B-52 crew E-14 goes to Guam 1988 Wurtsmith AFB

I was the pilot of crew E-14 when we went to Guam for a training mission. It just so happened that I brought a camera along. We were out of Wurtsmith AFB MI and flew with the 524th Bomb Squadron. We completed several missions dropping live ordinance on a nearby deserted island.

[@ricks1019]

It was so good to see this clip. Thank you so much for sharing. I was a B-52G gunner from 82-86, Grand Forks and Mather AFB. This brought back to many great memories. CREW DOGS FOREVER!

[@BPD1586]

How'd you like being a Gunner? That was my dream job; however, it was phased out the year before I went in.

[@jimcrawford9773]

I had a lot of fun at wurtsmith , especially bouncing air crews thru the turn stiles !!!!! 82-88

[@scootterpootter]

I recognize a few of the gound crew. I worked in the AudioVisual Department, right around the corner from Life Support, in the Graphics Shop. It was cool to see Col Sauter sitting there in his car. I used to get called on Friday mornings to run across the street to make sure that his slides were done for whatever breifing he had going on, then I'd get recruited to stay and run the projector. Always fun times. lol I got up there in '87 and became friends with a B-52 pilot, Barry Sebring. I used to see him all the time when I'd go to the flightline, him and his wife were both really good people. Thanks for posting these up, I have so many good memories from Wurtsmith.

[@Defenseman1]

Thanks for posting this Rusty! It was fun seeing some old familiar faces. Well done.

[@SAC5THBW]

Made my day! surfing around on this Memorial Day. Brought back so many memories, the old SAC stuff is just great. I was an (H) crew chief at Minot 86-90. Man I could go for a base ops Cheeseburger right about now.

[@dr.lancearmstrong9642]

Great video Rusty! You may recall what happened to us flying out there to Guam with this mission. ~2 hours coast out of CA, Ciccanti (AC) went to the bunk, and "The most irritating gunner in SAC" jumped in the right seat and then said..."Hey what's this big red light mean"? It was on the fuel panel...we lost/dumped 70,000 pounds of fuel out of main #3, on hot engines #5&6, which were shut down ASAP (losing all nav equipment, almost), "descend below 10" and aim for CA. 3 Hours of Sextant use, and we landed at Castle with about 12,000 pounds of fuel, if I recall correctly. Will never forget seeing the main line from #3 tank to pod, a stainless tube ~3" diameter, severed and displaced about 2". Why "No boom", God only knows. Made Guam 3 days later. Good times! Lance

[@scootterpootter]

+Orland Armstrong Do you remember the gunner's name? I knew two of them, they were roomates I believe. Unfortunately, I "met" them when they got sentenced to Correctional Custody. I was one of the Correctional Custody NCO's, in the summer of 1988. They could both be irritating, that's why i ask. lol They were both good kids, just could not handle money. I saw them from time to time after they got out of CC, one stayed in but PCS'd from Wurtsmith, and the other was not allowed to reenlist, and moved back to Ohio and went to Ohio State University.

[@harveybuhl4195]

Yep thats me, back when i was 22 on my hands and knees with the blue ear defenders looking at the book thinking i kniw what im doing. That was 35 yrs ago.

[@Humpinnaples]

Rusty - That was awesome... Many great highlights, Gumby and the Panda, E-14 and Yellow Snow, and wait for it, S-01 bombing the water instead of the island... What would you pay to do all of this again? And all I remember saying back then was "How can we possibly be the only crew available to fly again?" Thanks for the memories buddy... Hump

[@zoot51B]

How do I not remember a mission to Guam? I was at Wurtsmith then, probably in the Intel shop by that time is not still in the WST. It seems that either way I would have had peripheral involvement in it. Of course, it was a FEW years ago, wasn't it? I did fly one out of Griffiss earlier to "bomb" high level over West Germany. It was a little creepy to be "looking over" the Iron Curtain on radar. The most restricted "Restricted Area" I ever saw!

[@martinrps13]

All right I have a question that I have been trying to get an answer for almost a year now. The short version of the question is: what is used as ballast to make up for the removal of the tail gun system? The long version of the question is I have been having a lengthy debate with multiple people about what is needed to maintain proper center of gravity of an aircraft. Part of the discussion is somebody telling me that it does not make sense to have any ballast in the back of the B-52 and that if they did have powers it would probably be something very technical logically advanced. However my stances you will use whatever ballast you have available and is easy to be secured to the aircraft.

[@Hondapromachine]

I asked a member of a B-52 crew almost this exact question at an airshow years ago. "With the tail gunners position gone, what's back there now?" The crew member I asked didn't know so he asked other members of the crew. The answer they came up with was "Probably ballast". So there you go, inconclusive answer from one buff crew about 15 years ago.

[@TheErod1944Channel]

This is the best Video I've seen in a long time. I also hope some the Crew of E-14 enjoyed their short stay in my hometown(s) Atwater/Merced CA. Hope you're all doing well.....

[@JeffGR4]

Seeing the aircraft commander wearing his aviators, describing the matters at hand during the mission, reminds me of the Apollo astronauts and their missions.

[@pwest3732]

Peeing on the flight line. Yup, I'm guilty.

[@lewwilliams6847]

R-14 was my last crew at WAFB 1985.

[@jaxonalden1]

Rusty, do you have more videos from Wurtsmith? I can't get over the quality! I've posted 2 of your videos on the Wurtsmith AFB Facebook page for us all to enjoy. Thanks for putting them on here sir.

[@Humpinnaples]

@Jpxk17aa - Where were you stationed and when - I was with Rusty at Wurtsmith 81-86 and Carswell before that.

[@RustysDigs]

I do have some but they are in storage and I can't get to them. But when I do....I'll throw them up.. Sorry.

[@tachelesreden]

Its a very old plane now (and even the pilots became fat ;-)