April 10, 2017 - Alamogordo, New Mexico

Not a whole lot to do in Alamogordo attraction-wise but we did what we could.  One thing they have is the Museum of Space History.
   
Cockpit of a F-117 Stealth Fighter (actually a light bomber).
   
Beam me up, Scotty!
   
We checked out the jet park at Hollomon Air Force Base.
   

Below is a Convair F-106 Delta Dart, an all-weather interceptor aircraft, which first flew in 1956 and retired in 1998, after which surviving airframes were used as target drones.  The official name, "Delta Dart," was rarely used, and the aircraft was universally known simply as "The Six."  The F-106 never saw combat, nor was it exported to foreign users.

Starting in 1986, 194 of the surviving surplus aircraft were converted into target drones and these were designated QF-106As.  The drones were still capable of being flown as manned aircraft, such as for ferrying to a test; during the test they were flown unmanned.   The last shoot down of a QF-106 took place at Holloman AFB on 20 February 1997

   

Below is a Panavia Tornado in German markings.  The Tornado was a twin-engine, variable-sweep wing multi-role combat aircraft, jointly developed and manufactured by Italy, the United Kingdom and Germany.

Germany has had a big presence at Hollomon.  In 1992 the German Air Force made Holloman its main pilot training center in the United States.  Holloman was chosen due to its weather conditions.  On 1 May 1996, the German Luftwaffe established the German Air Force Tactical Training Center at Holloman.  With the activation, 300 German military personnel and 12 Panavia Tornado aircraft joined Team Holloman. German aircrews come to Holloman for approximately three weeks for advanced tactical training and then return to Germany. The German Air Force also conducts a Fighter Weapons Instructor Course for the Tornado. Aircrews for this course come to Holloman for about six months.  As of November 2006 there were 650 German military personnel and 25 Tornado aircraft assigned to Holloman AFB.

   

On 1 July 1968, the 49th Tactical Fighter Wing arrived at Holloman Air Force Base from Spangdahlem AB, West Germany, becoming the first dual-based tactical fighter wing.

All three squadrons flew the McDonnell Douglas F-4D Phantom II.  In 1972 squadron aircraft tail codes were standardized on "HO".

   

On 20 December 1977, the 49th Tactical Figher Wing began converting from the F-4D to F-15A/Bs. The transition was completed on 4 June 1978.

The last F-15 departed Holloman 5 June 1992, ending 14 years of Eagle operations.

   
On 1 November 1991, the 7th Fighter Squadron ceased F-15 operations, performing a Lead-In Fighter Training (LIFT) mission with Northrop AT-38B Talons, preparing for the transition to the Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk. during most of 1992.
   

On 9 May 1992, Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk stealth fighters from the Tonopah Test Range Airport Nevada began arriving at Holloman. The 37th Tactical Fighter Wing at Tonopah was inactivated with the transfer of the last F-117s to Holloman on 8 July 1992.

 

   
Not much to see from behind.
   
In February 2006, the Bush administration announced that Holloman would cease to be home to the F-117A Nighthawk. This move coincided with an announcement that the F-117 will be removed from service on or about 2008.
   

On 1 March 2006, it was announced by the United States Air Force that Holloman would be the new home of two squadrons of F-22A Raptors.  The first F-22 Raptor arrived at Holloman AFB on 2 June 2008.

In May 2014, with the inactivation of the 7th Fighter Squadron, the F-22 mission ceased at Holloman. The Wing's F-22s were transferred to other F-22 wings.

The 49th Wing now supports national security objectives with mission-ready MQ-9 Reapers (remotely piloted aircraft).   The operational squadrons are:

6th Attack Squadron (MQ-9)
9th Attack Squadron (MQ-9)
16th Training Squadron (MQ-9)
29th Attack Squadron (MQ-9)
49th Operations Support Squadron

   
 
   
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