On Thursday, June 25, a group of CAP cadets from the Orlando Squadron and the CFCS took a tour of the bombing ground at Pinecastle Bombing Range.
After a detailed security presentation, we were escorted to different areas of the facilities that housed the testing equipment and monitoring systems.
In the monitoring rooms were maps of the bombing range and the selected areas that the bombing is done on. There were computers and monitors with cameras trained on all the different areas of the bombing range AND the state of Florida to keep track of incoming planes.
The testing equipment is used to test, via laser, how the bombs react to certain conditions. The unit alone cost over One Million dollars….
After lunch we were taken to the “cemetery” where military tanks, trucks, etc. are taken to be “cleaned” and used on the bombing grounds. Then we were taken to the “city” where the inert bombs and shells are tested. The “city” is a large group of metal cargo boxes painted with “doors & windows”
In the late afternoon we climbed an extremely tall tower and were able to watch the actual test bombings from two F18's from the USS Eisenhower stationed off the coast of Florida.
It was a great time for all and enjoyed by cadets and senior members alike!
Submitted by 1Lt Veralynne Malone
After a detailed security presentation, we were escorted to different areas of the facilities that housed the testing equipment and monitoring systems.
In the monitoring rooms were maps of the bombing range and the selected areas that the bombing is done on. There were computers and monitors with cameras trained on all the different areas of the bombing range AND the state of Florida to keep track of incoming planes.
The testing equipment is used to test, via laser, how the bombs react to certain conditions. The unit alone cost over One Million dollars….
After lunch we were taken to the “cemetery” where military tanks, trucks, etc. are taken to be “cleaned” and used on the bombing grounds. Then we were taken to the “city” where the inert bombs and shells are tested. The “city” is a large group of metal cargo boxes painted with “doors & windows”
In the late afternoon we climbed an extremely tall tower and were able to watch the actual test bombings from two F18's from the USS Eisenhower stationed off the coast of Florida.
It was a great time for all and enjoyed by cadets and senior members alike!
Submitted by 1Lt Veralynne Malone
