Joe Davis Airpark

I have been through Palmdale a few times but none of those previous trips coincided with a time when the Joe Davis Airpark was open.  I got to look through the fence at the aircraft on display but couldn’t go in.  This time, I was better prepared and was able to check the place out at my leisure (if you ignore having to do a Teams call halfway through while trying to find some shade and avoid noisy kids).  As it happened, they were planning on closing earlier than scheduled that day so I could have had another miss if I had waited until later in the day!

The park has a wide variety of aircraft types scattered around.  Photography is okay as things are not right on top of each other but the desert sun is still pretty harsh and so doesn’t make for the best results.  Still, I’m not going to stop shooting images just for that reason.  There are a couple of more unusual types on display and at least one of those is going to get its own post.  There are plenty of fighters and trainers.  An F-14 is always a welcome jet on display but an A-7 is also going to go down well with me as will an F-101.  The C-140 was a nice surprise as I do like a JetStar.

The larger aircraft start with a C-46 which was a bit close to the fence so made for a more busy background.  It is a small exhibit compared to the two largest items on display.  B-52s are well represented in museums around the US.  They were certainly built in large quantities.  This one has a Hound Dog missile alongside.  Next to it, though, is the most special asset.  A 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft.  Retired by NASA at the end of the Shuttle program, it now resides in the sun a short distance from its old home at Edwards.

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