Shown below are images of stored and about-to-be-scrapped civil airliners taken while overflying Mojave Airport, located in the inland high
desert region of Southern California. Covering more than 3000 acres, Mojave Air and Space Port has evolved over many decades from a
military base to a general aviation airport to its current air storage and space training center. The location houses more than 60 companies
which foster industrial and aeronautical research and design and flight testing. The commercial aviation industry uses such companies
to inspect, store and scrap airliners. There are also companies at the site which engage in engine, airframe and cockpit development.
The site is also home to the National Test Pilot School, where more test pilots are educated than at any other location in the world. Flights
over Mojave were taken from Barnes Aviation at General Fox Airport in Lancaster, California.
Typically, at the end of its useful lifespan, a civil airliner is either stored for repurchase or is scrapped for recoverable metals utilized for recycling.
In some extreme cases, a newer airliner may be repossessed and stored for later resale by a leasing company. In the southwestern part of
the US, there are many such storage locations, commonly referred to as “airliner graveyards” (or “boneyards”) where jets simply sit in the
sun awaiting either a new life, or death by the scrapper. Two such boneyard airports, Mojave and Victorville, are depicted below.
Enjoy the images and please email if you have specific publication needs for any particular aircraft or scene.
Shown below are images of stored and about-to-be-scrapped civil airliners taken while overflying Victorville Airport, located in the inland high
desert region of Southern California, east of Los Angeles. Buried high in the isolated inland California dessert, Victorville was once George Air
Force Base for nearly 50 years prior to 1992, whereupon the base was converted to an international logistical base for imported goods for the
southern California region. Furthermore, the site has also become a location for the storage, retrofitting and repainting of a variety of
commercial airliners. Flights over Victorville were taken from Apple Valley Flight School in Apple Valley, California.
Website and all contents Copyright Edward Pascuzzi 2000, 2015
