LONG ISLANDS ATOMIC WARRIORS 1950-1968 SUFFOLK COUNTY AIR FORCE BASE

SUFFOLK COUNTY AIR FORCE BASE  IMAGES

The Suffolk County Army Air Field was built in 1943 as a United States Army Air Forces sub-base of nearby Mitchel Field. Later assigned to First Air Force, the 437th Army Air Force Base Unit defended the New York City area and flew antisubmarine patrols. Post-war, the airfield was conveyed to Suffolk County for use as a civilian airport, but to include a reversal clause if future military use was ever needed.

Renamed when the United States Air Force reclaimed the airport in 1951, Suffolk County Air Force Base was part of the Eastern Air Defense Force's defense of theNYC metro area. The Air National Guard's 103rd Fighter-Interceptor Wing (103 FIW), along with the 118th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron and its F-47N Thunderbolts,^[4] was federalized on March 2, 1951 and moved from Brainard Field, Connecticut, to Suffolk County AFB on June 1. The 103 FIW was returned to state control on February 6, 1952 and remained briefly at Suffolk County until replaced by the 45th and 75th Fighter-Interceptor Squadrons in November 1952, flying the F-86 Sabre as part of the 23rd Fighter-Interceptor Group (23 FIG).

In 1955, the 23 FIG was reassigned to Presque Isle AFB, Maine and replaced by the newly activated 52nd Fighter-Interceptor Wing (52 FIW), which flew under various designations from Suffolk County AFB until 1969, with the 2d and 5th Fighter-Interceptor Squadrons flying F-94 Starfire, F-101 Voodoo and F-102 Delta Dagger interceptors. In 1963, the 52 FIW was renamed the 52nd Fighter Wing (Air Defense) and became part of the New York Air Defense Sector (NY ADS), the NY ADS being one of four USAF air defense sectors employing the Semi-Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) system.

Suffolk County AFB was also the main support base for the Suffolk County Missile Annex, a nearby USAF CIM-10 Bomarc surface-to-air missile launch complex for the defense of the New York City metropolitan area under the control of a missile launch control center at McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey.

As a result of funding shortfalls for the Vietnam War that resulted in the closure of numerous stateside air force bases and naval air stations, Suffolk County AFB deactivated in 1969 and the military installation was again transferred to the Suffolk County government for use as a civilian airport.

SUFFOLK COUNTY AFB MAIN GATE

SUFFOLK COUNTY AIR FORCE BASE WAS NOT A RUN OF THE MILL AFB. THE JOB OF THESE AIRMEN ,WACs WAS TO DEFEND THE NEW YORK METROPOLITAN , LONG ISLAND AREA FROM AIRBORNE THREATS LIKE A SOVIET ATTACK. TODAY IN THIS AGE OF THREATS OF ALL KINDS WE DO NOT HAVE THE EQUIVALENT OF A SUFFOLK COUNTY AFB (SCAFB) . THEIR JOB AS A AIR DEFENSE COMMAND WING WAS TO BE READY AT MOMENTS NOTICE  TO GET AIRBORNE TO EITHER REPEL AN ATTACK OR TO AVOID BEING DESTROYED ON THE GROUND DURING AN ATTACK. THIS TOOK A LEGION OF SUPPORT CREWS FROM AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE , WEAPON HANDLERS, AIR POLICE AND MANY MORE WORKING AS A TEAM. SUFFOLK BOASTED SOME OF THE BEST AIRCREWS AND FIRE SUPPRESSION UNITS  IT ALSO HAD ONE OF PROBABLY THE BEST K-9  PATROL TEAMS IN THE AIR FORCE, NUCLEAR WEAPONS WERE CARRIED BY ALERT AIRCRAFT AND WERE HOUSED ON BASE IN VARIOUS VARIETIES WHICH MADE SCAFB NOT YOUR EVERY DAY MILITARY INSTALLATION , IF YOU TRIED TO ENTER THIS BASE DURING THE COLD WAR YOU MAY HAVE LOST YOUR LIFE. I NEVER MET THE MEN WHO WERE STATIONED HERE BUT I HAVE READ THEIR STORIES OF LIFE ON THE STRATEGIC AIR COMMAND ADC AIRBASE IF YOUR INTERESTED GO TO FACEBOOK  AND LOOK UP SUFFOLK COUNTY AIR FORCE BASE AND ASK TO JOIN OR JUST READ SOME OF THESE AMAZING STORIES ,YOU WILL COME AWAY AMAZED  AND WITH NEW FOUND RESPECT FOR THESE MEN WHO WOULD OF GAVE THEIR LIVES TO A COLD WAR JUST AS IF IT WAS A DECLARED WAR , 

SUFFOLK AFB F_86 DURING OPEN HOUSE EARLY 1960

EARLY AIR to AIR REFUELING TANKER 

FLIGHTLINE DURING OPEN HOUSE

B-57 HUSTLER & AIRCREW

I

ALERT BARNS WHERE F-101s WHERE KEPT TO BE ABLE TO BE AIRBORNE IN MINUTES NOTICE DURING A ALERT THESE AIRCRAFT ALWAYS WERE ARMED AND CARRIED NUCLEAR WEAPONS, THEY OFTEN INTERCEPTED SOVIET BOMBERS THAT WOULD STRAY IN TO US AIRSPACE ON THEIR WAY TO BASES IN CUBA

PILOT IN COCKPIT SHOWS OF HIS F-101 VOODOO AIRCRAFT ONE OF THE MAIN AIRCRAFT OF THE ADC MISSION

OPEN HOUSE WITH AIR 2 AIR MISSILES OF THE NUCLEAR VARIETY

THE B-47 BOMBER ONE OF THE USAF'S MAIN AIRCRAFT THAT WAS MADE TO PENETRATE SOVIET AIRSPACE AND DELIVER ITS NUCLEAR PAYLOAD

EARLY HELICOPTER AT SUFFOLK AFB DURING THE EARLY 1960s IN ITs ROLE AS A RESCUE TOOL

HUSKY FIRE FIGHTING & RESCUE HELICOPTER THAT WAS BASED AT SUFFOLK

                                                                 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

SUFFOLK COUNTY AFB HAD A VERY WELL TRAINED K-9 PATROL THAT GUARDED THE BASE FROM ALL THREATS AND WERE KEPT IN TOP CONDITION BY THEIR AIR POLICE HANDLERS

HERE A RARE PHOTOGRAPH OF SUFFOLK COUNTY AFB ALERT HANGARS WITH NUCLEAR WEAPON ARMED F-101s STANDY READY TO LAUNCH AT MOMENTS NOTICE OF THE ALERT SIREN , LADDERS AND COCKPIT CANOPIES STAND READY TO RECEIVE THE CREW OF THE AIRCRAFT

STOPPED AT THE FRONT GATE TO SCAFB BY AIR POLICE

THE AIR 2 AIR GENIE ROCKET

SUFFOLK COUNTY ADC AFB AIR POLICE OUTSIDE THE OPERATIONS CENTER

A SUFFOLK AFB F-101 VOODOO FIRES WHAT APPEARS TO BE A 1.6 KILOTON NUCLEAR AIR TO AIR GENIE DURING A EXERCISE

THE F-101 VOODOO IN ITS ALUMINUM SKIN AS IT WAS AS IT CAME TO USAF ADC UNITS IN THE EARLY 1960s

HERE A ADC AIRCRAFT A F-102 INTERCEPTS A SOVIET "BEAR" BOMBER THAT HAS ENTERED U.S. AIRSPACE, JUST AS OUR BOMBERS FLEW THE PERIPHERY OF THE SOVIET UNION THE RUSSIANS DID THE SAME.