photo sharing and upload picture albums photo forums search pictures popular photos photography help login
Bill Collinson | profile | guestbook | all galleries | recent
Type your message and click Add Comment
It is best to login or register first but you may post as a guest.
Enter an optional name and contact email address. Name
Name Email
help private comment
David Gentry 01-Feb-2020 19:37
Dan, I was there from 70-71. I rode motorcycles with the GAFB Desert Phantoms M/C. I've been trying to find a good friend of mine Kenny Wells, son of Col. Wells. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
dave2966-mc@yahoo.com
dan 03-Apr-2019 22:41
I was a GAFB dependent, lived there 70-73. Went to Hook Junior High, then VVHS. Dad was Chief of Intel, retired as Lt. Col. and retired to Victorville, then over to Apple valley in 75. We lived at 202 Sheppard St., across from Col. Larry Welch. Larry became USAF Chief of Staff. I recall a couple of days of deep winter snow at the base, along with summer days at 117+ degree heat. Anyone remember Col. Treyz, Col. Fischl, Col Beaver, Col. Melgard or Col. Welch?
Nancy 14-Feb-2017 22:40
My husband, Capt. Chuck Tofferi, was stationed at George from Aug. 1960 to sometime in 1963 when he went to Cherry Point N.C. on an exchange tour with the USMC. Back to George in 1965; he was with the 435th, 436th and 476th squadrons. He won the 1962 Worldwide Weapons Meet at Nellis flying the F-104. He was KIA 20 October 1966, Plain of Jars, Laos. Would love to hear from anyone who was at George who might remember us. Nancy Tofferi email: nfbtofferi@aol.com
Michael 03-Sep-2015 21:20
Hey Bill, thought you might appreciate the fact that some folks can't let George AFB go. There is a retro George AFB t-shirt for sale on this site: http:// lifeonbase. com
Ron 16-Jul-2014 03:25
I was at George from 73 to 78 with 35 MMS on F-105's. Was there when they filmed the 6 million dollar man. We had to do our monthly loading and got to be filmed for the show. Sure would like to go back some time and see what it looks like.
Ron Murphy 17-Nov-2013 23:01
Hey GAFB buds. I just came across this site today. Great stories and I haven't finished reading them all. I was in the 479th MMS at George right out of tech school in Aug 65. Worked on F-104s there and on deployment to Da Nang. Then went to Thailand for a year then back to George and the F-4s until separation in 11-68. I would love hear from any of the old "mussel F&#&^%kers".
dalethorn 20-Aug-2013 17:42
Hey Bill - I just got a Leica Monochrom and Noctilux lens. Been building image projects at dalethorn dot com.
LATICE ALLEN 14-Mar-2013 00:19
George was my first duty station, from Miami to the desert. Culture shock for sure. I was there from 1978-1982. I worked in the gym and at 17 yrs old it was my first job. The contrast from desert to snow was amazing. I remeber going to March AFB and not being able to get back to George because they closed the mountain pass. Good times had by all. The first time I saw Roger and the Zap band was in the rec center before they made it big. Thanks for the memories.
Bill Collinson09-Nov-2012 16:03
Hi everyone. Just a quick note to say how much myself and thousands of over visitors to these pages have enjoyed your comments and stories. Thank you for making this collection of photos something much more than just pictures!
Guest 05-May-2012 20:46
My husband and I were there fromn 1975 through 1979. He was with 35th AMS and we lived on Nevada Avenue after living on Utah. We were one of the lucky ones that got one of the new remodeled housing. What great memories we have of George AFB. We went back there in 2010 and "snuck" on to the base. We wanted to see if we could find our old house. We didn't know it would be okay to look around. So sad to see the ruins of what once was. It was wonderful to look at the pictures thank you so much for bringing back some wonderful memories.
Guest 03-Mar-2012 16:08
I have thought of GAFB a billion times and wondered what ever happened to it. Thank you so much for this page. My little family was there from '90 till they closed it. My (Ex) husband John S Hancock, worked in the med group and we lived just across the street from the hospital. At the time we had one son who was 1 when we arrive and turned 3 just before we left. Oh the nights spent walking through the neighborhoods, letting him play in everyone's sprinklers (we were too broke for real entertainment!) At the time I hated that desert with a passion, but now have found memories of our time there. The earthquakes and sand storms....not so many good memories of them. And the swamp cooler..oh my! Kept us cool though.
a/1/c doug marshall 05-Feb-2012 22:21
stationed there may1963 to may 1965. 15 yrs ago i visited george afb and was met at the security building by a nice young lady. she told us we were welcome to drive around but be careful. i drove to the middle of the base and got out of my car and started to walk down the road of the past. i could see airmen busy doing their assigned duties, i could hear the roar of f100's taking off, could feel the heat of the desert,i looked up and saw the clear blue sky. i was assigned to the 2067 com sq crypto and daily pilots came to our building to pick up their classified info. in the spring of 1965 i was assigned to the command post to operate communicates direct to the pentigon it was the beginning of the build up in vietnam. many units at george were leaving, and some never made it back alive. i remember one pilot maj mac the fac macallister got to know him from his visits to the com center. he was profiled in time magazine once when he was a pilot in vietnam and again after he was shot down and killed in action. this was just one of many examples of the history of george afb the base may be closed b ut its history will never be. we did not lose the war in vietnam, we left
Gail (Boe) King 09-Jun-2011 08:51
Hi,

