When I was in college I lived about a mile south of the runway at Plattsburgh AFB, There was a road that ran by the edge of the base and I would do my runs down that road and back Watching the BUFFs take off and land was very cool especially with a crosswind.
Every now and then they would take off a lot of the 52's and tankers in a short time, I always wondered if I should get in my car and drive south as fast as I could.
Back in the old SAC days we had annual Operational Readiness Inspections (ORI). All airplanes on base are generated for EWO (inert bomb and missle loads) and then fly a refueling/bombing mission. You saw the launch portion. Recovery was worse...
And yes if it had been an actual launch you'd have had enough time to stick your head between your legs and kiss your a$$ good bye. You'd have been vaporized right quick.
