Shemya photos, page 4
(Post-WWII)
1. This picture was
sent to us by Stephan
Scott, a member of the
U.S.Army stationed on
Shemya between Jun 1970
and July 1971. It's a shot
across the tarmac looking
towards the radars...is that
a C-141 on the runway?
(Coord N10)
2. After your year on
the Rock was up, you
are able to return home
and try to re-establish a
normal life...via the Reeve
Aleutian Airlines “Freedom
Bird” which bringeth and
taketh you away! (George
Blood, 1976-1977, Coord
K11)
3. Before we could get
to Shemya, we had to
check in at Elmendorf AFB,
Alaska. Elemendorf is
somewhat of a "suburb" of
Anchorage, Alaska. This
picture was taken in April
of 1975, flying in to
Anchorage over the Cook
Inlet. No, don't see
Anchorage yet. (George L
Smith)
4. This was our first
view of Shemya,
Alaska. "Where's the dirt
and trees?" I exclaimed.
This view is looking over
Shemya from the
Southeast side of the
Island. (George L Smith,
Coord X13)
5. During my stay on
the Island, our supplies
were replenished
periodically whenever the
"Cool Barge" could dock.
Rough seas would keep the
barge from docking. It
seems to me that we
waited well over a week for
this one. We were on
powdered eggs, powdered
ice tea, and running out of
toilet paper! (George L
Smith, Coord C5)
6. These are some
slimy critters that we
fished out of the water one
day along the western
shore. There's a gelatinous
creature on the left,
keeping company with a
starfish of sorts, and don't
know for sure what the rest
of the stuff is! (George L
Smith, Coord D6)
8. Believe it or not, this
Piper was seen flying
over Shemya's Base Ops
during the Summer of 1977.
There must have been
absolutely no winds
whatsoever! (George Blood)
9. This photo was
supplied by Ralph
Gunther on Shemya in 1965.
The aircraft with the tail
number of 91491 was known
as "Wanda Bell." One of the
crew members was usually
heard to exclaim "Here we
go again!" (See photo #8 on
Photos Page 2).
10. This photo of a pile
of P-38s (Coord 9F)
came to us via Jim Lux,
who has been looking for
WWII vintage P-38s. He's
the only guy I know who
went to Shemya without
being hog-tied and shipped
there! If you have any
information relating to
Aleutian P-38s, please
contact Jim Lux (and me!).
To see additional WWII
photos, click here.
11. A recent online
procurement of this photo
shows an identical scene
as that from Jim Lux (#10).
Apparently these aircraft
were piled up and
destroyed on Shemya
rather than shipping them
back home after the war
was over. Click HERE for
enlarged photo. [George L.
Smith]
7. Here's a guy standing
upright, not holding on to
the rails, heading up the
"hill." Obviously the wind's
not blowing on this day!
(Don Lindner)
Note: This photo was enhanced by
Richard Hughes, and re-uploaded on
22 Aug 98. Thanks to Rick for a job
well done!
Current Update: 06/17/2022 08:15