33. Grenada 1983 - Point Salines Airport

A US Air Force C-141 Starlifter on the runway at Point Salines.

The Cubans had begun construction of this 9,000-foot runway back in 1979.  (Remember a Mile is 5280 feet, so 9000 feet is about 1.7 miles long).  Its ostensible purpose was to improve Grenada's sagging tourist trade, but documents captured later also indicate a military potential.  The Cubans planned to use the airport as a staging base for airlifting supplies to their troops in Africa, and as a refueling stop for Soviet planes enroute to Nicaragua.

Another photo taken from the back of a truck.  This C-141 is painted in a green camouflage pattern.  The one we flew down in from Fort Bragg / Pope Air Force Base was painted white.