Yokota to Elmendorf

Author Message   Lester Green Advanced Member Username: Rtgreen5 Post Number: 333 Registered: 03-2007 Posted From: 24.60.242.66 Posted on Thursday, June 24, 2010 - 06:19 pm:    Nstiq8or: The base that you wrote about as being the current site of Showa Park, was Tachikawa AFB, at one time the largest US air base in Japan. After the Vietnam war, the base closed and most of its operations were transferred to Yokota AFB in Fussa. "Tachi", as it was known, was a beehive of activity during the Korean and Vietnam wars. It was a major materiel depot for the Air Force and was, as well, a home for a squadron of airlift aircraft such as the C-124s and C-130s which flew throughout the Far East. All of that is now history.   Sarah Ekstrom Member Username: Tn_mom Post Number: 12 Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 76.7.123.66 Posted on Thursday, June 24, 2010 - 04:46 pm:    We found out that retirees can eat in the dining facilities at Elmendorf and at Fort Richardson. Elmendorf is a la carte and Fort Richardson is buffet (all you want to eat or drink for one low price)   John Stabb Member Username: Jastabb Post Number: 13 Registered: 10-2007 Posted From: 66.223.131.23 Posted on Thursday, June 24, 2010 - 03:41 pm:    Good info on Elmendorf.   Carole G Advanced Member Username: Greengal Post Number: 337 Registered: 01-2010 Posted From: 68.205.151.181 Posted on Wednesday, June 23, 2010 - 01:45 am:    Glad to see you continued your report. Are you going to get us back to Jackson,MS? You write nice trip reports with lots of good information. Enjoyed.   Nstig8or Member Username: Nstig8or Post Number: 20 Registered: 07-2009 Posted From: 96.19.43.111 Posted on Wednesday, June 23, 2010 - 01:23 am:    This picks up from the end of my Andrews-Yokota thread. The KC-135 was from the 909th and they did some refueling enroute for our 3 F-16 escorts. The Boom let us come down and watch from his vantage point and it was incredible. It was about a 7-1/2 hour flight. I spent a lot of that time helping a mother with 3 young ones. I am glad there are those not afraid to go space-a with their kids, but I don't know how they do it alone. I have a lot of respect for this particular mother. We arrived around 2230 and there was nothing open and there was no transportation available. The pax rep was nice enough to drive us over to lodging, only to be told there were no rooms. We spent the night in their main lobby until the mother and kids got a taxi back to the terminal for their next flight. I took a shuttle to the hospital to meet up with a friend and spent the next few days exploring Alaska. We went to the Seward Rec Ctr and got discount tickets for a 3 hour cruise. (Remind you of Gilligan's Island?) If you have a choice, only do it on a sunny day. We saw glaciers, eagles, sealions, seals, whales, porpoises, puffins and more types of birds than I know. The Rec Ctr also has discount tickets for the SeaLife Center at Seward. It was worth the money. One thing about Elmendorf, you have to learn the ropes: - Just because lodging says they don't have rooms, don't take that at face value, sometimes it's the person there face-to-face that gets a room. It actually happened the other way for 2 retirees who were at the desk when they were told there were no rooms, but when they called from the lobby, they got rooms! - Also, shuttles only run during the week. The base shuttle if free, the ASYMCA is $1 + any donation you would like to make and will come to places the shuttle doesn't. -If you are there during the day, the ASYMCA is a fantastic place to while away the time. They have computers, wii's, pool table, darts, books, etc. It is upstairs from the Kashim Club. -Some of the base restaurants close for the summer -It is cheaper to rent cars from a rent-a-wreck type place like Denali Rentals. -Retirees can eat at the Iditarod Dining Facility for regular hour meals -If you have a lot of bags, ask for the buildings closest to the terminal so you won't have so far to walk for departure. -Some, if not all, lodging had wifi. -Always check if there will be an extended lull in transportation...there were no flights out of state for almost a week. I believe that it may correspond with Red Flag, but may be more frequent