Curiosities 5 - The Airplane Graveyard in Tucson, Arizona

João Henrique Barboza Jorgetto • Jan 06, 2023

It is nothing new that North American air power is gigantic, with thousands of aircraft ready to serve the country. Its history begins with that of the army, of which it was part until shortly after the Second World War, and today it has more than 6,000 manned aircraft, in addition to its vast arsenal of drones and UAVs.

But have you ever stopped to think about where the aircraft withdrawn from service are? What is the fate of these deactivated aircraft?

Most historic planes from the Second World War are in museums, while more current aircraft are destined for an airplane cemetery.

Today I'm going to show you one of those cemeteries in Tucson, Arizona.

Home to the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG), the Tucson cemetery has 4400 aircraft awaiting a destination, be it the removal of parts to replace other active aircraft, dismantling, or even repair and maintenance. There are also aircraft stored there, but in conditions to be made available for flight if necessary.

 There's a little bit of everything there, from 1950s fighter jets to gigantic bombers and transport vehicles.

 Check out some images from the Tucson Cemetery:

It's cool to realize that only in the desert do they have a combat force more significant than most other countries. Even aircraft withdrawn from service would be excellent for other nations, as is the case of the F-16.he propellers) into this small wooden space, taking the crewman to the skies forever.