GitHub export from English Wikipedia. Contaminated water has been shown to be the main way that humans get exposed to this chemical, which is exactly whats going on in Oscoda. Drinking Water At Wurtsmith AFB Contaminted. This unfortunately happened on October 11. , 1988 when KC-135 crashed with 6 crew members and 10 passengers on board. This building was like the barracks, but each officer had his own room. This would cause some big problems for the fish and other life that lives beneath the surface. This bunker compound housed, the flight crews on ready alert, the three B-52 bombers ready to take off at a, moments notice, and the accompanying KC-135s ready to top off the B-52s after takeoff. He was training with fellow pilots out of what was then Selfridge Field when his plane crashed. [2] Another unfortunate occurrence that Happened more than it should have were Court-Martials. If you, a friend, or loved one has been injured or died as a result of the contamination at a DOD Superfund Site please follow the steps that are outlined at Get Help. My daughter was born at the base hospital. [6] 379th Bomb Wing Homestead AFB B-47 Wurtsmith AFB B-52, www.strategic-air-command.com/wings/0379bw.htm. This remoteness of Wurtsmith Air Force Base, as well as common brotherhood of being in the United States Air Force resulted in a tight knit community formed by the airmen and their families. David Losinski said he and his son were assisting the state Department of Environmental Quality with a barge that sank in Lake Huron in July 2012. There are a lot of stories to tell. At one point, they had to use these toxic foam chemicals to put out a fire at the Oscoda High School in 1995. The base came to be because of chance. They took a photo on April 11, from the surface of Lake Huron, of the wing of a Wold War II-era fighter plane that crashed during a training exercise, killing its pilot. The site of Wurtsmith Air Force Base is located 2 miles Northwest of Oscoda, Michigan, about 150 miles North of Detroit. U.S. Over the course of Mr. Nortons career as both a KC-135 Navigatorand a DC-10 Pilot, Mr. Norton served as a flight commander, served numerousdeployments during the Gulf War escorting fighter squadrons from the UnitedStates into theater, supporting fighter squadrons and bomber squadrons intheater, served multiple temporary duty assignments to England, Spain, SaudiArabia, Alaska, and other Air Force Bases around the globe. Mr. Norton remarked that they were flying the wings off of the planes. Engine not damaged. [1], When the Gulf War started in 1990, the 379th Bomber Wing sent B-52s as well as their accompanying KC-135s into the Middle East. The average person has around 3 or 4 parts per billion of these chemicals present in their blood. In addition, it would facilitate the installation of nose cannon since the armament could be mounted near the centerline, minimizing the effects of recoil forces. [5] The 379th flew with a Triangle K tail flash to continue thetradition from their World War II counterparts. https://www.oscairport.com/index.php/available-properties/, https://www.oscairport.com/index.php/development-site/, https://www.afhistory.org/wp-content/uploads/APH-Winter2016.pdf, http://www.armytimes.com/story/news/2014/07/30/divers-find-wreckage-of-world-war-ii-era-plane/13354373/, https://wurtsmithairmuseum.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Air-Refueling-Squadron-_-Real-People-_-George-Schlatter720p.mp4. [1] Mr. Norton also landed. Located in Oscoda, Michigan this base is positioned no more than two miles off the shore of Lake Huron. As an officer Mr. Norton had to sit in on Court-Martials. However, the drawdown was fairly rapid after that and they were quickly replaced by P-38s, P-47s and P-51s. Wurtsmith Air Force Base is a decommissioned United States Air Force base in northeastern Iosco County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Airport History. A short time later in July 1944 it was being used to train Free French Air Force pilots, which eventually led to more and more training and more and more storage of aircraft like the B-52G (oscairport.com). An unusual feature of the P-39 Airacobra was the automobile-type doors that had roll-down windows on each side of the cockpit. Chanute Air Force base, Illinois. A map of the base locations listed above can be viewed below. These Air Force bases were remote. Fast forward to 1992, with the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the US Air Force inactivated Strategic