Davis Monthan Pictorial

Covering several thousand hectares of Arizona desert, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base is one of the most fascinating aeronautical centres in the Western world. The primary reason for this fascination to the aviation enthusiast is the fact that Davis-Monthan is the home of the Military Aircraft Storage and Disposition Centre (MASDC) where more than 4,000 aircraft are stored for reuse or spares.

AADR had the pleasure of visiting this incredible base on a recent visit to Tucson, Arizona, which also houses a major production facility for Gates Learjet and the famous Pima Air Museum. In short, if you are into aviation then Tucson can certainly be a rewarding stopover when travelling North America.

The MASDC facility was created following the cessation of hostilities in 1945 when there arose an urgent need to provide a permanent base to cater for the thousands of surplus WWII aircraft. Major tenants in those days were thousands of C-47s and B-29 bombers. The worth of the new storage facility was amply proved when Korea demanded that a large number of stored aircraft, particularly the P-51, B-29 and C-47, be returned to active service with haste.

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