Engine testing? (Read 2,442 times)

Most Test Cells were only a 2 shift operation at the most. Unless the shop was low on spare engines. The night time runs (trim pad ) were probably caused by trying to finish up a bird to turn it O / R for the next days flying.

Eventually the AF built Hush Houses to limit the noise of operating engines.

i was the base photog at mcchord in the mid '70's. they used to take a jet and chain it down over in the 318th fis area on echo ramp and lite the fire... i had a photog named ssg anderson who took several good shots of the bird all lit up at night... and yes it was loud... i used to know a cmgt working with CAP in those days, but the name escapes me.

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Welcome maple365 :welcome glad you finally made it in... officially

Welcome aboard Maple!
I was in the 456th FIS at Castle AFB, CA 66-68. Our old wooden barracks was right across the street from the flight line hangars where they worked B-52s and KC-135s. It was the last old 1950's barracks to be torn down after I left and all the rest had been located away from the flight line by several streets.

Our squadron area was about 1/2 mile away and we could hear the trim pad run ups at night, especially in AB. But nothing was louder for us than the KC-135 engine runups when they turned on the water injection. After a night like that, I had to move the tables and chairs in our room back to their original position. The vibration made them "dance" all over the place. We usually took refuge at the Airmens club or a local bar until midnight when they were forced by local ordinance to keep quiet.

Ah, but the sound of freedom is sweet!

Pat P.
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In the mid 1970's I worked the 318th FIS. My first year was at the test cell which included the fuel/air started cell also.

All of out test cell runs were done on day shift. A few times we worked past shift into swing shift if the test run was close to being done.

I was later transfered to the flightline. We took many-a-jet to the trim pad. Full Afterburner power runs were restricted after 10:00PM till 6:00AM as to not wake up base housing and the local community.

If the aircraft was on the next days flying schedule for a mission then there was a waiver of the restriction.

When I worked graveyard shift I used to love to take a bird to the trimpad that was flying the next day and light off the afterburner. On the cool brisk mornings the base tower used to call me and ask if I could expidite my run-up and get out of afterburner, as they were getting phone calls.

I'm sure you were hearing trim pad runs.

Those were some fun days. :fire_missle_ani

i remember one of andersons photos was used in a base guide in the '75 thru 79 era...

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ssgt anderson started working for me in '75 . and i didnn't get the fisheye til '76... thats the lense i used on my avitar... so im thinking in the 77 or 8, or 9 edition.. some shots are used several years running if they still apply...i think he used it for the sp's. he lit the jet up and used the star burst filter....he liked those kind of gadgets

maple365 said:

If you think hearing it from the squadron area is exhilarating you can't imanage how exhilarating and thrilling it is to be under a F-106 jet while in full afterburner doing a leak-check or adjusting the fuel control. If you have done it you never forget it.

The two cables we used to secure the F-106 to the in ground hook were about as big around as a base ball.
We would tow the aircraft to the trimpad and connect the cables to the main landing gear struts, then pull the aircraft forward with the tug to tighten up the cables.

It was all fun and thrills after that. :fire_missle_ani

One of the fun things we use to do during night time engine runs at McChord, in the early 60's, was to take a gallon can of hydraulic (5606) and poke two small holes in the top of the can. The guy with the can would stand back by the tail and when the engine operator selected AB the guy would count one thousand one one thousand two and then throw the can in the exhaust flow just as the AB lit off. The view was spectacular and the sound of the can exploding was impressive!!

Tom