Air Command. No injuries to the pilot. Like the former Pease Air Force Base in Portsmouth and Newington, the former Michigan base is now a Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) site. [2] The flight crashed at 2:20PM while returning from K. I. Sawyer Air Force Base in the Upper Peninsula. This air field was in dire need of a gunnery range because they being forced out of their gunnery range on Lake St. Clair. The views and opinions expressed in this website/articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency of the U.S. government, We are the men and women of the U.S. Military, Wurtsmith AFB is a Superfund Site. Mrs. Cecil V. Fowler saw the crash, according to the Times Herald article. We didnt know really what we had.. [1] While this was a relatively boring week, it was extremely stressful, because no one knew when the alarm would sound, but more importantly no one, knew if it would be a drill or not. Had some issue at Loring Maine where I was stationed from 86-88 and nothing.VA is cricket s on this Richard Stanfill, 12/5/21I was stationed there from 1982 to October of 1985 and lost my left kidney to 3rd stage clear cell carcinoma I never smoked or did drugs. If a banker had not taken Lt. Whitehead on a fishing trip there would not have been an Air Force Base in Oscoda Michigan. For more information regarding services offered by the Lackland Air Force Base Education Center, call 210-671-2895 or DSN 473-2895. . The Wurtsmith Air Force Incident. Ellsworth Air Force base, South Dakota. Im slowly working my way up from 1924 to the present. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Military History of the Upper Great Lakes, Over the 50 years of operation Wurtsmith Air Force Base had many, different missions. From: Members of the ground crew move a maintenance cart into position next to a B-52 Stratofortress aircraft parked on the flight line. Powerplant: 1 Allison V-1710-85 liquid-cooled V-12, 1,200 hp (895 kW), Maximum speed: 376 mph (605 km/h) (Redline dive speed was 525 mph), Range: 525 miles on internal fuel (840 km). PFOA exposure is also shown to be associated with increased risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children between ages 12-15. The water table is about 10 feet below land surface in the western part of the Base and about 25 feet below land surface in the eastern part. Just run the water until it clears up. NPL Status: Proposed Street Address: AFBCA/DB, OSCODA, MI 54961 Congressional District: 01 EPA ID: MI5570024278 Population (within 1 mile): 101-1,000 Contaminant Information. The former Wurtsmith Air Force Base (WAFB), located in Oscoda, Iosco County, MI operated from 1924 to 1993. The result was an airplane which had a much deeper and broader fuselage than did the P-1. [4] On August 1st 1958 the 4026th Strategic Wing was formed at Wurtsmith Air Force Base. Veteran Compensation Programs (USVCP) (www.veteranprograms.com), and any of their associated websites is for general informational. The base is influential in Michigan, as well as the United States military history. More individuals impacted by these chemicals are Cindi and Lawrence Ashbeck. She has all kinds of problems, my ex died of cancer and I have all kinds of problems. This meant that Wurtsmith Air Force Base was essentially a self-contained airport with all of the necessities to support a full community on Base. The military has not begun cleanups at any of the 50 Department of Defense sites Congress has identified as highly contaminated with the "forever chemicals" known as PFAS - and it could be years before cleanups are complete. These bases wereresponsible for a housing a Ready Alert Nuclear Strike Force. Most individuals are not educated on what the base did before and after World War II, what is currently happening at this location, or how the historical space is impacting the land and local citizens today. With all of this in a single family, the V.A. In addition, the rear fuselage was deepened in order that it could faire cleanly into the bottom of the radiator. During the Pacific conflicts personnel and the KC-135Stratotankers were deployed to forward bases in the Pacific to support landoperations. Environmental groups are calling on the Air Force and the State of Michigan to get serious about cleaning up PFAS around the site of the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base. Wurtsmith Air Force base was one of five, northern tier bases in the Strategic Air Commands arsenal. [5] The B-52s did not