Jump to content

Kirtland AFB info


Guest lovelacm

Recommended Posts

right outside the Eubank gate it's not bad, just know that the Eubank gate has specific hrs that it's open (06-18 or something like that), weekdays only. The only 24 hr gates are the Truman and Wyoming gates.

Edited by stract
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 years later...

Looking for a general update to the Kirtland info. For folks who have been there any significant period of time, what's your thoughts on the base, town, area, options, etc. Right now this is an option I can accept, or turn down and take my chances with who knows what.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I love ABQ. The base is fairly nice, lots of civilians with the DOE pretty much running the east side. Best places to live IMHO are the NW Heights, west by Coors, or on base. Lots of guys live east of town in Moriarty as well. Food is amazing. Lots of things to do in the surrounding areas as well if your an outdoorsy type.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Spent a month there TDY in the last year. Town seems pretty legit compared to where most Air Force bases are located. Good food selection and all the amenities you could want shopping, airport, things to do outdoors, etc. You have the usual terrible southwest United States drivers to deal with (no kidding I drove past an accident scene in an intersection over half the times I left base).

I think cost of living wise you can do pretty darn well on officers pay, but I am sure someone else that is stationed there can speak to it more intelligently. I am not to up on the school/housing situation if that is a major consideration.

Oh and Moriarty is one of the biggest/best glider ports in the country with a really solid commercial glider outfit if that interests you at all.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

ABQ is great for outdoor things, heck, all of NM is great for this. Low cost of living compared to many other places. Skiing on Sandia Peak, better skiing 1.5-2 hrs away (Santa Fe/Taos/Angel Fire), lots and lots of cultural things to do/explore. There is an awesome network of paved bike trails throughout the city, and plenty of places for unpaved mountain biking in town and nearby. Food choices are great, there's a budding food truck scene, microbreweries on every corner. Minor League baseball team in town (Isotopes), UNM basketball. Wine festival in May, Balloon Fiesta in Oct, AMAZING wx (all 4 seasons).

Drawbacks include crappy drivers (and some of them drunk), petty crime (more prevalent in certain areas), road system kinda sucks, can't get anywhere fast it seems.

I echo was Brecky says regarding where to live...I live on the NW side, Paseo and Unser area (west mesa, near Double Eagle airport). I looked at a shit ton of houses in the NE Heights and they were either old and in desperate need of a remodel (which is not really my thing, but might be yours), or priced out of my range (for those that have already been remodeled). Definitely more bang for the buck on the west side. Nob Hill is also a pretty cool place, but that's $$$ and does put you closer to the less-than-desireable parts of town (so a garage would be a must in that area unless you like having your car broken into). General rule of thumb, the farther north of Central you get, the less crime there is.

There is a new build just east of base called Volterra. To me, all the houses felt on top of each other, no views, and only one road in and out, which makes me think it's a giant traffic jam in the mornings trying to leave the hood to get to base. But if having a short commute is important to you, and you figure you'll only be there for 3 years, might be up your alley. Base housing is pretty nice, it's fairly new, but you won't get much of a back yard.

If you live east of the pass (Edgewood, Moriarty, Cedar Crest, Tijeras, you will definitely get more bang for your buck, and nice big lots. Tradeoff is you've put yourself 30 min from base, 45 min from downtown, and when there is WX, it all dumps over there. Really just depends what your priorities are.

BLAB: ABQ is awesome, you could do way worse than an assignment here...sorry I don't have any gouge on schools.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If I were living in ABQ, my first bet would be living in the mountains east of the 40 pass(shoot guns on my own property). Second would be at the foothills in the north east part of town(epic mountain biking from my back yard). Third would be in the north west part of town(safe and comfortable). Knob hill is a single dude thing, probably not your ballywick unless you and the old lady really really like to hangout at restaurants and cafes and whatnot.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nob Hill north of Central Ave if square footage and school quality aren't big deals. The convenience is unbeatable, easy access to the whole city, and I like the older houses. It's fine that everyone from base has this weird idea that crime is worse or that it's all hipsters and hippies, because I'm $450/mo under BAH and can ride my bicycle to work in half the time it takes to drive from Rio Rancho.

