Floyd Bennett Field

Started by Eclipse, June 03, 2016, 05:45:26 AM

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Eclipse


"That Others May Zoom"

Luis R. Ramos

What was the reason that drove ya to post these photos?
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DakRadz

I'm going to guess the fact that the article was published yesterday. And it's really cool aviation history.

And with just a tad bit more digging, there is a CAP squadron that meets on these premises. Plus, the article mentions a 1940s yellow biplane (could it truly be?).

Plenty of reasons! Awesome photos, Eclipse.

THRAWN

Quote from: Luis R. Ramos on June 03, 2016, 08:23:33 AM
What was the reason that drove ya to post these photos?

Because none of our esteemed colleagues from the NY Wing did.... 8)

This is cool stuff. There was a thread a while back about locating and visiting decaying aviation history hidden in the woods. It's a great way to get outside and away from the screen at the same time "living" some history. Great post.
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Luis R. Ramos

About a CAP squadron meeting there... Incorrect information!

Floyd Bennett Cadet Squadron, which met in several buildings of Floyd Bennett Airfield at different times during a long history, last met at the Marine Reserve Compound at Floyd Bennett Field for about five years or so.

About a year ago, the Marine Reserve Compound at Floyd Bennett Field had a security upgrade and kicked Floyd Bennett Squadron out. The reason, "They are civilians, not military." It is my understanding that a similar youth organization but focusing on the Marine Corps and US Navy was also kicked out, a detachment of Sea Cadets. Same reason: heightened security.

At least that was the reason given.

But the Floyd Bennett Cadet Squadron found a new home at the Floyd Bennett Post of the American Legion in Avenue N, Brooklyn NY.

Although I am not a member of the unit in question, my squadron meets with them for some activities.


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Luis R. Ramos

#5
Ok, since some members there want more info on the airfield, here it is!

About Floyd Bennett Airfield being "Forgotten and lonely," it is not!

Where do I start, lets see...

A huge sports compound took over two hangars, connecting them. Aviator Sports...[/b] Visitors there can skate, play Hockey, basketball, an arcade, rock climb. The sports compound rents part of the parking area to other community events like marathons. I participated as an officer for one, Floyd Bennett squadron also helped. Several other organizations have done marathons as well. Good use for closed runways! A circus also plays there for the summer.

Lonely? Not to a lot of New Yorkers who grow vegetables in spots rented by them.

Forgotten? Half of one of the closed runways is used for model cars. Another spot has been chosen to fly model airplanes... so it is not a closed airport, as you can still hear airplane engines, even if they are model airplanes...

About two of the runways and many buildings have been taken over by the New York Police Department Aviation Unit, which has their helicopters there. Another part and half a runway is used by the New York City Sanitation Department as a training center.

Lets not forget HARP. The Historical Aircraft Restoration Project. A museum, just not as well known as others. Their volunteers rebuild old airplanes. A yellow biplane? I do not know, but when I visited them some time ago, they were building, from scratch, a yellow wooden airplane. I was told it was an airplane made before WWII. So I can believe it... Other airplanes there were the equivalent of a Navy DC-3, a PBY Catalina acquired from the Brazil Air Force. I was surprised by the huge expansion of the wings. I knew they were big, just not that these wings were... that BIG and LONGGGG!!! This facility was part of the Seaplane base. This area is also used sometimes by the FUJI blimp as a landing area...

Other parts of Floyd Bennett Field are used as campgrounds, but I have also hear reports that there are a lot of mosquitoes...

Buildings falling apart? Yes, like other old facilities. The hangars taken over by Aviator Sports are those to northwest of the Visitors Center, which was the control tower and passenger terminal. But the hangars to the southeast... are a hazard...

;D


When I asked Eclipse why did he submit those photos, it was not in a negative way. Just that I was surprised that someone did take an interest in that park, because it is that now.

Now about another New York City Airport that is in worse condition, it is the Flushing Airport. Closed because it was so close to LaGuardia Airport there were some close calls. The city has left this airport to be reclaimed by nature. For shame, Flushing Airport was the scene of a crash that claimed the lives of some CAP personnel in an orientation flight.

:-\
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Eclipse

#6
Ask and ye' shall receive...

http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/oct/15/flushing-new-york-forgotten-airport-contested-development-site

http://forgotten-ny.com/1999/07/flushing-airport-part-1/

! No longer available

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flushing_Airport



http://www.airfields-freeman.com/NY/Airfields_NY_NY_Queens.htm#Flushing

"According to the CAP Major Peter Turecek,

Flushing Airport was used by the Civil Air Patrol during the early days of WW2 to operate target towing & tracking missions.
Two CAP pilots were killed in 1943 during tow target & tracking exercises from Flushing:
Captain Gordon Pyle & 2nd Lt Roy Paite."




http://www3.gendisasters.com/new-york/19129/queens-county-ny-civil-air-patrol-plane-crash-may-1977
"CAP 'ORIENTATION' FLIGHT ENDS IN CRASH; CADET DIES.

