USAF Strategic Air Command Alert Area (site) (Lincoln, Nebraska)

USA / Nebraska / Lincoln / Lincoln, Nebraska
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On December 7, 1954, the first Boeing B-47 Stratojet arrived to equip the 307th Bomber Wing and 98th Bomber Wing. The 98th would become combat-ready in April 1955 and the 307th in June, with a total of 90 B-47s eventually being stationed at Lincoln AFB.
Throughout the 1950s, Lincoln AFB became a major Strategic Air Command base and a very powerful asset to American nuclear forces. Its B-47 complement would reach 120 before 1961. Both wings conducted strategic bombardment training and air refueling operations to meet SAC's global commitments.

Lincoln AFB was at its peak from 1960 to 1963, some of the hottest years of the Cold War. The planes stood on alert during the 1961 Berlin Crisis and the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, maintaining readiness for their principal mission, the destruction of the Soviet Union.
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Coordinates:   40°51'57"N   96°46'4"W

Comments

  • This was the alert pads that the B-47's parked on when this was the Lincoln Air Force Base in the 50's and early 60's
  • I don't think that is correct. The pads at the south end of the 10,000 ft runway make a lot more sense. They are larger and they are in the right place for a quick take off to the north. An alert launch from a short runway heading southeast makes no sense to me...
This article was last modified 16 years ago