Fun, probably. But legal?
Watch out for traffic, overpasses, overhead signs and the median!
What plane is small enough to land on a highway?
The Interstate Highway system was originally built to facilitate movement of defense materiel. I imagine that the designers contemplated aircraft landing on them.
Hmm. A-10s practicing use of improvised runways in CONUS. That’s new.
Defund the Air Force? Make land on the highways?
Thank God for Eisenhower.
The speed limit is 55 mph.
Who gets the ticket for going 200 mph over?
Y’all should have seen the havoc created when some Marine Harriers landed next to interstate 5 on a base road through Camp Pendleton.
Base road parallel to the freeway only maybe 20-30 yards separation.
This took place about 5 miles from where I live. It was actually a very simple operation. The road (M-32) was closed off for a little over a mile and any cross roads were also closed. A set of high voltage lines crossing the road were dropped on one end and pulled back across the road to make restoration of electric service simple. The aircraft had only about a 4 mile hop from their take off point at the ANG Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center. The planes made one approach and set down on the highway. They then made a U turn and taxied back to the departure end of the highway. Pre-flight checks were done and the planes took off to return to the CRTC. After all air operations were completed, electric power was quickly restored, ground support equipment was loaded onto trucks, road barriers removed, and everything was back to normal. They even had a crew to police the grounds to clean up the trash the reporters and VIPs left. Simple operation.
It was good PR and great entertainment for the locals, but if you had seen air ops in the Sandbox like I had, it was no big deal.
Big freakin’ deal. The Russians do it all the time. Their aircraft are designed for it.
The Eisenhower Interstate system was originally designed for military aircraft. every 10 miles was supposed to have a mile long stretch without bridges and signage to allow military aircraft an emergency landing or for tactical reasons if war came to our shores.
There is video of an A-10 doing it today. Doesn’t need much runway when air brakes are out, and just the sound of a Kawasaki dirt bike on take off.
I am sure they had an audience.
The concept and practice has been around for two generations however.
Today, many nations have prepared and practiced war gaming at the same level.
Much of NATO has done this for a while.
Russia, China, India, Israel, and others.
https://www.rbth.com/lifestyle/327305-why-are-russias-military-jets-land-on-highways
While not jet powered, I have personally been in a C-130 landing at approximately 1200 ft.
I have also been in a C-130 landing and taking off on dirt and grass. So roads are not always necessary, but would be preferred.
We used to land lears and citations SPs outfitted with gravel kits on gravel roads in Amazonia and Matto Grosso and Roraima Brasil in the 80s
Routinely
Eons ago, when I was an Airport Operations intern at a busy general aviation airport, we had a huge air show. One of the performers was a solo F-15. He lit the afterburners, held it on the runway longer than normal to build speed, and then rotated to the vertical for a “Viking departure.” After he landed we checked the runway, and he had melted two pretty substantial gouges in the asphalt. Had to have it repaired.
Incidentally, that air show was one of the best I’ve ever seen. It was designed to represent the entire history of aviation, beginning with a functional Wright Flyer replica, through the barnstorming era, early commercial aviation, WWII (which was the best part), Korean War, Vietnam, and up to modern day military aviation. It was great being in Ops at the time, especially because I was working the midnight shift at that time, so I got to see the show during the day and then at night I was able to drive the entire flight line and get closeup looks at all of the aircraft.
We had everything from the aforementioned Wright Flyer replica, to a Spitfire, P-38, P-40s, several P-51s, several B-17s, F4U Corsair, Japanese Zeros, MiG 15, F-86, F-104, Hueys and Cobras, F-15s, A-6s, F-14s, and more. I’m sure I’m forgetting a lot. In total, there were about 200 aircraft involved. The WWII segment, in particular, was stunning. It really gave you goosebumps seeing such a large number and wide variety of WWII aircraft flying together simultaneously. I haven’t seen anything since then that even came close.
Hoot Gibson flew the MiG 15 (and set the grass on fire with the tail hanging over the edge of the taxiway). The Vietnam segment also started a big fire because of the explosions set off during the helicopter assault portion of the show. Good times.
Michigan Air National Guard lands jets, takes off from US highway in military firstThe interstate highway system was originally designed and built for that purpose.
Every so often there has to be so many miles of straight highway for just that purpose.
The system was born during the cold war.
Sometimes in old movies you'll see a placard on a wall indicating that building is a fall out shelter.
We took the threat of attack very serious.
Unless you had periodic duck and cover drills in school like a fire drill, you'll never understand.
As I recall the Cuban Missile Crisis might have been the scariest time for children.
How soon we’ve forgotten the Cold War. A-10’s, Harriers and Jaguars landing all over the Autobahn in 1980’s Germany. To this day there are still bridges that would be able to serve as aircraft shelters.
The more things change...
TheUSAF doing what the Luftwaffe has been doing for decades!
“the first time that modern combat aircraft have intentionally landed on a U.S. civilian road, the Selfridge base said.”
It’s official name is Selfridge Air National Guard Base, an ANG base since 1971. From 1947 to 1971, it was Selfridge Air Force Base and from 1917 to 1947 it was called Selfridge Field. A grand total of 104 years since the Curtiss JN-4’s began military flight operations there. It’s not Langley or Wright-Patterson but Selfridge has been active for just about as long as they have.