What an inglorious end to the military aircraft that saved the world. WALNUT RIDGE, ARKANSAS The Air Field, located in northeast Arkansas, was activated on August 15, 1942, with the arrival of the initial contingent of key military personnel. Designed for 5,114 military personnel, and 976 civilians, the Walnut Ridge Air Field had three 5,000-foot runways, a huge apron covering over 63 acres, four large hangars, base engineering building, and fully equipped 203 bed hospital. After the war was over, Walnut Ridge was an ideal site for surplus aircraft storage because of its large land area and large parking ramp. As many as 250 airplanes arrived each day. An estimated 10,000 to 11,000 warplanes were flown to Walnut Ridge in 1945 and 1946 for storage , sale, or scrapping. At least 65 of the military’s 118 Consolidated B-32 "Dominator" heavy bombers were flown to Walnut Ridge, many straight from the assembly line in Fort Worth.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Jul 2013 15:11:54 +0000
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