Home > Maine > Limestone vicinity > Loring Air Force Base, Airfield, Central portion of base, Limestone, Aroostook County, ME
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Item Title
LocationCentral portion of base,
Limestone vicinity, ME
Find maps of Limestone, ME
Created/Published
Documentation compiled after 1968.
Notes
Survey number HAER ME-64-A
Building/structure dates:
1947 initial construction
Significance: The airfield was the center of the strategic mission of Loring Air Force Base. It was one of the earliest airfields designed specifically for the B-36, which was the newest aircraft in the Strategic Air Command (SAC) inventory at that time. The airfield was designed and built using specialized construction techniques in response to difficult and unusual site condition, and the enormous weight and size of the B-36 bomber. Important construction features included the extent of the heavy earthwork, the establishment of on-site quarries, the unusual 70-inch foundation thickness, the bituminous concrete pavement that provided a flexible base for aircraft landings and take-offs, and the dimensions of the runway. At 12,000 feet, the runway was one of the world's longest at that time.
Subjects
Military Art & ScienceDefense IndustryAircraft Industry
Related Names
USACE
Lane Construction Corporation
T.W. Cunningham, Incorporated
Collection
Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)
Contents
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