Jim Scanlon (deceased)
Senior Staff 
FORUM CHAPLAIN
Commander South Texas outpost of the County Sligo Squadron
Currently: Offline
Posts: 5,075 
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Joined: July 2007
Retired: USAF
NBA: Spurs
NFL: Niners
MLB: Giants
NHL: Penguins
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Post by Jim Scanlon (deceased) on Jul 21, 2013 6:23:50 GMT 9
I saw a picture recently of the Main Gate of Glasgow AFB, taken in the early 1960s.
Some things stood out to me.
First was the cars going through the gate, 1950s and 1960s models, that we would all like to own.
Second was the Gate House.
It was small, maybe 10'x 10', and didn't have a canopy over the single lane in or out.
There was no big Metal Gate to slide across the road, no barriers, no maze to drive through, no big bumps to slow you down.
The base sign was on the side of the road, made of painted wood, with 4"x4" posts holding it up.
The thing that struck me most was the Gate Guard.
He was dressed in Winter Blues, had a white-web belt with his .45 Colt in its big holster.
His trousers legs were bloused and he was wearing white Putees, over his shiny Brogans.
He had a white cover over his Dress Hat.
To complete the uniform, he was also wearing white gloves.
Do you remember when the Sky Cops were dressed in a Class A uniform, whilst doing gate guard duty?
In the Summer, they changed to 505s, or whatever tan uniform was the Uniform of the Day.
Still with the white accessories.
Didn't they look a lot more professional when you drove up to the gate, than now, wearing whatever the latest fatigue uniform is called?
One thing for certain, they looked a lot more impressive to anyone entering the base.
Doing shopping on a headquarters base, Randolph, I would expect the JBSA-Randolph commander would want to give the best picture to the community, both military and civilian, when they stopped at one of the entrance gates.
But, then, maybe not.
I see all ranks wearing the fatigue uniform, or whatever it is, along with flight suits all over the base and in eating and shopping establishments off base.
It just doesn't seem right, to me, to see someone wearing 4 stars, dressed like one of the guys working on the flight line.
Maybe it is PC, and like early USSR militaries, they don't want to seem better than those of lower ranks.
I don't know, but I prefer a more professional looking Air Force, and it starts at the Main Gate.
Just feeling a bit nostalgic, and grumpy.
Jim Too
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Post by Mark O on Jul 21, 2013 7:01:27 GMT 9
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