Arc Light Memorial

 under construction, United States Air Force, war memorial

Dedicated Feb. 12, 1974 to the members of the Strategic Air Command and Andersen Air Force Base who served during the ARC LIGHT operations of during the Vietnam War, the original ARC LIGHT memorial was centered around B-52D Stratofortress S/N 55-0100 "Old 100", a retired combat veteran aircraft which had flown more than 5,000 combat hours over Southeast Asia out of Andersen. Despite the best efforts of AAFB personnel, the climate and weather conditions on Guam had severely degraded Old 100's condition over the next decade, and in 1983 the aircraft was removed and replaced with B-52D S/N 56-0586 which was painted in the ARC LIGHT-era combination camouflage topside and matte black underside color scheme and numbering of the original "Old 100".

Rededicated in June of 1983, the memorial stood for a further 30 years before the Guam climate again claimed the displayed aircraft, with inspections in 2014 revealing that rust and corrosion in the structure of 56-0586 had irreparably weakened the airframe. Beginning in April and completing in July of 2014, B-52D 56-0586 was scrapped onsite and removed from the memorial grounds, with its vertical stabilizer being preserved intact for reinstallation at a later date following a comprehensive redesign of the ARC LIGHT memorial grounds.

www.andersen.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123246954
www.andersen.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123403515
www.andersen.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123406987