPT
MPT
MPT
Training missile in silo
Training missile in silo
Dormitories
Dormitories
Steel dormitory
SAC alert facility Ellsworth AF Missile Site #3 SD, ILC FXDK. East of Sturgis, we found this former Titan I missile site. We had landowner permission to visit, but we still had to park outside the gate at the county road, climb the gate, and walk in to the site in pouring rain. This was my first visit to a Titan I site, so getting soaked was a minor inconvenience. We looked at the twin guidance antenna silos, a few equipment hatches, the three silo doors, and a communications antenna structure.
General view
Gate
Guidance antenna silos
Guidance antenna silo
Silo door
Communications antenna structure
Silo door
Silo door Sundance AFS cantonment site WY, 44-25-15, 104-25-19. Continuing west into Wyoming, we visited the administrative and housing area for Sundance AFS. The support buildings still have a military look to them, but the housing had been modified to the point it was hard to recognize as former USAF.
General view
General view
General view Sundance AFS WY, PIN 6999, ILC WMJP, 44-28-44, 104-27-06. Continuing up the road to the top of Warren Peak, we found the radar and operations area. This was the only USAF installation to have a nuclear reactor (the PM-1) providing its electricity and heat. There are remnants of a few building foundations and an active radio facility on the site (although the site was wide open, we stayed away from this radio facility since it was operating). Slightly below the top, in a separate fenced and locked area, is what we believe is the former reactor location. Once again, we braved the cold and rain. A thunderstorm hit while we were heading up the mountain. On our way down the mountain, the temperature dropped to 38F and we had a hailstorm.
Historical marker
General view
General view
General view
View from main site to suspected reactor location
Building
Building remains
Friday, 11 May 2001
The morning was spent in the conference, with several speakers presenting papers on topics of interest. Longtime friend and correspondent Mark Morgan spoke on "Black Hills Defenders: Voodoos, Titans, and Ajax." Barbara Rust, who I know from my visits to National Archives and Records Administration-Southwest Region, discussed their Places finding aid in a talk titled "Have we got a database for you!" We joined our fellow CAMP attendees for lunch at the Ellsworth AFB officers club. Mr. Tim Pavek, Minuteman II engineer from Ellsworth, was our guest speaker. He gave an excellent talk on the history of the Minuteman program at Ellsworth, from construction of the sites to current efforts to preserve one site as a National Park Service historic site. He also took time after lunch to answer our questions. Nike E-20L SD, 44-09-02, 103-00-12. After lunch we parted company with the main CAMP group, and sought out Ellsworth Nike Site E-20. Our first stop was the launcher area. It was in great shape, and the owner was kind enough to show us around and even let us go down into one of the missile storage magazines. This site had three magazines, each with four aboveground launchers.General view showing sentry box
Building
Magazine entrance
Interior of magazine
General view
General view
General view
General view
Fueling area
Magazine doors
Magazine entrance
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings Nike E-20 Housing SD, ILC FXDE, 44-09-15, 103-00-06. Immediately east of the launcher area is the 16-unit housing area. After the Nike site shut down in 1961, it was transferred to the USAF. It became Ellsworth Family Housing Annex #3 SD and was commonly called East Nike Housing. The houses are boarded up (pickled), and USAF signs remain. This housing was used by the USAF until the late 1990s, and is now in excess status awaiting disposal.
General view
General view showing sign Nike E-20C SD, 44-09-31, 102-58-52. Heading to the east, we found the IFC site. This property owner also allowed us to look around. A a few structures remain, including the interconnecting corridor, and three concrete pads for radar towers.
Building
Building
General view
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings Nike E-40C SD, 44-05-18, 103-05-12. Heading south of the base, we located Ellsworth Nike Site E-40 IFC site. It was fenced and locked. We could see a few buildings and some radar components inside, along with a newer satellite communications antenna that was not part of the Nike setup. Typically, Nike IFC sites are placed nearer the defended target, with the launcher toward the direction of the threat. Three of the four Ellsworth sites differ from this pattern, with the launchers closer to the defended area--forcing the missile tracking radar to swing up then back "over its shoulder" to follow the missile during a typical engagement. Strange. E-70 has the more typical layout.
