Fort Worth Meacham International Airport

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Fort Worth Meacham International Airport
Fort Worth Meacham International Airport Logo.png
FTW Airport Diagram.svg
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorCity of Fort Worth
Serves Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex
Location Fort Worth, Texas
Elevation  AMSL 710 ft / 216 m
Coordinates 32°49′11.2″N97°21′44.8″W / 32.819778°N 97.362444°W / 32.819778; -97.362444
Website www.meacham.com
Map
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FTW/KFTW/FTW
Location of airport in Texas / United States
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FTW/KFTW/FTW
FTW/KFTW/FTW (the United States)
Fort Worth Meacham International Airport
Runways
Direction LengthSurface
ftm
9/27 (closed)3,6771,121 Asphalt
16/347,5022,287 Concrete
17/354,0051,221Asphalt

Fort Worth Meacham International Airport (Meacham Field) ( IATA : FTW, ICAO : KFTW, FAA LID : FTW) is a general aviation airport located near the intersection of Interstate 820 and Business U.S. Highway 287 in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It is named after former Fort Worth Mayor Henry C. Meacham. [2] The airport covers 745 acres (301 ha). [1]

Contents

History

Postcard of Fort Worth Municipal Airport, undated Municipal Airport (20107662).jpg
Postcard of Fort Worth Municipal Airport, undated
Civilian training school students and instructors at Meacham Field in 1942 Civilian training school, students and instructors 1a34247v.jpg
Civilian training school students and instructors at Meacham Field in 1942

Meacham Airport was purchased by the city of Fort Worth on July 3, 1925, named Fort Worth Municipal Airport. In 1927 the airport was renamed Meacham Field after former Fort Worth Mayor Henry C. Meacham. [2] During World War II, Meacham Field was used as a stop for military aircraft traveling from Eastern factories heading to the Pacific coast. [3]

Meacham was Fort Worth's major airport until April 1953 when major carriers moved to Amon Carter Field (later Greater Southwest International Airport). [3] The January 1953 OAG shows 50 weekday airline departures from Meacham, 33 of which headed for Dallas. None of the others flew nonstop north of Wichita Falls, west of Midland, south of Austin or east of Dallas.

Since 1953 Meacham Airport has been used for corporate aircraft, commuter flights, and student pilot training. It was renamed in 1985 to Fort Worth Meacham Airport and in 1995 to Fort Worth Meacham International Airport. Since 1953 seven airlines have tried scheduled passenger flights from Meacham; none lasted more than a couple of years.

In April 2006 low-cost carrier Skybus Airlines expressed interest in operating out of the airfield as it started operations in 2007, but it folded before the repeal of the Wright Amendment in 2014. [4]

On 16 April 2008, the American Airways Hangar and Administration Building, constructed at the airport in 1933, was added to the National Register of Historic Places. [5]

On 15 January 2015, the airport advisory board voted to permanently close runway 9/27 to make room for additional hangars. The runway had been closed for about a year due to deteriorating pavement. [6]

In 2018, city officials and company founder David Neeleman hinted that a proposed low-cost carrier, tentatively named Moxy, now named Breeze Airways may operate from Meacham starting in 2020. Due to COVID-19 Breeze's launch has been delayed. City aviation director at the time Bill Welstead denied holding discussions with Moxy but confirmed that Frontier Airlines and Allegiant Air were interested in serving the airport. Although the city has recently spent millions of dollars on several projects to improve airport facilities for general aviation, Welstead claimed that the city was not actively planning to build adequate terminal parking for passengers, which he said would be necessary before commercial airline service could begin. [7]

Current operations

Meacham is currently used for general aviation purposes. Several companies operate aircraft services at the airport, including a division of the U.S. defense contractor Alliant Techsystems (ATK) and Texas Aviation Services. [8] An aviation museum (open weekends and by appointment during the week) is located in Hangar 33S on the airport's south side, at the end of Ellis Street. The terminal building houses several ATK employees, some Fort Worth city departments (mainly Aviation and Housing Development), a branch of Enterprise Rent-A-Car, and several aviation-related businesses. The Civil Air Patrol operates two squadrons at Meacham, the Fort Worth Senior Squadron, and the Phoenix Composite Squadron. There are two FBOs operating on the field: Modern Aviation and Texas Jet. In 2020 the FBO Cornerstone Air Center closed its doors. In summer the of 2024 the old American Aero FBO owned by Robert Bass sold to Modern Aviation.

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Bombardier Business Jet Solutions Charter: Dallas/Fort Worth, Austin
Citationshares Charter: Providence, Dallas/Fort Worth
Netjets Charter: Charlotte
Charter Fleet International Charter: Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston–Intercontinental, Angel Fire, Austin
Clay Lacy Aviation Charter: Los Angeles–Van Nuys, New York–Waterbury-Oxford, Miami–Opa Locka, Portland (OR), other destinations nationwide

At one time Fort Worth Airlines had its headquarters at the airport. [9]

Accidents and incidents

See also

References

  1. 1 2 FAA Airport Form 5010 for FTW PDF , effective January 31, 2019.
  2. 1 2 Meacham Field History Texas State Historical Association
  3. 1 2 Johnson, Dennis K. (July 2025). "Fort Worth Meacham International Airport". Pilot. Vol. 68, no. 7. AOPA.
  4. The Airline News April 7, 2006 [ permanent dead link ]
  5. "National Register Information System  American Airways Hangar and Administration Building (#08000317)". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. November 2, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2020.
  6. Hirst, Caty (January 17, 2015). "Fort Worth Meacham Airport could get more hangar space, jobs". Fort Worth Star-Telegram . Fort Worth, Texas. Retrieved August 29, 2020.
  7. Baker, Sandra (June 21, 2018). "It's been 20 years, but could commercial airline service be returning to Meacham Airport?". Fort Worth Star-Telegram . Fort Worth, Texas.
  8. "Welcome to Texas Aviation Services". www.texasaviationservices.com. Archived from the original on December 14, 2009. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  9. "World Airline Directory." Flight International. March 30, 1985. 83." "Meacham Field, Fort Worth, Texas, USA."
  10. "NTSB Aviation Accident Final Report FTW83LA012". National Transportation Safety Board . Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  11. "NTSB Aviation Accident Final Report FTW84FA156". National Transportation Safety Board . Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  12. "NTSB Aviation Accident Final Report FTW89FA117". National Transportation Safety Board . Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  13. "NTSB Aviation Accident Final Report FTW97FA044". National Transportation Safety Board . Retrieved November 1, 2019.
  14. "NTSB Aviation Accident Final Report FTW98LA134". National Transportation Safety Board . Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  15. "Skyhawks Displays". skyhawk.org. Skyhawk Association. Retrieved November 4, 2019.