Madone59

My only planning was renting a truck. The road along the fence is just a rutted track but it is a legal public road. I had no problem with anyone around the back by the planes, or at the front of buildings where I encounter a van of other av geeks. I was going to offer them a ride around the back to see the good stuff but I had just come back from there and the drive was so painfully slow I couldn't think of doing it again.

I have heard of people getting barked at for being at the fence by the buildings but never heard of anyone having a problem looking through the desert fence. Note I did very little walking. First I was alone so I was one snake, scorpion or fall away from having a serious problem and being alone. Second and more importantly even though I was wearing long pants all the overgrown plants were Russian thistle which has a mild toxin and numbs the skin it touches. I had no interest in dealing with that so I only walked up to the fence where there was a gap in the brush. A lot of my best shots are from the cab of the truck or from standing in the back.

eeflyer

Thanks for the details! Sounds like I'll need to make a drive up there sometime, maybe if I meet some other av enthusiasts to go with, haha. The advice on the road/brush is very helpful.

I wonder what it would take to get access to the actual airfield. From what I can tell, it'd be difficult since the planes are still private property? It'd be an amazing experience though!

Madone59

I tried, and tried, and tried through SCLA. No reply to social media (either) and I didn't want to cold call every time business that works out of SCLA though i am sure that would have worked (eventually).

teddybear99

Stupid question, but why would airlines keep these planes stored for so long before "recycling" them for either parts or scrap metal? I know some should be kept for historical reasons, but if they are now considered obsolete, the metal should be able to be melted down to turn into something else. The composite materials may be a different situation.

jrl767

it's not a trivial process to strip potentially reusable items out of an airliner (not all countries' airworthiness requirements, especially for second-hand items, are necessarily as rigorous as those of the FAA. but there's a lot of recordkeeping associated with manufacturers, part numbers, serial numbers, etc); it's also not a trivial process to cut up the airframe after it's been stripped

puchong

Bumping this old thread - has anyone been to Victorville recently and know if it is possible to take a tour inside the facility?

bhomburg

No tours. Unless you know someone 'on the inside', you're restricted to taking photos from outside the fence. Bring a long telephoto lens. What Madone59 did (rent an off-road-capable vehicle and drive around the perimeter on dirt tracks) will get you as close to the aircraft as possible. I tried doing this last December when in the area, but had to abandon the plan due to my rental SUV's lack of ground clearance.
Maybe contact Comav (the company involved with aircraft operations on the premises) and ask if there's options to have a look: ComAv | Contact

Lost

I saw in another thread that you're going to Tucson in June. You can book a tour of the US Air Force Boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base through the Pima Air and Space Museum.

WY114

I am curious as to the ownership of the aircraft once they are sent to one of these graveyards. It is surely not for free that the graveyard hosts all these aircraft for a lenghty period of time? Or rather do they buy the retired aircraft from the airlines at a next-to-nothing cost in the hopes of recouping the invest through spare parts or rather raw metal afterwards?

Also interesting how some aircraft from @Madone59's visit (cool pics, thanks!) have their logos or name in the fuselage sealed or repainted. As if one couldn't identify the redish kangaroo on that red tail, or the half covered Lufthansa logo What would be the reason for doing that on a soon-to-be scrapped aircraft?

Lost

Brand image. It doesn't look good to have pictures floating around of a 747 missing a wing and three engines with wires hanging out of every crevice and the company's logo still front and center on the airplane.

A person who can identify an airline just by color scheme without the logo isn't likely to be turned off by an airplane in a visibly unairworthy condition.

RandomNobody

They're owned by the folks that flew them there or the recyclers that bought them. The aircraft are tenants and the owners pay rent. When they're auctioned to recyclers/secondary markets, they're usually sold "as-is/where-is" the new owners have to go pick it up, or start paying rent on the parking spot.