Gate and sentry box
General view
General view
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings Nike E-40 Housing SD, ILC FXDD, 44-06-11, 103-05-32. A mile north of the IFC site, we passed the E-40 housing area. After Nike use, the USAF used it as Ellsworth Family Housing Annex #2 SD from 1961 until the late 1990s. It retains USAF signs (South Nike Housing) although the windows are boarded up.
General view
General view showing sign Nike E-40L SD, ILC FXBS, 44-06-13, 103-05-55. Now a storage area and junkyard, the launcher site has only recently had most of the buildings demolished. The current owner allowed us to look around and enter one of the three magazines. In 1963, several years after the Nike operation shut down, part of this site was transferred to the USAF and designated Ellsworth Academic Annex. It remained in use until sometime in the 1990s, and appears to have since been disposed of. Part of the site was used for many years as a school bus storage facility.
General view
General view
Magazine entrance
Interior of magazine
Fueling area
Magazine topside
Magazine topside
Magazine topside
Magazine topside
Magazine doors
Magazine interior Ellsworth AF Missile Site #2 SD, ILC FXDJ. We headed back to the hotel and met up with Nathan Barton, fellow CAMP attendee who made advance arrangements for this visit. Nathan and his young son joined us for this adventure, at the Titan I site near Hermosa. This time the sun was out, and we came and went through the gate! We saw the footers for two Quonset huts. This site had a large square concrete pad that we believe was a helipad.
Silo doors
Gate
General view
Large concrete pad
Silo doors
Silo doors
Silo doors
Silo doors
Guidance antenna silo
Saturday, 12 May 2001
Nike E-01 Housing SD, ILC FXDC, 44-11-57, 103-05-59. Our first stop today was north of Ellsworth AFB. The first component of Nike site E-01 we saw was the former housing area, which was transferred to the USAF after Nike operations ended. The USAF designated it Ellsworth Family Housing Annex #1 and used it from 1963 to 1970. The houses have been removed, leaving 16 basements exposed.Basement
Basements and support building Nike E-01L SD, 44-12-09, 103-05-50. Immediately east of the housing we found the launcher area. This was the only one of the four Ellsworth sites converted from Nike Ajax to Nike Hercules. It is still fenced, and some buildings are visible from the road, but we were unable to find anyone to ask permission to enter past the gate. This is a three-magazine site, with 12 launchers.
General view General view
General view Nike E-01C SD, 44-13-35, 103-04-21. Farther to the northeast we could see the IFC site. It remains fenced, and some original buildings are visible. One area looks like it might have been built up to support a radar. This one was locked up also, so we looked from outside the fence.
Gate and sentry box
General view from outside gate Ellsworth Small Arms Range Annex SD. At one point we passed near the former rifle range, also referred to as a ground gunnery range. This gated access road may have been the entrance to the range.
Access road Nike E-70 Housing SD, ILC FXDF, 44-09-01, 103-12-10. West of Ellsworth AFB, we found Nike site E-70. The housing area was transferred to the USAF in 1961 and used until a few years ago. It was commonly called West Nike Housing, although officially it was Ellsworth Family Housing Annex #4. Now boarded up, it awaits disposal.
General view
General view Nike E-70C SD, 44-09-22, 103-12-30. Continuing on, we encountered no trespassing signs and stopped at a house to ask permission to proceed. After some discussion, we were cleared to proceed and contact the landowner at the IFC site. Several buildings are intact, although we could find no sign of the radar mounts. The road continues on to the launcher site, although one of the buildings (possibly the assembly building) was relocated and now blocks the road!<
Building
Building
Building Nike E-70L SD, 44-09-11, 103-12-59. After more discussions, we were cleared to follow the roadbed to the launcher site. Much of the road surface was pulled up for use as gravel fill. This site was different from the other Ellsworth sites in having only two underground magazines. The magazines had been filled in at some point in time. We had been warned about rattlesnakes, and we did encounter a few. The fueling area was free of debris and allowed a great view of the wavy design of the concrete. Peter Snowberg, volunteer at Nike Site SF-88, explains this concrete formation was an "acid pit." The sumps and bumps served to elevate the missile during fueling to eliminate air in the tanks, and were also used for draining the propellants if the missile had to be serviced. There are two sumps, so that both fuel and oxidizer could be drained without mixing (and exploding). Thanks Peter!
