Aircraft boneyard
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/B52sdestroyed.jpg/220px-B52sdestroyed.jpg)
An aircraft boneyard or aircraft graveyard is a storage area for
Some yards are privately owned and operated, others belong to the military including the
After aircraft are put into boneyards, many are stripped of useful parts. Engines as well as most electronics, munitions, and wiring to be removed are recycled or kept in warehouses. The parts may serve as replacement parts for aircraft which are still flying or they may be used for reconditioning if and when the aircraft are called back into active duty. The parts along with the stripped aircraft may be sold to other countries.
Depending on the demands of the military or for commercial purposes, an aircraft or a whole squadron of the aircraft may be put back into active duty. The aircraft have to be reconditioned and tested so they will be airworthy. The reconditioning process includes putting in new avionics, electronics, safety measures, testing, and painting. Reconditioning of old aircraft is generally a cheaper way of getting more aircraft into service than buying new ones, and saves the United States billions of dollars annually.
Other nations' central aircraft storage facilities include the Russian Air Forces' Bases for Reserve Helicopters.
Military aircraft
The 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group in Tucson, the largest facility of its kind, is colloquially known as "The Boneyard".[1]
Commercial aircraft
Due to the
Notable aircraft boneyards
Location | Country | Notes |
---|---|---|
Northern Territory[8]
|
Australia | First large-scale aircraft boneyard outside the United States.[9] |
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
|
Canada | Contains 23 old Planes stored off service roads north of 09/27. |
Mountainview, Ontario
|
Canada | Used primarily for storage of older RCAF Aircraft.[8] |
Manas International, Chüy Region | Kyrgyzstan | Soviet era aircraft began to appear after 1991.[8] |
Enschede Airport Twente[11] | Netherlands | |
Teruel, Aragon[12] | Spain | |
Cotswold Airport (formerly Kemble Airfield), Gloucestershire | United Kingdom | Air Salvage International, the leading European aircraft decommissioning company.[13] |
RAF Shawbury, Shropshire[14] | United Kingdom | From end of World War II to 1972. |
Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona
|
United States | Nearly 4,400 aircraft on 2,600-acre, 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group.[1] |
Kingman Field, Arizona
|
United States | Storage and repair for Delta, American and United.[15] |
Pinal Airpark, Arizona[16] | United States | |
Blytheville, Arkansas | United States | Storage and scrapping for retired aircraft including the MD-80 series aircraft. |
San Bernardino, California | United States | Storage and scrapping for retired aircraft such as the MD-88. |
Mojave Air and Space, California | United States | More than 100 planes. |
Victorville, California[17]
|
United States | |
Oscoda-Wurtsmith, Michigan
|
United States | Storage for Kalitta Air and other airlines. |
Greenwood-Leflore Airport, Mississippi | United States | Storage, modification and scrapping for retired aircraft. |
Tupelo, Mississippi | United States | Storage, modification and scrapping for retired aircraft. |
Roswell, New Mexico
|
United States | Several large passenger and cargo jets.[18] |
Laurinburg-Maxton, North Carolina
|
United States | Charlotte Aircraft Corporation strips former Northwest Airlines aircraft.[19] |
Abilene Regional (Former), Texas[20] | United States | Many retired Saab 340s mostly from Envoy Air-American Eagle.[21] |
See also
- Aircraft recycling
- Ship graveyard
- Spacecraft cemetery
- Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées Airport and Châteauroux-Centre "Marcel Dassault" Airport are also airports with an aircraft boneyard
- PAMELA Project
- Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association
References
- ^ a b c Stephen Dowling (18 September 2014). "Secrets of the Desert Aircraft Boneyards". BBC. Archived from the original on 11 August 2015. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
- ^ John A. Weeks III (2009-07-03). "Field Guide To Aircraft Boneyards". Archived from the original on 2009-11-24. Retrieved 2014-11-06.
- ^ Calder, Simon (4 October 2021). "British Airways to bring back the A380 'SuperJumbo' jet". MSN. The Independent. Archived from the original on 2 February 2022.
- ^ "Desperate for planes, military turns to the 'boneyard'". 13 July 2016.
- ^ "The US Air Force just resurrected a 60-year-old B-52 bomber from its 'boneyard' to fight another day". Business Insider.
- ^ Jonga, Michael (2 August 2021). "Aircraft reactivation: Has how we store aircraft changed?". AeroTime.
- ^ Scott, Katy (23 December 2020). "How to bring an airplane out of hibernation". CNN.
- ^ a b c d "Aircraft Boneyards & Storage Facilities Around the World". AirplaneBoneyards.com. Archived from the original on 25 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
- ^ "Australia gets first plane 'boneyard' outside US". Traveller. 27 May 2011. Archived from the original on 23 July 2015. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
- ^ "Photos: Airplane graveyard". 9 August 2013. Archived from the original on 8 May 2017.
- ^ Herman Haverkate (26 October 2020). "Stalemate around Twente Airport: Boeings must go, but are not allowed to go". Tubantia (in Dutch). Retrieved 29 October 2020.
- ^ Brunat, David. "El 'aeropuerto milagro' de Teruel: el parquin de aviones más grande de Europa" (in Spanish). El Confidencial. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2016.
- ^ "Jet cemetery: Where do aircraft go when airlines go to the wall?". The Independent. 10 December 2009. Archived from the original on 2017-06-18.
- ^ Tom Moran (26 June 2014). "Withdrawn Blackburn Buccaneers Torn Apart at RAF Shawbury". Archived from the original on 23 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
- ^ "Kingman Airport carries right conditions for storing, repairing planes". ABC. Associated Press. 18 August 2013. Archived from the original on 2 April 2018. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
- ^ "Pinal Airpark: Once-secretive aircraft boneyard slowly opens its gates". Azcentral.com. 2015-03-27. Retrieved 2016-02-14.
- ^ Pae, Peter (15 March 2009). "As travel declines, aircraft 'boneyard' in Victorville fills up". The Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 11 March 2011. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
- ^ "Roswell International Air Center (ROW) in New Mexico". AirplaneBoneyards.com. Archived from the original on 23 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
- ^ Andrew Vane (27 February 2014). "The Boneyard of the East - My Retro Planespotting Experience". AirlineReporter. Archived from the original on 8 January 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
- ^ "Old planes removed from Abilene Regional Airport". BigCountryHomepage.com. 6 February 2019. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
- ^ "Airports, Bases, Airplane Storage & Boneyards near Abilene Texas". Planes of the Past. Archived from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
External links
Media related to Aircraft scrapyards at Wikimedia Commons
- Map of Aircraft Boneyards around the world.