get to travel nearly as much as the KC-135s. Wurtsmith Today The former Wurtsmith Air Force Base (AFB) properties are being reutilized by 28 businesses and agencies that collectively employ more than 1,660 workers (representing 240 percent of civilian jobs lost). The history of Oscoda Military Aviation is the same as the History of the Air Force. .. did this bill die in the committee s? In 1953 it was renamed Wurtsmith Air Force Base after Michigan native, Major General Paul Wurtsmith. These mission were into Iraq. http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2017/04/wurtsmith_pfas_pfc_april_45_me.html. It was formed on 1 August 1961 to merge the 3908th Strategic Standardization Group for SAC aircrew evaluation with the 1st Radar Bomb Scoring Group that had originated from the 263rd Army Air Force Base Unit which transferred from 15th AF to directly under Strategic Air Command c. The presumptive disabilities from contaminated water at Wurtsmith AFB would lead to automatic compensation to potentially thousands of veterans. [THE FLINT JOURNAL VIA AP] The base is influential in Michigan, as well as the United States military history. The majority of married enlisted and officers preferred to live on base because of the free daycare for children. [1] The KC-135s had many more opportunities to travel because they would fly in support of any craft capable of refueling in flight. [1], These KC-135s were necessary because the B-52 could not take off with both a, full load of ordnance and a full tank of gas.[1]. Some areas of the site are still under investigation. The documentary by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Sara Ganim focuses on PFAS contamination at the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda, Michigan. The P-6 Hawk (1932-1937) Aircraft was @ Oscoda. Wurtsmith Air Force base (Oscoda), Michigan; PFAS Water Contamination Map . These are simply the specific . Robert Krouse, 12/31/19Stationed at Wurtsmith AFB from 1978 to 1980 and lived in barracks. A single-seat low-wing fighter developed for the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) by Republic Aviation, it was the largest single-engined piston fighter ever produced. A sand and gravel aquifer of glacial origin underlies Wurtsmith Air Force Base in northeastern lower Michigan. The water table is about 10 feet below land surface in the western part of the Base and about 25 feet below land surface in the eastern part. Posts and surveys made on this website are opinions or suggestions of users of this website and are not representations, opinions or suggestions of U.S. There is a lot of open runways still today that can be rented out for a multitude of events. Within a few days, a mere 28 Airmen established housing for over 400 personnel, replete with . Congress set a May 2022 deadline for the DOD to report on the cleanup status of these bases, the Filthy 50, with extremely high levels of PFAS contamination. On June 30, , 1993 the 379th Bomb Wing was disbanded and Wurtsmith Air Force Base was closed. The base was first named after Capt. [1], The usefulness and mission type of the KC-135 in maintaining air superiority, as well as supporting missions originating in the United States meant that they would have longer assignments, as well as much more fluid assignments than other types of squadrons. Airplane nosed over when landing gear tire casing failed, locking the right wheel. In March of 1943, the Third Air Force reactivated the field for training of black aviators. It has found from testing this area that some places to have over 1000 parts-per-trillion for PFOS and PFOA. A total 9589 Airacobras were built before production finally ended on July 25, 1944. Lee N. 2023 Aspyre Media Group, LLC. There is an ongoing project to decontaminate the area. Lt. Ennis Whitehead was part of a unit at Selfridge Army Air Field. It had everything in it. [1], The ready alert flight crews were rotated on a three week cycle. Any one else from 84-89 have issues? However, the P-6 differed from the P-1 in having its fuselage rounded out to match the fatter engine cowling required by the Conqueror engine. After a trip to the Boneyard in September 2019, hundreds of current and vintage photos are being sorted, scanned and uploaded. The 5,221-acre site is bounded by Van Etten Lake to the north and east . Theseplanes would regularly fly missions from Wurtsmith Air Force Base during thecold war. All kind of special chemicals that Boeing told the USAF we had to have. The