Different HAS buildings
Discussion
Have started working recently at an old Cold War airfield in the UK, and am fascinated by the buildings and hangars etc, a lot of it is knocked down for bloody housing, but the HAS shelters remain, and I was wondering, out the back some of them have a large structure resembling fins or wings where the exhaust was obviously going post startup, where most of the shelters have a simple sort of exhaust expelling area without these fins and wings.
Could it simply be locations, near other hangars, edges of base, other non forces personnel? Seems weird is all that they are not all the same.
Could it simply be locations, near other hangars, edges of base, other non forces personnel? Seems weird is all that they are not all the same.
Have also done projects a a few airfields in the UK and also found it fascinating to see the evolving architecture and use of land and buildings on say a pre-WW2 "expansion" airfield and how it changed over the years, through the cold war, and in some cases post cold war when the army would have taken it over as a barracks...
Wattisham and Cottesmore especially spring to mind
Wattisham and Cottesmore especially spring to mind
There maybe a couple of different reasons; different aircraft types need differing exhaust vents, some will take an aircraft doing a full power ground run, some won't, some such as quick reaction alert sheds need the aircraft to be taxied out under it's own power and some need the aircraft to be pulled out.
My understanding the main lattice sliding doors could be sealed "NBC-tight" by inflatable bladders and that the exhaust vents had sliding doors on the inside at the back of the HAS.
If the OP is working at Alconbury the smaller HAS's were built for F-4 Phantom type aircraft and the larger ones on the northern loop road (that goes past the entrance to the old nuclear bomb store) were much bigger as they were built for TR-1 (think U-2) Dragon Lady aircraft - the exhaust vents on those are quite different.
If the OP is working at Alconbury the smaller HAS's were built for F-4 Phantom type aircraft and the larger ones on the northern loop road (that goes past the entrance to the old nuclear bomb store) were much bigger as they were built for TR-1 (think U-2) Dragon Lady aircraft - the exhaust vents on those are quite different.
The base is Upper Heyford, ex USAfF running F111 until 93, so the type was always the same, I think they also had the Ef111 there, but it is the same plane, just odd to see the same shape HAS with a different venting system at the rear, one is a large box, the other is a fairly trick looking arrangement with the vents and fins over the box!!
As I gather the ran up outside, but could probably do so inside too, so as other have said, perhaps some were for this, most were not.
it is weird driving around to and from work, I keep expecting and hoping to see one sitting outside its shelter!!
As I gather the ran up outside, but could probably do so inside too, so as other have said, perhaps some were for this, most were not.
it is weird driving around to and from work, I keep expecting and hoping to see one sitting outside its shelter!!
Had a quick peek on Google maps and all the HAS vents look the same in the overhead photography, but unsure when the imagery it was taken..
Maybe there's been some demolition going on to recover and recycle the HAS exhaust baffle fins and wings as crushed concrete - maybe it has been used on the airfield site for all the building work that's going on ?
Are you working on the northside of the runway or the south side of the runway?
Upper Heyford was in the hands of the RAF from 1924 and was used by USAF from 1950 onwards up till closure - a lot of history there, but time marches on and its good to see that at least part of the site is being repurposed.
20th Tactical Fighter Wing was based just down the road from me at Wethersfield and moved to Upper Heyford in 1970 where it was the host unit till the end.
Wethersfield is still in the hands of the MOD and is mainly used by MOD Police, but its said to be the best preserved example of a 1950's / 60's era USAF airfield left in Europe.
Maybe there's been some demolition going on to recover and recycle the HAS exhaust baffle fins and wings as crushed concrete - maybe it has been used on the airfield site for all the building work that's going on ?
Are you working on the northside of the runway or the south side of the runway?
Upper Heyford was in the hands of the RAF from 1924 and was used by USAF from 1950 onwards up till closure - a lot of history there, but time marches on and its good to see that at least part of the site is being repurposed.
20th Tactical Fighter Wing was based just down the road from me at Wethersfield and moved to Upper Heyford in 1970 where it was the host unit till the end.
Wethersfield is still in the hands of the MOD and is mainly used by MOD Police, but its said to be the best preserved example of a 1950's / 60's era USAF airfield left in Europe.
