Trip Report: Southwest Oklahoma
First published in 1998. Reformatted 2025. Another weekend of record-breaking heat, good thing the air conditioning works well in my car. 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.Saturday, 5 September 1998
Altus TVOR Annex OK, ILC AGNH, 34-31-10, 99-16-28. My information showed this in use as recently as 1993 as the Humphreys VOR, but it has since been inactivated and the antenna removed. All that remains is a round metal building in the middle of a field. No signs were posted, and the access gate was open so I wandered up close for photos.General view
Building
Interior of building Atlas F missile site. The highlight of the day was a guided tour of an Atlas F site, courtesy of the current property owners. As a condition of the visit, I agreed not to disclose the site designation or location. The fences were mostly intact, as were the Quonset huts and the distinctive personnel entryway. The twin launcher doors have been welded in the open position. I was surprised at how large in diameter the silo was. It looked huge! We scouted around in the weeds and found the sighting tube and the communications silo, both of which the owners saw for the first time. Then we ventured downstairs and through the blast doors into the control center. The two floors are spring-mounted away from the outer walls, to allow for some shock absorption in the event of an atomic near miss. The equipment had long ago been removed, and the most obvious presence was that of hundreds of bats! The bats dampened our enthusiasm for exploration, almost as much as the huge piles of bat waste which covered the floors. Proceeding through a short tunnel and more blast doors, we went to the silo entrance. We could not go into the silo from this point, as the flooring from that level had been salvaged. So, we could only look out into the expanse of the silo. We could not see bottom, because of the remaining flooring and scaffolding. Quite an interesting view, and considerably cooler than the blazing heat topside. A fun visit--I'm grateful to the owners for their kind hospitality.
Sunday, 6 September 1998
Clinton-Sherman AFB OK, ILC DZRS, 35-20, 99-12. This is now Clinton Sherman Industrial Airpark (CSM). The Oklahoma State Police use the former alert facility ("mole hole"). I knew that the 2d Bomb Wing had occasionally used this airport for exercises, but I was still a bit surprised when I saw a large 2d Bomb Wing emblem adorning the center column of the water tower. Some hangars and other buildings on the flightline look vintage USAF, as do some warehouses, a fire station, and base housing.General view
Close up of elevated water storage tank
Elevated water storage tank
Maintenance docks
Base operations and control tower
Hangars
Hangar
Building
Fire station Hobart AAFld OK, 35-00, 99-03. This is now Hobart Municipal Airport (HBR). Only one WWII building remains, apparently serving as a residence. This airport still lists in the DoD Geographic Locations database, code KUJJ. I noted a wind tetrahedron on the flightline, and a beacon.
Wind tetrahedron
Beacon light Altus AF Missile Site #3 OK. The outer gate is labeled "Snyder Show Barn" and was wide open with no keep out signs, so I ventured in and discovered a well-sealed site. The distinctive personnel entryway was gone. The silo doors were shut and the surrounding ventilating shafts filled with concrete. There was no sign of the smaller communications silo, or even the sighting tube. Both original Quonset huts were extant and in use, and one well house and the security fence were intact.
Gate
Silo doors
Quonset huts
Quonset huts
Water well building Altus AF Missile Site #5 OK. This one was gated and locked. The personnel entryway and Quonsets were standing, but I couldn't see much else from the road.
View from outside the gate Altus AF Missile Site #6 OK. Also gated and locked. This one has one Quonset intact (with "J & S Automotive Salvage" painted on it) and some newer buildings alongside. The personnel entryway remains. Couldn't make out much more detail from the gate.
View from outside the gate Frederick AAFld OK, 34-21, 98-59-30. This is now Frederick Municipal Airport (GZPZ), airport code FDR. It is still used, on a shared basis, as an auxiliary by Sheppard AFB. This fact was supported by the sign at the airport terminal, as well as by the Runway Supervisory Unit (RSU) on the airfield. Some buildings, hangars, and foundation piers remain from the WWII days.
General view
Hangar and building
Hangar and building
General view Lake Kickapoo Space Surveillance Station TX, ILC MRGD. Next stop was a Navy satellite detection installation. A road crosses the site, dividing it into north and south sections. From that center point, the radar transmitters stretch for a good distance both north and south, perhaps close to a mile in each direction. A half mile SSW of this intersection is the main part of the site, marked "Lake Kickapoo Station." Some small buildings are spaced up and down the site, to the west of the antenna array. The antenna units are small, and mounted on what looks like metal HVAC ducting, in a shallow trench.
Gate
General view
General view
Antenna (south segment)
Antenna (north segment)
Electric substation I covered 750 miles on this 2-day expedition. Updated January 26, 2025
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