The Westover heritage display was one part of this weekend’s Great New England Air Show, which will run through 4 p.m. Sunday.
CHICOPEE – Five planes parked in a circle showed much of the history of what is now Westover Air Reserve Base.
The B-52 Stratofortresss, flown at the base from 1956 to 1972, was next to the KC-135 Stratotanker, flown from 1957 to 1975. Nearby was the C-123 Provider, which arrived at Westover in 1973 and remained until 1982, and the C-130 Hercules that flew out of Westover from 1974 until 1987. Today’s C-5B Galaxy completed the circle.
The Westover heritage display was one part of this weekend’s Great New England Air Show, which will run through 4 p.m. Sunday. More than 60 aircraft were on display and the event offered dozens of aerial acts, said Master Sgt. Andrew S. Biscoe, a public relations technician for the base.
Saturday’s show attracted 110,000 people. Overcast skies delayed aerial shows for about an hour, but weather cleared so stunt pilots could take off and parachute teams could jump, Biscoe said.
With high humidity and temperatures in the 90s, visitors were encouraged to keep hydrated. The American Red Cross set up a tent to help people who were feeling ill, but no serious problems were reported.
“We are proud to do this. People of Western Massachusetts know us well because of our appearance in the sky and we want them to come in and see what we do,” Biscoe said.
All 4,300 military Reservists were at the base for the show. Many led tours of the planes and answered questions.
The Westover heritage display proved popular with visitors. Many wanted to tour a C-5B jet that they see flying overhead while veterans reminisced about flying in some of the older planes.
The B-52, widely used in World War II, and the KC-135 were generally used together since the main role of the KC-135 was to refuel aircraft while it was flying, Biscoe said.
“We used to live in Indian Orchard and I remember all of those planes flying over the house, the B-52, the KC-135,” said Walter Loughary, of Westfield. “The worst thing was the KC-135 crash, it lit up the whole area.”
That June 27, 1958, accident off Fuller Road killed all 15 on board including the base commander. It happened during an attempt to show off the capabilities of the aircraft by setting a record on a trans-Atlantic flight.
Russ McKenna, of South Hadley, said he remembers the B-52s flying overhead when he was a child. Looking at the C-123 Provider, he said it brings back memories of serving in the Marine Corps in Vietnam.
“The C-123 Provider was the big troops carrier when I was in Vietnam in ‘65 and ‘66,” he said. “It was big in Vietnam, they brought in a lot of troops and it was a mail carrier and it brought in supplies.”
The C-130 came to Westover when it transitioned from a full-time Strategic Air Command to a reserve base.
“It was huge and it put Westover on the map,” Biscoe said. The C-130 and the KC-135 continue to be used today by the 439th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron. While Westover does not fly the planes, squadrons from other bases work with them so they can treat and evacuate patients, said Lt. Col. Thomas Chafe, of Manchester-by-the Sea, a member of the squadron.
“The C-130 can get us into small places. It will land on an unimproved runway. It can land on a dirt runway,” he said.
The C-5 is mainly used to move large equipment and supplies, the C-130 is better to move patients and is often used by the squadron when members have been deployed to Afghanistan or Iraq, he said.
During the show, members of the 439th airlift wing demonstrated how the C-5 is used. Inside they parked several jeeps to show its capacity to carry large cargo.
When the 16 C-5’s came to Westover in 1987, it transformed the base’s mission.
“It carries big cargo and that was the start of a new era for Westover. It was a huge, huge change,” Biscoe said.
To help with traffic gates to the base will open at 8:30 a.m. at 803 James St., 2255 Westover Road, and 120 New Ludlow Road in Granby.