LukeBrown66 said:
The base is Upper Heyford, ex USAfF running F111 until 93, so the type was always the same, I think they also had the Ef111 there, but it is the same plane, just odd to see the same shape HAS with a different venting system at the rear, one is a large box, the other is a fairly trick looking arrangement with the vents and fins over the box!!
As I gather the ran up outside, but could probably do so inside too, so as other have said, perhaps some were for this, most were not.
it is weird driving around to and from work, I keep expecting and hoping to see one sitting outside its shelter!!
They did run EF111’s out of there too; one of them fell out the sky about half a mile from my house. Luckily landed on another airfield!As I gather the ran up outside, but could probably do so inside too, so as other have said, perhaps some were for this, most were not.
it is weird driving around to and from work, I keep expecting and hoping to see one sitting outside its shelter!!
When working at Heyford years ago, I was told that the reason for some of the hangars having the extra bit on the back was to fool satellite reconnaissance. If you look at them from the inside, this seems feasible but from the outside/above, less so.
Its a shame the base is decaying; a bit of heritage lost.
It is not really decaying honestly, the grass etc is looked after nicely, most of the buildings are there and would be repaired and looked after should they be rented for business, but currently some look past their best.
Hangars seem fine, a lot are used for storage I think, there is a fair bit going on, but the building work for housing has turned the whole place into a weird sort of middle class arse/living, heavy plant working area, not much thought gone into it though as you have to use the camp road to access the farthest end of the airfield as that is the only entry point, meaning trucks, lorries, vans, etc al have to drive down a fairly narrow, speed bump and whatever infested road next to kids families, it would be far better to have access off the eastern part. typical modern planning, money before anything.
it is very odd working in a place that used to be the hive of military activity, seeing it all there, not used, imaging what this was, that was, then seeing Mums jogging, prams being pushed middle class t
ts trying to ignore the bedlam around them stupidly, builders everywhere, cars everywhere, none the wiser.
I wonder if any of these people know that this was were Gadaffi was targeted!!
Hangars seem fine, a lot are used for storage I think, there is a fair bit going on, but the building work for housing has turned the whole place into a weird sort of middle class arse/living, heavy plant working area, not much thought gone into it though as you have to use the camp road to access the farthest end of the airfield as that is the only entry point, meaning trucks, lorries, vans, etc al have to drive down a fairly narrow, speed bump and whatever infested road next to kids families, it would be far better to have access off the eastern part. typical modern planning, money before anything.
it is very odd working in a place that used to be the hive of military activity, seeing it all there, not used, imaging what this was, that was, then seeing Mums jogging, prams being pushed middle class t
ts trying to ignore the bedlam around them stupidly, builders everywhere, cars everywhere, none the wiser.I wonder if any of these people know that this was were Gadaffi was targeted!!
I detested Hardened Aircraft Shelters, and the whole HAS site set up. A squadron with a hangar and flight line was much better for aircraft maintenance. If the RAF had spent money on more transport and tooling, perhaps life would’ve been less unpleasant, but no. No idea if the USAF spent the cash needed, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they had.
At Wattisham I work from a hangar and use the flight line/aircraft apron. A much more sociable existence! The HAS site is used for storage.
At Wattisham I work from a hangar and use the flight line/aircraft apron. A much more sociable existence! The HAS site is used for storage.
we only use ours for storage, nice in summer when its warm!
they also have the full hardened base setup for the 3 squadron HQ buildings and the comms, avionics etc, so a lot of it is very ugly concrete with straight edges to take bomb hits.
The base stuff off the field perimeter is nearly all gone a few hangars and buildings remain but the rest is awful, hideous housing and new roads, truly hideous, but thankfully the houses are not those awful narrow tent looking things, being where it is they are middle class 350 grand proper houses, but it is hilarious watching them all trying to appear unperturbed by the traffic, builders, car transporters, it's just very funny.
they also have the full hardened base setup for the 3 squadron HQ buildings and the comms, avionics etc, so a lot of it is very ugly concrete with straight edges to take bomb hits.
The base stuff off the field perimeter is nearly all gone a few hangars and buildings remain but the rest is awful, hideous housing and new roads, truly hideous, but thankfully the houses are not those awful narrow tent looking things, being where it is they are middle class 350 grand proper houses, but it is hilarious watching them all trying to appear unperturbed by the traffic, builders, car transporters, it's just very funny.
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