Wurtsmith Air Museum is an all-volunteer, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, dedicated to preserving the history of Wurtsmith Air Force Base and aviation in Northeastern Michigan. To gain a measure of the extremely high levels of contaminated drinking water, according to the ATSDR, TCE levels in a well at the corner of Arrow Street and N. Skeel Avenue were as high as 5,173 parts-per-billion (ppb) during 1977, 1978, & 1979 tests, which is more than 1,000 times the EPA's current limit of 5-ppb for TCE in drinking water. Many of drums ruptured. I served at Wursmith AFB from 1982 to 1989, living in base housing the entire time and drinking the water. Because the Committee on Toxicology (NRC, 1979) concluded that it could not determine a level of exposure to chlordane below which there would be no biologic effect under conditions of prolonged exposure of families in military housing. The pesticide levels and CERCLA 120(h) Deed Restrictions are public information and readily available. The M&FRC is located at 1550 Wurtsmith St . Facebook: Wurtsmith AFB Water Health Issues via water Created to serve as a reference point for former WAFB residents to share information regarding health issues, and probable chemical exposure via base water sources. [1] Mr. Nortonarrived fresh from navigation school as a 2nd Lieutenant at Wurtsmith Air ForceBase in the fall of 1985. As a young airman, assumed we were returning the stuff to supply to send to the next base. Aircraft upper wing, left lower wing, rudder and propeller damaged. The cockpit canopy offered exceptional all-round visibility for the pilot. Weve done quite a bit of documenting and measuring, David Losinski said. I have always scheduled an apt with my dr to talk about the possibility of how this may have affected me. [1] This meant that there was always at least threeB-52s armed with nuclear bombs, ready to take off at a moments notice. The aquifer overlies a thick clay layer at an average depth of 65 feet. [1], As new technologies and mission goals evolved with time the need for the Strategic Air Commands need for the northern tier became obsolete. Aircraft was at Camp Skeel, Oscoda Michigan for Aerial Gunnery training. Nothing contained herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of a competent Veteran Service Officer (VSO)in good standing and licensed to practice in your jurisdiction. It was also possible for these missions to originate in the United States. The brown tint is (mostly) caused by scale build up in the pipes being knocked loose. At the start of 1985, Wurtsmith maintained an $80 million annual payroll with 3,600 military and civilian personnel. It has recently been discovered that that the base has been leaking chemicals into the surrounding waterways. Lora Cole, 1/8/20 I am the daughter to a vet that was in this I was a baby at the time. Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda Township, Mich. U.S. Department of Defense In Oscoda, authorities tracked the contamination of Van Etten Lake to Wurtsmith Air Force Base , which closed in 1993. Moodys body was not recovered until it washed ashore in Port Huron on June 4, 1944 two days before D-Day and the invasion of Normandy. Pieces include the engine, the tail, part of the door and the 37-millimeter cannon that fired through the propeller hub. The P-6 could climb to 10,000 feet in 6.6 min. The 5,223-acre Wurtsmith Air Force Base (Wurtsmith AFB) is located on the northeastern part of Michigan's lower peninsula. The aquifer overlies a thick clay layer at an average depth of 65 feet. This cycle was from Wednesday to Wednesday. 2 talking about this. (Superstorm) Sandy came along (in October) and moved things around, David Losinski said. Wurtsmith Air, Force Base was constructed with a runway layout specifically for this. At Oscoda Army Air Field, from the Group Historian: Over the sandy pine shores of Lake Huron, pilots of the 332nd Fighter Group polished up their flight and gunnery tactics for threat inevitable test of their skill and courage which will eventually lead them to pursuit and battle in the skies of Europe and Asia. By the end of November 1943 all training for the 332nd had been completed at Oscoda and the Group departed for overseas. WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. My wife has breast cancer, and Hashimoto's Disease (auto immune), I had a double mastectomy to remove growths, hormone issues, kidney scaring liver lesions, lumps in both lungs, sleep APNEA, sudden onset