Airplane boneyards (Tucson, Goodyear, Pima: military, legal, stores)

[62mike]

We are visiting the Arizona, Nevada area in July and would love to drive thru any of the military or commercial airline boneyards but it appears they are very restricted and most don't offer any tour at all. Is anyone aware of a sizeable aircraft boneyard that a person could drive thru and walk around?

Thanks.

[wit-nit]

Tucson AZ Davis-Monthan & AMARG's Role as the Largest Military Aircraft Boneyard...
https://www.airplaneboneyards.com/da...e-boneyard.htm

[rational1]

Originally Posted by wit-nit

Tucson AZ Davis-Monthan & AMARG's Role as the Largest Military Aircraft Boneyard...
https://www.airplaneboneyards.com/da...e-boneyard.htm

If you scroll down to the bottom...there ARE tours...but they are in a bus, you do not leave the bus, and you will need advance security clearance.

[wit-nit]

That's the only boneyard open to the public, all others as far as I know are closed to the public. When we were at Davis Monthan a few years ago we got off the bus and walked around some planes. You might want to call them and see if any other arrangements can be made.

[agorski]

Not a boneyard, but the Pima Air Museum has a bazillion planes on display.

[Luckystrike1]

Yes, security clearance is required and they want the reservations around 10 days ahead of your visit. We were going to do this when we did our AZ road trip in April, but this 10-day thing turned us off. We didn't want to have to 'schedule' anything to work our routes around, so we skipped it.

[phetaroi]

Why aren't the materials in those boneyards sold off as scrap metals, etc?

[keninaz]

I am wondering if the clearance routine will be required for those that got the travel ID/Driver's Licenses?
I know that as of 2018 TSA will use them.
I also understand that as of Oct 2018 for admission to a military base you will be required to have one.
As a vet that likes to visit bases, my wife and I got ours here in AZ after all the legal crap was over.

[chris_s]

Originally Posted by phetaroi

Why aren't the materials in those boneyards sold off as scrap metals, etc?

Boneyards are not simply scrap yards. They have several different purposes.

For instance, Davis-Monthan AFB has aircraft there for:

Long Term – Aircraft are kept intact for future use
Parts Reclamation – Aircraft are kept, picked apart and used for spare parts
Flying Hold – Aircraft are kept intact for shorter stays than Long Term
Excess of DoD needs – Aircraft are sold off whole or in parts
Historical Preparation - demilitarized for museum or monument display

[jlawrence01]

There is also a location along I-10 just west of Tucson that stores "retired" commercial planes. Maybe some people will have more information about it. THere is also another one near the Cleveland Indians/ Cincinnati Reds Spring Training facility which I believe is in Goodyear, AZ.