New York (UPI) -- A Civil Air Patrol plane lifted off from a small airport in Queens County Sunday morning to give young cadets an
"orientation" flight and moments later crashed into a two-family house, killing one cadet and injuring the woman pilot and two other cadets aboard.
None of the victims was identified pending notification of next of kin. The house was believed to be empty at the time of the crash.
Hospital officials said the pilot was in critical condition at Flushing Hospital with multiple fractures. The two cadets were in guarded condition at Booth Memorial Hospital.
The cadet who was killed was pronounced dead at the scene.
Officials said the one-engine Cessna 172 had taken off from Flushing Airport at 10 a.m. EDT and went down moments later, hitting the top floor of a two-story house in the Flushing section of Queens County. The crash caused a fire which was quickly put out by firemen.
Officials said the house is about a mile southeast of the airport, located near Flushing Bay directly across from LaGuardia Airport.
Cindy Clear, 22, who lives directly across from the house, said, "I was lying in bed and heard a big bang. I looked outside and saw a plane sticking out from the roof of the house across the street."
"I was pretty scared. I was shaking. People were coming around to tell us to get out of the house because sparks might have started a fire."
Miss Clear said, "One man pushed his way out of the plane and fell on to the grass. The plane then exploded and there was a big fire."
"The wings fell onto the ground and the rest of the plane was demolished."
Mrs. Maria Capulo, who also lives across the street from the crash said, "The part of the plane where the pilot was was inside the house. There were a lot of flames and I saw them take one body away.


http://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/photo/001057987.html



http://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=47155&key=0

"That Others May Zoom"

Luis R. Ramos

Thanks, Eclipse.

Saved me the work of looking for that info. I had some other info, but this was better than I had seen.

I am always saddened when I read of old facilities closed and not reused.

Two airports in the same general area. Separated by mere miles. What says one has to close and the other prosper?

Flushing Airport, if you look at the location in the map, is really in the boondocks despite being so... in a central place. Yet there was no possible expansion. It was surrounded by heavily built residential areas. Although there are big expressways around, the streets into it were/are small roads.

Meanwhile LaGuardia, same area but plenty more free area to the north... If need be, expand into the Long Island Sound... Expand east, and expand west.

So when the airplane close calls happened, several pilots taking off from Flushing getting too near to those flying into/out of LGA, guess what?

No chance of expansion, guess what?

Goodbye Flushing!

:clap:
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docsteve

I believe that the photo is at Zahns: that's the CAP building in the background and the tail of 218NY behind the spinner of 217.
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DakRadz

Quote from: Luis R. Ramos on June 03, 2016, 10:01:41 PM
About a CAP squadron meeting there... Incorrect information!

Floyd Bennett Cadet Squadron, which met in several buildings of Floyd Bennett Airfield at different times during a long history, last met at the Marine Reserve Compound at Floyd Bennett Field for about five years or so.

Mea culpa.

Their website appears to be down, and the articles I found (at least five years old, as a matter of fact) had some references to the Sq still meeting at the airfield or being a part of it in some way. Some I could only see the archived description on Google, and were in fact no longer available when clicked.

BillB

As a pre-teen during WW II, I helped the CAP Squadron at Flushing or Zahn's but I thought it was southwest of LaGuardia . I was the official GoFor. Sigh, to young to be a cadet When I did join in Florida, I missed by 20 days the time period for the Congressional Gold medal. (20 Jan 1946)
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SarDragon

Quote from: BillB on June 11, 2016, 09:55:54 PM
As a pre-teen during WW II, I helped the CAP Squadron at Flushing or Zahn's but I thought it was southwest of LaGuardia . I was the official GoFor. Sigh, to young to be a cadet When I did join in Florida, I missed by 20 days the time period for the Congressional Gold medal. (20 Jan 1946)

It's 13 miles south of La Guardia, and 7.5 miles southwest of New York International/Idlewild Airport.  8)
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Luis R. Ramos

#12
Billb and SarDragon are mixing three separate airports.

Floyd Bennett Field is the airport that Eclipse mentioned initially on his post.

This airfield is as SarDragon states, about 13 miles south of LaGuardia or LGA. And about 7.5 miles southwest of JFK.

Later as a response to a post from me, Eclipse posts about Flushing Airport. Flushing Airport is not Floyd Bennett Field. Flushing Airport is closed, and is about 1 or 1.5 miles east of LaGuardia. Billb reminisces about Flushing Airport. These three airports, LaGuardia, Flushing, and JFK are in the County of Queens, New York.

Billb also included Zahns Airport on his post about Flushing Airport. They are completely different as well. Zahns Airport also closed was in Amityville. Amityville is about 30 miles from LaGuardia. Around, and this is roughly as I do not live near these counties but in Queens, the border of the Nassau and Suffolk counties of New York.

I may be putting words into Billb's message but I understand he is saying that he spent time at both Flushing and Zahn.
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sardak

#13


Here are some images to help Luis' post. Flushing in the top chart is very close to where LaGuardia is in the lower chart. Floyd Bennett is south of Flushing, just below the word Brooklyn in the upper chart and is shown as closed in the lower one, southwest of JFK. Zahn's is off the top chart to the east of Farmingdale.



Eclipse linked to it in his post, but I think it got overlooked, is Paul Freeman's excellent site Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields The old chart is from his site, and the airport sites discussed are:

New York airports home: http://www.airfields-freeman.com/NY/Airfields_NY.htm
Flushing - http://www.airfields-freeman.com/NY/Airfields_NY_NY_Queens.htm#Flushing
Floyd Bennett - http://www.airfields-freeman.com/NY/Airfields_NY_NY_Brooklyn.htm#Floyd
Zahn's - http://www.airfields-freeman.com/NY/Airfields_NY_LongIs_Suffolk_W.htm#zahns

Mike

SarDragon

Be very, very careful about this site - Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields. It can be a HUGE time sink.
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Garibaldi

Quote from: SarDragon on June 12, 2016, 03:53:39 AM
Be very, very careful about this site - Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields. It can be a HUGE time sink.

Agreed, but it is VERY interesting and informative.
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Quote from: Luis R. Ramos on June 12, 2016, 12:14:53 AMAmityville is about 30 miles from LaGuardia. Around, and this is roughly as I do not live near these counties but in Queens, the border of the Nassau and Suffolk counties of New York.

Amityville is a village in the southwest part of the town of Babylon in Suffolk County. Babylon and Amityville are on the Suffolk side of the Nassau/Suffolk border.