Magazine
Fueling area
Buildings
Launcher area
Launcher area To the southeast of the launchers, we discovered four concrete positions that had us a bit baffled. None of us had seen these at any other Nike site. We first suspected they may have been gun emplacements, but Peter Snowberg identified these as Nike temporary launcher pads with blast deflectors. We think these four pads comprised a temporary launch facility while the underground Hercules magazines were under construction. Similar pads exist at a couple of the San Francisco Nike sites.
Temporary launcher pads
Temporary launcher pads Having completed our main objectives, we returned to the hotel and had lunch. My companions were staying for the CAMP annual banquet that night, but I chose to depart early on my return drive. Ellsworth Family Housing Annex #1, Skyway SD, 44-08-14, 103-04-06. Near the southeast edge of the base, a vacant field is all that remains of this former Wherry Act housing, assigned to the base in 1950. Sources show it as being disposed of in 1973, although it is still fenced with USAF signs.
General view showing sign Renal Heights Military Family Housing Area SD. South of Skyway is another demolished housing area, also still fenced with USAF signs, which was known as Renal Heights. Based on information from layout plans, it was built between 1952 and 1957, but I have not found it specifically listed as an off-base installation. I was told this housing was demolished the same time as the separate Skyway complex. This one is a bit of a mystery--was it carried on the real property books as part of the main base, or part of Skyway, or as a separate annex? Public Law 105-85, from fiscal year 1998, calls this location the Renal Heights Military Family Housing Area, and authorized the SECAF to transfer the land to the Greater Box Elder Economic Development Corporation.
General view showing sign I-90 east past Murdo to US 183, then south to Winner, SD for the night.
Sunday, 13 May 2001
Kearney AFB NE, 40-43-30, 99-00-30. South to US 30, then east past Kearney, Nebraska, I found the Kearney Municipal Airport (EAR). This was an AAF field during WWII, and after the war had a short life as Kearney AFB starting in January 1948. It listed as an AFB as late as the April 1949 USAF Installations Directory, but was inactive during this time.Hangar
Building Lincoln AF Missile Site #10 NE. After Kearney I took a slight detour to scout another of Lincoln's Atlas F sites. It is now owned by a business and posted with no trespassing signs. I tried the phone number but no one answered; no surprise on a Sunday morning.
View from outside gate Fairmont AAFld NE, 40-35-15, 97-34-05. Continuing east, then south on US 81, I went to the Fairmont State Airport (FMZ), a WWII bomber training base under 2AF. Foundations of several specialized training buildings remain behind one of the hangars.
Hangars
Hangar
General view
Airfield pavement
Airfield pavement
Hangar
Celestial navigation training building foundation
Celestial navigation training building foundation
Hangar and celestial navigation training building foundation
Elevated water storage tank tower Schilling AF Missile Site #11 KS. US 81 south past Concordia, and to the former Atlas F missile site. I found an azimuth marker post near the gate, alongside the county road.
Gate
General view
Azimuth marker post
Azimuth marker post Schilling AF Missile Site #12 KS. Continuing on US 81 south toward Minneapolis, and to another Atlas F site. Here is the view from ground level, and another view from about 40 feet up in the air (note the roof of my Subaru in the foreground).
View from outside gate
General view
General view
General view Nike SC-01L KS, 39-00-22, 97-36-31. US 81 south to SR 18, and east to former Nike site. The launcher site was the aboveground type, housing six launchers within a pattern of berms. A short way to the south, I found SC-01C, 38-59-00, 97-36-35. Both components were hidden from view and marked as private property. This site was built in the mid 1950s but was never operational.
Access road Schilling AFB KS, PIN 2276, 38-47-30, 97-39-00. US 81 south to Salina Municipal Airport (SLN). Several different hangars remain, along with the concrete water tower. In the former weapon storage area, some of the ammunition storage igloos are in a fenced off area, but many are accessible and in use for storage.
