“Beale was an amazing airbase only about and hour’s drive from Sacramento.”
I PCSed back to that area to Mather in 1985 and was one of the last 15 families off when they closed it. Dealt a lot with the non-existent bull pin and WSA. I could tell you some real funny stories about the closure there and the over running of civilians that clawed their way into control. I guess Rancho Cordova has rebounded after the loss a little but it almost went to a ghost town for a while.
wy69
“I guess Rancho Cordova has rebounded after the loss a little but it almost went to a ghost town for a while.”
The closing of Beale impacted many smaller/medium cities, miles away from Beale.
My funniest and most memorable story about Beale happened at the N. California Ocean coast.
My sons and I were Coastal deer hunting and my older son and I had crossed a little creek, and my youngest son was in the middle of the creek when a plane broke the sound barrier as it left coastal Cali heading west.
The youngest son actually ducked so low he ended up in the creek over the top of his boots and got very wet and cold.
The oldest son saw the plane and called it as a SR71.
Our youngest son can laugh decades later.