Another brush with aviation history

Unexpected things can happen in the most curious places. Today I spent the morning at a small airfield in the Arizona desert outside the town of Coolidge with the airport code of P08. Coolidge is what's referred to as an uncontrolled field meaning there aren't any fancy control towers or air traffic controllers; the traffic in and around the field announce their positions to each other as they jockey for position on the two runways and the small flight line. It reminds me of the many rural strips around Alaska where you can hear non-stop radio calls to dirt strips and gravel bars. Once a month Coolidge has a fly-in which simply means the local Lions Club sets up a breakfast service and pilots and aviation lovers gather to tell stories and gaze at a gathering of assorted aircraft. It was my kind of place.

Tucked over in a corner of the tarmac was an unusual looking C-130. Now Hercs are one of my favorite aircraft because of their seemingly unlimited ability to be adapted to a variety of missions. This one has a spray system affixed to it and closer examination showed it to be part of the Marine Spill Response Corporation, an organization created to spray oil dispersant products over spills from ocean going vessels to help limit the environmental damage that may occur. I was able to make some images using both normal lenses as well as my Lensbaby 3G system and went about enjoying the rest of the fly-in participants which included such jewels as Aviat Huskies, Super Cubs, various Cessna and Beech aircraft and a couple of surprises for me like a P-51D, UC-78, T-28, YAK-11, CJ-6A and more.

So after the drive home and the usual muss and fuss of getting batteries  charged, images downloaded and gear cleaned I began my research to properly identify each of the aircraft I'd photographed and well.... what do we have here? That Herc I photographed on arrival, N117TG, was originally 54-1631 meaning it was contracted to be built in 1954. C-130s first rolled off the line in Marietta, GA in 1955. A bit more research shed the very interesting possibility that she is most likely the oldest operating Herc in the world. The 10 previous serial numbers in that order have all been scrapped, shot down or are museum pieces. Ain't that something?

To put that in perspective, the following aircraft types were also ordered in 1954: F-105 Thunderchiefs (retired) C-133 Cargomasters (retired) C-121 Super Constellations (retired) F-89 Scorpions (retired) RB-66 Destroyers (retired) C-123 Providers (retired) F-86 Sabres (retired) F-102 Delta Daggers (retired) F-101 Voodoos (retired) F-100 Super Sabres (retired) T-33s (retired) H-37 Mojaves (retired) and last but not least, B-52C Stratofortress (retired as well). So she's got a bit of staying power you see.


So a short trip to enjoy the company of some aviation enthusiasts and perhaps have a freshly cooked breakfast couple of cups of coffee turned into quite the little encounter. And that's just one of the aircraft that were there.