Headaches, unexplained stress attacks, to name a few. Lt. Ennis also thought it would be a great place for young Army Air corps to test aircraft (WAFB.net). Heavily armed with eight wing-mounted 0.50-inch (12.7-mm) machine guns, it could carry a bomb load of as much as 2,500 pounds (1,100 kg) and could carry ten 5-inch (127-mm) rockets beneath the wings. [5] In recent years groundwater contamination has be linked to jet fuel, cleaning agents, and fire suppression agents used at Wurtsmith Air Force Base. After being relieved, the flight crew had until the following Monday morningoff. Off Base Housing. [1] This includes on base housing, a daycare center for children, a doctor's office, a . WAFB began operations in 1923, under the name of Camp Skeel, and was officially named the Wurtsmith Air Force Base in 1953. The single enlisted airmen who lived on base were housed in barracks. My ex wife has thyroid disease and auto immune disease. During World War II, P-47 fighters were assigned to Oscoda. Bert E. Skeel was a WWI pilot who died in an air race in Ohio. Photos of P-47s flown by French Pilots at Oscoda. The letter never said what I was objecting to, but that I was refusing to for a lawful order. Paul B. Wurtsmith Air Force Base closed in 1993, dealing a sharp blow to the economy of rural Iosco County. After all of that great history, the Wurtsmith Air Force Base is still standing as a place that is visited by a plethora of people. Continued study of ground-water contamination at Wurtsmith Air Force Base, Michigan, defined the movement and distribution of volatile organic compounds in the glacial sand and gravel aquifer at known sites of contamination, and has defined new plumes at two other sites. Download Images of Wurtsmith air force base - Free for commercial use, no attribution required. Wurtsmith AFB has a better paper trail showing irrefutable evidence of contamination of the base drinking water with Trichloroethelene (TCE) first discovered in 1977 as a result of a complaint from a base housing resident. TCE in another well on Jet Street near the present day Wurtsmith AFB museum was 1,739-ppb. Aircraft rolled 630 feet before nosing over. When the Gulf War started in 1990, the 379, Bomber Wing sent B-52s as well as their accompanying KC-135s into the Middle East. Drinking water laced with high levels of poisonous chemicals may be to blame for cancer and other chronic disease among veterans and families who lived at Wurtsmith Air Force Base in northern Michigan, according to a new federal health report draft. The gunnery range was tasked with training pilots from, Selfridge air base in the challenging maneuvers required to land a DeHavilland, biplane on the frozen lake Van Etten for the young Army Air Corps. After a devastating fire in Oscoda which cleared over 600 buildings, the remaining citizens heard about the proposal to clear an area for the base. A total of 15,683 Thunderbolts were produced by wars end, more than any other U.S. fighter. Since, 2010 sampling by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) and the U.S. Air Force has identified elevated levels of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination in drinking water wells and some locally caught fish and deer. Because Wurtsmith Air Force Base was an Air Force Base it had to have the ability to go into complete lock-down in times of emergency and still support the mission. This unfortunately happened on October 11th, 1988 when KC-135 crashed with 6 crew members and 10 passengers on board. They raised $600 to clear the land, which at the time was plenty for this job. This lead to Wurtsmith transferring to Air Combat Command control, and then on June 30th 1993, Wurtsmith Air Force Base closed. Most Air Corps/Force types used Oscoda at one time or another. Prior to our IOC inspection for the SRAM we were ordered to clean out igloos full of barrels 5gal to 55gal drums,1,000s of gallons which had been ordered by mistake to start the system. Wurtsmith Air Force Base is a decommissioned United States Air Force base that was closed by the 1991 Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC 2) and is a proposed EPA Superfund site. Wurtsmith Air Force Base has been an integral part of the United States Air Force from the 1920's to June 3rd 1993. . In addition across the base boundary dirt road was the EOD range where every friday morning we burned and destroyed old munitions and other stuff they needed disposed of.
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