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Kinda like losing an old friend...
2 years ago
Hello again Fellow FA Friends, Artists, Writers, Photographers, Fursuiters, Crafters, and other highly creative and talented people.
Whenever I visit my brother Sterling and his lady friend Winnie who live in faraway Tustin, I enjoyed seeing the two massive blimp hangars which stood in the remnants of the Tustin Marine Air Station since before WWII. The massive wooden structures were hard to miss being about fourteen stories high and more than a thousand feet long. These massive wooden structures were originally designed and constructed to house large airships like the USS Los Angeles, (ZR-3.) The USS Akron, (ZRS-4.) and the USS Macon, (ZRS-5.) but with the demise of the giant airships, they were still useful in other ways. During the second world war they housed radar and patrol blimps that flew over the coastal areas in search of enemy submarines and other trouble. Of course, the reliability and adaptability of the Helicopter soon spelled an end to the naval blimps but ironically, the structures also proved to be a good place to teach inexperienced helicopter pilots to learn the basics of how to control their technically complex and often "Temperamental" flying machines.
Shortly after the month of November started, the Northernmost structure mysteriously caught fire and burned for weeks, in a spectacular way. What made the fire far too dangerous for the firefighters to extinguish was the threat of burning and heavy timbers falling from the great heights above on those inside and below the flames. The Tustin FD decided to just let the structure burn itself out, but they hadn't considered that the aged, wooden structure was a perfect firetrap and like dry kindling, was just a conflagration waiting to happen. As an added Irony, once again a helicopter-tanker dropped water on the burning structure in a futile attempt to get the flames under control.
I can't clearly recall what event it was... Either a Califur or one of the other Southern California cons attempting to fill the gap ConFURence left behind the late 1990s, but it was a pleasant little con, and since I had signed on as a dealer, I was privileged to get lunch since I was stuck at my table. On Saturday, I opted for a burger, fries and a drink from In-N-Out because I really like their food. Unfortunately, it took the kind volunteer who received our orders and our cash over two hours to get my lunch to me. It arrived cold and the fries had gone flaccid and greasy, and they forgot my drink. I got on my laptop and discovered an In-N-Out almost two miles away, and after the Dealer's Room closed down for the night, I decided to repeat my In-N-Out order for my dinner after a long and interesting walk.
The stroll up Tustin Road led me to a Walmart Supercenter where I stocked up on snacks and treats for the remainder of the weekend and of course the drive back home. Tustin Road T-Boned to a chain link fence blocking off the former Marine Air Station at the time, and I was awed at the sight of the two airship hangars because I had never seen them at this close a distance before. At that time the area was still open fields, and ripe for development. The Naval hospital where my brother finalized his career as a Navy Corpsman had been removed and is now a sprawling shopping mall replacing the former spaces occupied by the barracks and other military structures. I was gawking at the South hangar, and even from a mile away the two hangars still looked HUGE! I finally made it to the In-N-Out and enjoyed my meal in their dining area and then I had to reverse my long walk back to the hotel in the dark, but with my stomach satisfied, the walk didn't seem that arduous.
It was the Northern most hangar that burned and the initial cause of the fire has yet to be determined, but I have a suspicion. Tustin is an area that is rapidly developing, and I feel that there are land grabbers out there who see those US Navy owned structures like a "Roadblock" to future development schemes. With the North Hangar gone, I expect the nearby housing developments will move in, or that the fields where the giant airships once landed will become parking lots for retail establishments. IF The South hangar mysteriously catches fire and burns as well, I would suspect some city-political "Hanky-Panky" was involved. On the other hand, IF the city does decide to turn the South hangar into an air museum, I would be happy with that solution. I'd look forward to seeing the inside of the structure one day, and heck... I might even volunteer to paint the outline of the USS Los Angeles on their parking lot, just to show folks how big those "Giants in the sky" were.
Now I'm suddenly hungry for a "Double-Double" a serving of "Well Done" fries and a Super large diet Coke.
"Peace."
Whenever I visit my brother Sterling and his lady friend Winnie who live in faraway Tustin, I enjoyed seeing the two massive blimp hangars which stood in the remnants of the Tustin Marine Air Station since before WWII. The massive wooden structures were hard to miss being about fourteen stories high and more than a thousand feet long. These massive wooden structures were originally designed and constructed to house large airships like the USS Los Angeles, (ZR-3.) The USS Akron, (ZRS-4.) and the USS Macon, (ZRS-5.) but with the demise of the giant airships, they were still useful in other ways. During the second world war they housed radar and patrol blimps that flew over the coastal areas in search of enemy submarines and other trouble. Of course, the reliability and adaptability of the Helicopter soon spelled an end to the naval blimps but ironically, the structures also proved to be a good place to teach inexperienced helicopter pilots to learn the basics of how to control their technically complex and often "Temperamental" flying machines.