Dormitories
Double-cantilever hangar
Hangar
Hangar
General view showing elevated water storage tank
Munitions storage igloo
Munitions storage igloo Schilling Family Housing Site KS, ILC VBLM, 38-47-00, 97-37-40. After Schilling AFB closed in 1965, the Capehart housing area became a sub-post of Fort Riley with the name Schilling Manor. It housed families of military members sent overseas (primarily Vietnam) under the "Waiting Wives" program. In 1967, the housing was assigned in detached status to Francis E. Warren AFB, and redesignated Schilling Family Housing Site. An article in Airman magazine in October 1974 stated that 350 Air Force families lived there. By December 1975, this was shown as inactive in the USAF Installations Directory. I don't know the disposal date, but this is now civilian housing.
General view
General view Schilling ILS Middle Marker Annex KS, 38-45-56, 97-38-45. While driving toward the former WSA, I noticed the former middle marker structure sitting out in a field south of the runway. I had no prior knowledge of this site, but based on its location and appearance I'm confident of its purpose.
General view Smoky Hill Residential Area KS, 38-45-45, 97-41-50. Taking local roads to the south and east, I located the former Camp Phillips hospital area--now a municipal landfill. During the late 1940s and the 1950s this was assigned to Smoky Hill/Schilling AFB and several wings of the one-story hospital had been converted into temporary living quarters. My parents stayed there in April 1958.
General view Nike SC-50C KS, 38-40-02, 97-41-13. Not far to the south, I found this former IFC site. The radars were, and a sentry box still is, situated on a hilltop separate from the three buildings on the IFC site.
General view
Building
Buildings
Buildings
Buildings Nike SC-50L KS, 38-38-54, 97-43-06. Weaving my way to the south and west, I located the entrance to the launcher site. Like the SC-01 site to the north of Salina, this one was built but never operational, and had bermed aboveground launchers.
General view Smoky Hill Warehouse Area KS, 38-43-50, 97-42-29. This was another part of the former Camp Phillips that was later assigned to Smoky Hill AFB.
Structure
Structure Smoky Hill AF Range KS, PIN 2280, ILC VUBV, 38-45-16, 97-47-27. The range is now called Smoky Hill ANG Range. After WWII, most of the Army's Camp Phillips became the Camp Phillips Air-Ground Gunnery Range, under Smoky Hill AFB. By 1964 it was redesignated Smoky Hill AF Range, and in 1974 it transferred to the ANG. The range covers a lot of land, with small arms, bombing, and aircraft strafing ranges.
Sign
Gate
General view Schilling AF Missile Site #5 KS. This was my final stop in the Salina area. It's a good thing I had verified the location from aerial photos, as this site is not recognizable from the present access gate.
Gate I took US 81 south to Wichita, Kansas, and followed signs to McConnell AFB. This was a long day, 13.67 hours, 694 miles. That billeting bed sure felt good.
Monday, 14 May 2001
McConnell AF Missile Site #7 Water System Site KS, 37-23-26, 97-00-37. From McConnell, taking SR 15 south past Udall took me to this water well site. Fenced but without USAF signage, it was still quite recognizable. Although a physically separate parcel of land, this was carried under the same installation code as the missile site itself.Building
General view McConnell AF Missile Site #7 KS, PIN 7429, ILC PRQY, 37-24-28, 96-59-58. This Titan II site shows clearly in aerial photos, but from the access road outside the gate it was hard to tell it had been a missile facility. From outside the fence, some grading of the land was the best clue to its history.
General view
General view
General view Strother Field KS, 37-10, 97-02. US 77 south to Winfield, and Strother Field Airport (WLD). As Strother AAFld, this was a training command pilot school starting in late 1942. In about 1944, it transferred to 2AF and was known as Strother Field. Two original hangars and two wooden buildings remain from the WWII era.
Hangar
Hangar
Buildings
Hangar Mission complete, I took I-35 south to Arlington and home. A short day of 9 hours, covering 445 miles. My total drive was 2,738 miles (this does not include the hundreds of miles Tim hauled us around in his vehicle). The Subaru Forester averaged 24.5 MPG, even with the 75mph speed limits up north. Updated January 26, 2025
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