When I transferred from NAF Atsugi AIMD to NAF Misawa AIMD, I was sent to the T-56 FRAMP in El Toro, California. I attended the school from April 04 through May 23, 1994. The Allison T-56-A-14 turbo-prop engine is used on the P-3C Orion anti-submarine patrol aircraft. Because the Navy and Marine Corps had integrated training on the T-56 engines, I learned on the C-130 version. The P-3 version is different because the designers had inverted the engines on the wings and raised the gearbox to a higher position. There are other minor differences between the two types, but they are basically the same engine.

While I was assigned to the school, I spent several weekends at the base museum and attended El Toro's annual air show. I was also present when ex-President Nixon's body was brought through the base on the way to his funeral at Yorba Linda. The museum had several restored aircraft on display and several others undergoing restoration. In the back of the museum was a small aircraft graveyard. There was even an Iraqi Bell 214ST, which had been captured during Operation DESERT STORM. To top it all off, the main gate had a line-up of various aircraft used throughout the years by the Marines. The photos on these pages are from the museum, the gate guards, and the 1994 MCAS El Toro Air Show. When MCAS El Toro closed in 1999, the gate guards and museum aircraft were moved to the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum at MCAS Miramar, California.