Shortly after the month of November started, the Northernmost structure mysteriously caught fire and burned for weeks, in a spectacular way. What made the fire far too dangerous for the firefighters to extinguish was the threat of burning and heavy timbers falling from the great heights above on those inside and below the flames. The Tustin FD decided to just let the structure burn itself out, but they hadn't considered that the aged, wooden structure was a perfect firetrap and like dry kindling, was just a conflagration waiting to happen. As an added Irony, once again a helicopter-tanker dropped water on the burning structure in a futile attempt to get the flames under control.
I can't clearly recall what event it was... Either a Califur or one of the other Southern California cons attempting to fill the gap ConFURence left behind the late 1990s, but it was a pleasant little con, and since I had signed on as a dealer, I was privileged to get lunch since I was stuck at my table. On Saturday, I opted for a burger, fries and a drink from In-N-Out because I really like their food. Unfortunately, it took the kind volunteer who received our orders and our cash over two hours to get my lunch to me. It arrived cold and the fries had gone flaccid and greasy, and they forgot my drink. I got on my laptop and discovered an In-N-Out almost two miles away, and after the Dealer's Room closed down for the night, I decided to repeat my In-N-Out order for my dinner after a long and interesting walk.
The stroll up Tustin Road led me to a Walmart Supercenter where I stocked up on snacks and treats for the remainder of the weekend and of course the drive back home. Tustin Road T-Boned to a chain link fence blocking off the former Marine Air Station at the time, and I was awed at the sight of the two airship hangars because I had never seen them at this close a distance before. At that time the area was still open fields, and ripe for development. The Naval hospital where my brother finalized his career as a Navy Corpsman had been removed and is now a sprawling shopping mall replacing the former spaces occupied by the barracks and other military structures. I was gawking at the South hangar, and even from a mile away the two hangars still looked HUGE! I finally made it to the In-N-Out and enjoyed my meal in their dining area and then I had to reverse my long walk back to the hotel in the dark, but with my stomach satisfied, the walk didn't seem that arduous.
It was the Northern most hangar that burned and the initial cause of the fire has yet to be determined, but I have a suspicion. Tustin is an area that is rapidly developing, and I feel that there are land grabbers out there who see those US Navy owned structures like a "Roadblock" to future development schemes. With the North Hangar gone, I expect the nearby housing developments will move in, or that the fields where the giant airships once landed will become parking lots for retail establishments. IF The South hangar mysteriously catches fire and burns as well, I would suspect some city-political "Hanky-Panky" was involved. On the other hand, IF the city does decide to turn the South hangar into an air museum, I would be happy with that solution. I'd look forward to seeing the inside of the structure one day, and heck... I might even volunteer to paint the outline of the USS Los Angeles on their parking lot, just to show folks how big those "Giants in the sky" were.
Now I'm suddenly hungry for a "Double-Double" a serving of "Well Done" fries and a Super large diet Coke.
"Peace."
Not like their houses or yachts burn.
And man, I've never been a con person, but if I could go back in time I'd probably go to at least a few 90s cons. From what I've heard it was...quite the experience.
I have been fortunate to see, if from the highway, both the Tustin and san fran bay zeppelin hangers in my travels across the state.
The US is under absolutely zero threat from terrorists crossing our Southern border, let alone the possibility of that having anything to do with this sad event.
You need to seriously reconsider your media sources.
And that's just the ones that have been caught. its not some "right-wing conspiracy", its hard proven fact.
Yeah, cold fries is one thing I don't miss. My diet precludes such things anyway, and that's a disappointment I can live without.
Sorta like this local landmark: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hangar_One_(Moffett_Federal_Airfield)
and yes, I know that's an In-n-Out order...
Though, it beg a (completely off-topic and hilariously confusing) question: Is Your Car Safe From Supermaneuverable Air-Defense Fighter Aircraft? https://youtu.be/k7YVxLLIuGM?si=RnNoaOwFPLwGAuid
There were two dirigible hangers at NAS Tillamook in Oregon, the south hanger after the war housed a sawmill for many years and it burnt in the eighties I think. I can personally attest to how huge they are!
What was it Officer and a Gentleman that was filmed at Port Townsend? I saw the blimp hanger there Fort Worden you could put that little hanger inside the dirigible hanger hanger at Tillamook many times over with no problem.