That being said, the foothills and the NE Heights have several good neighborhoods. If you need 5 bedrooms, RR is the way to go. If you want a lot of land, go east mountains, but an O-3/O-4 can afford an acre or two near the river in the North Valley or Corrales if you want kind of a cool combination of rural-but-still-urban.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The wife and I keep our airplanes and gliders in a hanger out in Moriarty. Have an apartment built into the hanger with beer taps coming out of the wall. Pretty much our idea of the perfect vacation home. Suggest looking at Edgewood/Cedar Crest area, I can give you the name of a great realtor if you want to live in the East Mountains. Love New Mexico and the surrounding ABQ area, and where we plan to retire. IMHO, ABQ is a great town to "Go into", but I would not personally choose to live there. Let me know, and I can put you in touch with a retired Colonel/Nam POW out there who loves helping AF dudes out with getting settled. You going to the Safety Center?

Edited by discus
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't live in Rio Rancho unless you want a 45+ min commute, which isn't necessary being stationed at Kirtland. Like others have said, live in the Foothills/NE Heights or East Mountains. As for the schools, the ones in those areas will be best, outside of private/Catholic schools.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 tours in ABQ, left in 2011. Lived in Far NE Heights both times, public schools are the best (La Cueva HS) but still so-so. Would have sent my kids to St. Pius for HS, but elementary and middle schools were fine.
  • Pretty easy commute to base, close to everything else (tram, hiking/biking, golf, etc). East Mountains definitely a different flavor, recommend a visit if you have time. Not a fan of Nob Hill, but have a close friend who lives there and they love it (of course, they've had one home burglary already). Friends who lived in Rio Rancho liked it, but spent a lot of time in their cars commuting (and they were going to the west side of the base; your commute to the safety center on the far east side would be worse).
  • Weather (other than the wind in the spring) was phenomenal. Beer/food scene excellent as well.
  • Abq is an underrated area, IMO. Some negatives, but a lot of positives as well. A bit like Tucson, without the blazing heat.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Discus - if I go, it would be the safety center.

Thanks so far for the info. Anybody got updated gouge for middle/high schools?

The Safety Center is on the far East side of base. Living in Edgewood is even easier because you can just hit the Eubank gate and not have to deal with 5 miles of traffic on base.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was there for a short time. Needed a place quick and found a nice place in Rio Rancho. It was cheap and had a lot of space. Pretty much perfect, then I drove to work in the traffic. It was about an hour commute. :bash:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

aside, the Sandia National Labs cafeteria on base is awesome. Open to everyone (mil get a free drink with your meal). They also serve breakfast. I have a friend who works there who pointed me to it. Slightly more expensive than the Kirtland chow hall, with more and better food options, and no ridiculous requirement for Os to be on TDY orders to partake.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm on my 4th TDY there in 2 years. (6 months for FTU 2 years ago, 1 week and 3 week trips for safety school 1.5 years ago, and I am back for 5.5months for another FTU)

I'll echo what other's are saying, all the recommended areas are really nice and pretty different, so I suggest checking them all out. For my two FTU trips I got an apartment in the NE Heights and love it up here. Lots of easy access to running/biking/hiking trails, and great views, but as other's have said $$$.

Great weather, if you do any recreational flying, there is awesome flying here.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

I figured this was the closest thread to the topic.

"The National Museum of Nuclear Science & History" near Kirtland AFB is an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institute. They are seeking funding to restore a B-29 display.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/nuclear-museum/restoration-of-the-b-29-superfortress-at-nuclear-m

http://www.nuclearmuseum.org/visit/faqs/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

They added an F-16 sporting a pair of B61s, with some working pseudo-nav. lights.
They were working on a couple statics a month or so ago, but in general, they still need a lot of mx to look nice.

Edited by raimius
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...