Castle Air Museum

Castle Air Museum is located on the grounds of former Castle Air Force Base in Atwater, Ca. The museum shows more than 50 aircraft, from World War II, the Cold War and present day. The collection includes some exclusive aircraft like the only RB-36 remaining.

The museum is located in Atwater, North of Merced and Fresno. No your average tourist designation, but well worth the detour! Take exit Merced-Atwater Expressway at highway 99. The museum opened to the public in 1981 with approximately 20 acres of open-air display ground. There is also an indoor display without any aircraft.

Latest addition to the museum is a former Air Force One, VC-9. Amongst others used by president Clinton. Highlight of the museum is no doubt the massive B-36 Peacemaker.

RB-36H Peacemaker

Convair 51-13730 is the only reconnaissance version of the B-36 remaining. It served with the 28th Stratigic Reconnaissance Wing out of Rapid City, SD from 1952. The wing was relocated to Ellsworth AFB in 1953 and later on in 1957 to Chanute AFB, IL. There it served as a ground instructional aircraft. It was moved to Castle disassembled on 11 flatbed railway cars.

The huge 230 feet wings housed six propeller engines and four turbojets. “Six turning, four burning”. The RB version had a crew of 22 with flights that could take up to 51 hours without refueling.

The B-36 was the only bomber capable to drop the MH-17 Thermonuclear bomb (on display next to it). This 15-20 megatons bomb was found on the Edwards test range and dug out by the Edwards EOD unit.

B-24M Liberator

B-52

The B-52 D model on display was build in 1956 and directly deployed to U-Tapao Air Force Base in Thailand during the Vietnam war. Later it was transferred to Anderson AFB in Guam. After the war it returned to the US and was stationed at Castle AFB 93rd Bomb Wing. It was decommissioned in 1982 and transferred to Castle in 1991.

C-46 Commando

The Curtis (44-77575) on display, entered World War II in February 1945. The aircraft flying for the 313th Troop Carrier Group joined operation Varsity with members of the 513th Parachute infantry Regiment. During the drop at the German town of Wesel, the fuselage was hit by 20- and 40mm FLAK as well as machine gun fire. With hydraulic badly damaged they managed to return to Acheit Le Grand airfield where it crash landed.

After the war the aircraft was returned to the US and was passed on the Japanese Self Defence Force where it served with the Home Guard until October 1977. It was donated to the museum in 1982.

F-106 Delta Dart

B-29 Superfortress

SR-71 Blackbird

The SR-71 61-7960 on display was the 11th (#2011) build. It flew the most operational missions of any SR-71 and was the first to fly over Vietnam. In 1986 it saw combat again as it flew photo reconnaissance support during the 1986 bombing of Libya, code-named operation El Dorado Canyon.

F-14 Tomcat

The F-14 D model was flown to Castle after it’s squadron VF-101 was disestablished in 2005. It was delivered to the Navy in 1992 and was on of the last five build. The aircraft aslo served with the CF-31 on the USS Abraham Lincoln and saw combat action in Afghanistan and Iraq. The current paint schema is that of the 1970s VF-101.

F-4 Phantom

Current, fresh paint, is that of Thunderbird “5”. Earlier it was painted as Thunderbird “6”. All but wrong as the real 289 was signed “3”.

RA-5C Vigilante

Inventory

(noted March 2016)

Not present during our visit: