While researching industry for my freelance road I came across info on the OpSig Industry Database illustrating the shipment of F16 fuselage assemblies being shipped from Tulsa to St. Louis. I don't know if this is accurate though, as it lists McDonnell Douglas as the shipper, and receiver, and the F16 was a General Dynamics product. General Dynamics was later purchased by Lockheed, and if I recall the F16 was built in Fort Worth. Anyone have anything on this? If it is true I would love to know how they shipped the assemblies.
McDonald Douglas in Tulsa did ship F-15 aft fusealge and pylons to their plant in St. Louis. These were made by truck rather than rail. The plant was closed around 1997 or 98. Tulsa's Rockwell International who merged with Boeing in 1996 has shipped 747 center fusealge and wing sections by rail to Seattle since 1967. McDonald Douglas merged with Boeing around 1998 and then the Tulsa plant was sold to Spirit around 2004. However the 747 sections have still been running over former Frisco rails in special built freight cars to this day. Joe
So it looks like whoever submitted to the OpSig Database mislabeled the cargo as F16 assemblies when they were F15. Do you know how these were shipped - boxcars, flatcars?
The McDonald Douglas F-15 assemblies were shipped by truck. The 747 assys from Rockwell Int. > Boeing > Spirit were the only out going rail traffic from Tulsa's aircraft industries. 1967 to present. Joe