My dad was stationed at George AFB from '68-'69. I was in Kindergarten while stationed there. Although, I was very young, I have vivid memories from that time - from the kids I played with down to the exact floor plan of our house on base. I almost cried when I saw how the base looks now. Heart breaking! It would be so fun to find anyone who might have gone to school with me while there. I would have been in Kindergarten in the year '69. I graduated from H.S. in '82 if that helps. Thanks. Gail (Boe) King. PS: My father is Ronald N. Boe. His is now 69 y/o. He ret as MSgt. from Travis AFB, Calif.
Peter Prigge 15-Mar-2011 00:25
I was stationed at George AFB 1962 - 1965 in 329 FIS working A&E on F-106's. Only had one runway. Drank a lot of beer at Snedd's. While there the golf course and NCO housing were added as well as an NCO Club. That was an early sign that they might be making it a real base. Except for the two 3 story barraks and the gym nearly everything else was left over from WW2. Our barraks were old open bay updated into rooms with outside porches.
joe sharpless 09-Mar-2011 16:18
i was in the 4th tow target sqd, 56
Phantom II 04-Dec-2010 08:34
16 Nov 2010.........Greg Camp's comments:..............Interesting comments..........Chief was L.B.Morris, remember?..........Seems that I remember you by name, since I was there also. Re-enlisted there in the Fire Dept in 1970..........Would like to share some history with you. Drop me an email: mojavestealth@gmail.com.
Greg Camp 16-Nov-2010 19:07
Came to George from Misawa AB Japan in Sept 70 to 74 was in the Fire Dept on Asst Chief Seals shift. Chief Morrison was the Base Fire Chief he was later forced to retire ? I was just married to Pat and our 1st son Bret was born in Apple Vally Hospital went back in 96 and went by our old house on George street. the old Fire Station was still standing
then Great Base and times and good friends
Guest 16-Nov-2010 01:19
I would love to have a medium size file of the phantom block photo I commented on in your gallery. I was stationed there in those barracks and I thing it would be nice to add to my scrapbook. Thanks for your time. Rick Hartgrove
terry_hails15-Nov-2010 01:07
Was at George AFB '73-'74 in the 4th and 5th grades; lived at 222 Texas Avenue; Dad retired from there in '74; moved back to Albany, OR, where I still live; played baseball on '73 Phils (minors) and '74 Mets (majors); remember tether ball at recess, giant dust devils, movies for $.50_admission, popcorn, candy and soda......usually Elvis or Godzilla was playing, swimming at the NCO Pool, and making some money selling cattails in the neighborhood. Best Friend was Jeffery Scott...any one know his whereabouts?
Jon Vanover 12-Sep-2010 06:23
Bill, do you know who to contact at George for entry into the buildings for some research?
Mike Goeden 02-Oct-2009 16:10
Contact me as I will be at George AFB on November 10th, 2009

Mike Goeden

mike.goeden@4frontes.com
Bryan Gintof 19-Aug-2009 05:36
I was at George AFB from 1977 to 1979 attached to the 35th Security Police Sq.
I now live in Arizona and will be making a road trip to Victorville within the next
6 months. I will take pictures and post them. Is there anybody else out there that were
attached to the 35th SPS from 1977 to 1979 ? Would love to hear from you.
Guest 03-Aug-2009 06:04
We are stationed at Ft. Irwin even though my husband is in the Airforce. It was interesting to see what used to be George AFB. I totally agree that it seems like a waste with all the buildings.
james workman 13-Jun-2008 20:22
I was at George in 55 in the 4 tow target sq
Carl E. Dickey 11-Mar-2008 15:42
Thanks for documenting the history at George AFB. I was a small part of that history. I spent several months there in late 1968 and early 1969 working on the bomb dump (Weapons storage area) getting on the job training prior to going to Vietnam to do the real thing. The WSA I worked on was on the site where the Federal Prison now stands. The cold war is not considered part of our glory days, but I am not sahamed of what we did. We did stop Communism from spreading and we did eventually beat it back. Note that now most Communist countries are moving rapidly toward Capitalism and Democracy.
Auntie K 27-Oct-2007 23:51
Cute!