Just heard DEATH12 on the radio on the discreet channel. I looked it up on the callsign webpage and it's DEATH B-2A, 509th BW, Whiteman AFB MO I head the KC Center ATC talking to someone about going to Whiteman. then later hear DEATH12 at Topeka. I think the B-2's go to the Smokey Hill Bombing range near Salina. Does anyone know if they use live ammo at the bombing range? I always wanted to park outside of the range and watch for aircraft flying around. the webpage is here: https://henney.com/chm/callsign.htm It's missing some callsigns I see on ADSB when I looked them up. So it's not complete.
you more than likely wont get anywhere near the bombing range if scheduled drops are occurring. they patrol the edges and look for that, and they WILL turn you away. Ask me how I know
even on a public road? how close can you be to be able to photograph the aircraft? I always wanted a pic and videos of a B2 and F117A. i got to see a F117A up close at a open house at Ft Whiteman in 2003 but on that vacation i forgot my camera. they had fly overs with the B2's. I was bummed something I always wanted to do and didn't have my camera. and i only found out about the open house via the ham radio net in MO. and just happened to be passing through during the air show on highway 50. Now I'll never see a F117A since they're retired.
I've been wondering if they saved any for air shows. They mentioned two. I wonder if they saved extras for parts or backups if the main ones get crashed or damaged? I haven't been to but one air show since 2003. Back in 2019 i think it was. but I would like to know if the F-117A's ever come to KS for air shows. That's what I want to see the most.
117's dont fly for air shows they are stritcly testbeds now for aggressor duties and stealth attack testing now that other countries are developing stealth designs themselves. you will be lucky to catch one. as far as my comment goes for being near or right on the property line of a active boming range, its a safety hazard and its also 18 USC 795 protected. so, if you try to go to a bombing range or anywhere near one that close to its property lines, and everyone ive ever seen on a map does not have common access roads with 5-10 miles of them , you would have to go well out of your way and they are very specifically look for people trying. its not worth the risk of being detained for. they can potentially hold you under the patriot act. that means, no phone call, straight to federal questioning center. then you get put on a watch list. your life goes under a microscope. everything gets monitored. just trust me on this.
I was looking on Google maps and it looks like there's public roads along the edge of it and farmland and houses. It's the Smokey Hill Bombing range southwest of Salina KS. if you want to look it up and see what I'm looking at. I know in remote places like Nevada you can't get anywhere close.
I looked at 18 USC 795 and how does that work when UFOlogists took zoomed up shots of Area 51 from the hilltop that is no longer accessible since the military found out people was taking pics from there and they acquired that land. so there's no legal way to photograph Area 51 now. unless from an airplane at a distance.
That's too bad they don't use the F117's for airshows. if they're retired you would think they would let the public see them. How many do they have left?
notice how there is no street data on all of those roads? and the distance from the actual bomb range itself? which is right smack in the middle of that? the only public access is on the perimeter and every road inside of that is guarded and patrolled Good luck getting close enough to see anything useful. And 18 USC 795 Covers well more than just "Classified" sites. I have watched people get arrested for taking a photo from a street side, next to Dobbins AFB that had a view of inside hangars and showing ground personnel. it doesn't have to be "Top Secret" or Classified at all. 18 USC 795 (a)Whenever, in the interests of national defense, the President defines certain vital military and naval installations or equipment as requiring protection against the general dissemination of information relative thereto, it shall be unlawful to make any photograph, sketch, picture, drawing, map, or graphical representation of such vital military and naval installations or equipment without first obtaining permission of the commanding officer of the military or naval post, camp, or station, or naval vessels, military and naval aircraft, and any separate military or naval command concerned, or higher authority, and promptly submitting the product obtained to such commanding officer or higher authority for censorship or such other action as he may deem necessary. ^ ^ this means WHATEVER they deem a "interest"
so in effect, if they caught you on one of the roads inside their established perimeter of DoD Property, they can very well slap you with 18USC795, then you get detained under the patriot act. And god forbid they hit you with that......... as i said prior
They are retired from active combat status, not outright retired. their weapons systems are removed and components destroyed. they are nothing more than flying test beds. all they do is fly around while giving data to new fire control radars and give new crews the training they need to deal with new and emerging enemy stealth aircraft to defend themselves from. and if i recall correctly, its 48 F-117's, all of which are kept at Tonopah Test Range. When they are not flying, they are in secured hangars under what is called "Type 1000 Storage" Because from that vantage point on that hilltop, nothing was visible that was even remotely considered classified, and from that distance ( i believe it was over 10 miles away and required very dedicated telephoto lenses that were several thousand dollars each ) with the atmospheric distortions and the heatwaves distorting the view, you could not make out anything smaller than a 30 foot object with any real clarity. But don't think the DoD was also looking right back at them. They know when you get within 1000 feet of that perimeter line. But they acquired the hilltop to stop promoting people from gathering there because it had some dangerous geological features that several people have been injured there just trying to get that vantage point shot. Several people have documented this. by the time you walk up to that fence line or one of the thousands of warning signs at any location, you already have 4 rifles trained on you where ever a road is, hidden facial recognition cameras recording and storing your face and your information. In today's age, you get within a mile, you have at least a UAV looking down on you, at least 4 MP's watching your every move, and a vehicle ready to jump out and detain you at moments notice. You refuse to leave, DETAINED. You cross that line, they have every right to shoot you on the spot, and you will just disappear.
I saw street names right up to the perimeter. I'm not talking about going into the perimeter or shooting pics of the bombing activities. I just want aircraft pics. I noticed on Open Street maps it shows the range on there. Not sure how accurate the boundaries are. But it looks like what i see on Google Maps looking at the roads with gates. I saw a video on YouTube of trainer planes taking off or landing at Vance airforce base shot from a public road right along the perimeter fence. Was he in violation? He didn't show close ups of hangers or anything.
the rule typically applies to photos that are shot in the direction of ground crew and security forces. people get their photos screened all the time. thats what you have to be careful of. and violating any perimeter fence, will undoubtedly cause problems. Now if you are looking skywards, then sure, shoot away. the OSM Maps are accurate, and since it matches google were you see names and then suddenly you dont..... validates the lines. also notice that none of the roads inside the perimeter have any correlating names or street views also.
Thanks for your info . You're really helpful. Do you know what altitudes they typical use for the bombing ranges? Do you know if they're low enough outside the perimeter to photograph?
They used to, for a bit. When i was a younger, they brought one in for display on a couple occasions - the first time, i couldn't have been a teenager yet - or just barely: they had at least half a dozen guards around it with M16s at the ready, and a 30 foot clearance; but the second time... I was shocked at how close we were allowed to get. Couldn't have been more than ten feet, and only a couple relaxed guards to make sure nobody tried to touch it - and even then, a couple kids managed, and they didn't do much about it. Thinking back at how clandestine and elite the work was to engineer and develop it, it makes me a bit sad to see what has become of it - especially those photos of some of them being ripped apart, or mothballed covered in dust with flat tires. The "Boneyard" is here, and they put up a pretty humorous display of the F117: just the tires and ladder:
contrary to this, out of the 59 Flying production F-117's, 1 was lost to combat, 5 were testbed prototypes ( All Museum pieces now ) 48 of them still exist in what is known as Type 1000 Storage, they are still flying. only brought out when needed, and kept in flying condition through secured storage at Tonapah. though lacking their weapons systems, they fly aggressor roles now to help train new service members on how to detect, track and engage stealth aircraft.
where is the museum pieces? Do they have extra parts for them or do they have to part out other ones in storage?
