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This meant that the aircraft would be positioned at 45 degrees in relation to an alert apron center-line leading to a short taxiway and then onto the nearest runway(s). Two aircraft would be positioned on either side of the center-line, typically four deep on either side, with one additional aircraft
149:", either to their awaiting planes or to alert vehicles that they would drive to said aircraft. This latter option was particularly critical for crews of the last three aircraft on the ramp that were located several hundred yards from the alert facility.
156:" to the duty runway, which was typically located close to the Christmas tree, due to the need to launch the aircraft as quickly as possible in response to a probable inbound enemy attack. If the aircraft were to be launched as quickly as possible, then a
110:, requiring a different solution to be devised. To fix this, aircraft were repositioned on specifically designed alert aprons arranged in herringbone configurations, which then allowed the planes to pull out onto the runway as quickly as possible.
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bases, as well as two active Army Air Fields and several civilian and joint civil-military airports that were previously SAC installations for all or part of the 1950s through the 1990s.
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aerial refueling aircraft. As newer bomber and aircraft eventually entered the SAC inventory, the "Christmas tree" aprons would be used by the B-47 Stratojet, B-52 Stratofortress,
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were parked on alert aprons at right angles. Due to the size of the aircraft, this created a problem in launching aircraft efficiently in the event of an emergency
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During an alert sortie, there was no specific departure order; the first plane ready to taxi was the first to leave. At this point, the aircraft would perform an "
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How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a
Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda
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Although
Strategic Air Command was disestablished in 1992, "Christmas tree" aprons and their associated "mole holes" continue to exist on numerous
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being positioned directly aligned on the center-line farthest back. The success of this formation also led to the adoption of the setup for the
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is estimated to have cost $ 400,000 (equivalent to $ 4.12 million in today's dollars) when it was constructed between 1959 and 1960.
160:(MITO) would be performed, in order to lessen the chance that the aircraft would be caught on the ground in the event of a nuclear strike.
397:
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78:" facilities. The alert apron, also known as an alert ramp, received the name "Christmas tree", because in planform it resembled a
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How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a
Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States
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Although it is unknown how much each "Christmas tree" cost to construct and maintain, the
Christmas tree at the former
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74:. Oftentimes, bombers or tanker aircraft were stationed next to a readiness crew building (RCB), also known as "
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During an alert, flight crews and ground crews would run out of the alert facility, i.e. the "
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on ready alert, while the bottom box is the stubbed apron where aerial
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from
October 1957, the top box highlight the Christmas tree for
338:"Monthly alerts keep Dow bomber crews in readiness for attack"
31:, c. 1957-1976. The yellow building in the lower right is a
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419:"Written Historical and Descriptive Data Photographs"
286:
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319:"First defense line unit has 'Golden Hour Tango'"
271:"Memories of a Cold War Christmas Eve nightmare"
50:, in 1973 with its "Christmas tree" at capacity
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58:was a type of alert area constructed by the
23:Diagram of "Christmas tree" alert apron at
35:, also known as a readiness crew building.
317:Crawford, Thomas A. (November 29, 1962).
398:"Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–"
294:. Westoveryesterday.com. Archived from
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396:Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis.
7:
426:Historic American Engineering Record
16:A Military Jets Prepare on formation
269:Day, John S. (November 18, 1995).
212:Air Education and Training Command
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344:. (Bangor Daily News). p. 6.
458:Strategic Air Command facilities
140:McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender
200:Air Force Global Strike Command
336:Day, John S. (April 1, 1964).
245:"The Mole hole, Building 1303"
90:Before the development of the
1:
390:American Antiquarian Society
370:American Antiquarian Society
116:Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter
249:Air Mobility Command Museum
180:Department of the Air Force
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136:Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker
92:Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
216:Air Force Reserve Command
100:Boeing B-50 Superfortress
184:Wurtsmith Air Force Base
158:Minimum Interval Takeoff
473:United States Air Force
342:Lewiston (ME) Daily Sun
128:General Dynamics FB-111
96:Convair B-36 Peacemaker
94:, aircraft such as the
60:United States Air Force
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182:site master plan for
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165:Loring Air Force Base
104:Boeing B-47 Stratojet
80:tree of the same name
64:Strategic Air Command
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323:Wilmington (NC) News
208:Air Mobility Command
124:Convair B-58 Hustler
132:Rockwell B-1 Lancer
120:KB-50 Superfortress
220:Air National Guard
204:Air Combat Command
196:
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435:on 25 August 2012
325:. UPI. p. 3.
275:Bangor Daily News
192:refueling tankers
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437:. Retrieved
430:the original
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403:February 29,
401:. Retrieved
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300:. Retrieved
296:the original
292:"SAC Alerts"
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252:. Retrieved
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142:aircraft.
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374:1700–1799:
354:1634–1699:
25:Glasgow AFB
226:References
194:were kept.
147:mole hole
76:mole hole
44:Minot AFB
33:mole hole
467:Category
439:9 August
379:(1992).
359:(1997).
302:9 August
254:9 August
178:In this
108:scramble
72:Cold War
62:for the
188:bombers
86:History
433:(PDF)
422:(PDF)
386:(PDF)
366:(PDF)
169:Maine
441:2012
405:2024
304:2012
256:2012
218:and
138:and
118:and
102:and
68:SAC
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283:^
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54:A
48:ND
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29:MT
27:,
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66:(
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