Gurney Airport

Gurney Airport
Gurney Airport
	IATA: GUR; ICAO: AYGN;
Summary
Airport type	Public
Operator	Government
Serves	Alotau, Milne Bay Province, Papua New Guinea
Elevation AMSL	18.6 m / 61 ft
Coordinates	10°18′41″S150°20′01″E / 10.31139°S 150.33361°E
Map
	GUR Location of the airport in Papua New Guinea
Runways
	Source: WAD, GCM

Last updated February 11, 2024

Gurney Airport( IATA : GUR, ICAO : AYGN) is an airport serving Alotau in the Milne Bay Province of Papua New Guinea (PNG).^[1]

History

Built by the US Army 96th Engineer General Service Regiment, Company E of 46th Engineer General Service Regiment and No. 6 Mobile Works Squadron RAAF during World War II. Named after Charles Raymond Gurney an Australian aviator. Consisting of two parallel runways with the first runway 6,000 feet (1,800 m) long by 150 feet (46 m) wide surfaced with bitumen and the second runway 5,340 feet (1,630 m) long x 100 feet (30 m) wide surfaced with marston matting. Taxiways and revetments extended off both sides of the runways. Known as Fall River Aerodrome and No. 1 Strip. The airfield was named Gurney Field on 14 September 1942 in honour of Royal Australian Air Force Squadron Leader C.R. Gurney, who was killed in an aircraft crash.^[4]^[5]^[6]

The airfield was reopened in early 1966, as a part of the Australian colonial policy of having each of the provincial capitals served by daily flights. The last Sunbird PBY service to Samarai was in January of that year. A number of other WWII airfields were reopened in the area, such as Vivigani Airfield and Misima (April 1964). Several airlines then operated daily passenger and freight services into Gurney, using larger aircraft.^[7]

Allied Units based at Gurney Field

8th Fighter Group (18 September 1942 – February 1943)

Headquarters, 35th Fighter Squadron, P-40 Warhawk, 36th Fighter Squadron, (P-39 Airacobra, P-400, and P-40 Warhawk^[8]), 80th Fighter Squadron P-38 Lightning, P-39 Airacobra.

418th Night Fighter Squadron, (V Fighter Command), (2–22 November 1943), P-61 Black Widow
421st Night Fighter Squadron, (V Fighter Command), (4–27 January 1944), P-61 Black Widow
No. 32 Squadron RAAF - (Lockheed Hudson)
No. 75 Squadron RAAF (P-40)
No. 76 Squadron RAAF (P-40)
No. 100 Squadron RAAF
No. 10 Repair and Salvage Unit RAAF
A Troop, 9 Battery, 2/3 Australian Light Anti-aircraft Regiment^[9]

Facilities

The airport resides at an elevation of 88 feet (27 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 09/27 with an asphalt surface measuring 1,690 by 30 metres (5,545 ft × 98 ft).^[7]

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
Air Niugini	Port Moresby
PNG Air	Losuia, Misima Island, Port Moresby

Related Research Articles

Archerfield Airport is a leased federal airport located in Archerfield, 11–12 km (6.8–7.5 mi) to the south of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. For some time, it was the primary airport in Brisbane, but it is now the secondary airport. During World War II, it was used as a Royal Australian Air Force station. Airport traffic peaked in the 1980s. In December 2010, a development plan was released for public comment and included a new parallel runway.

RAAF Base Townsville is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) air base located in Garbutt, 2 nautical miles west of Townsville in Queensland, Australia. It is the headquarters for No. 1 Wing Australian Air Force Cadets and, along with Lavarack Barracks, establishes Townsville as a key military centre. The base's airfield is shared with the Townsville Airport.

Oujda Angads Airport is an airport serving Oujda, a city in the Oriental region in Morocco. it is located about 12 kilometres (7 mi) north of Oujda and about 600 kilometres (373 mi) northeast of Casablanca, near the Algerian border.

Yuba County Airport is in Yuba County, California, United States, three miles southeast of Marysville. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a general aviation facility.

Buka Airport is an airport serving Buka Island in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea.

Momote Airport is an airport on Los Negros Island in the Admiralty Islands, Papua New Guinea. It also serves Manus Island, which is connected to Los Negros by a bridge.

Fenton Airfield was a World War II military airfield in the Northern Territory of Australia located at Tipperary Station in what is now the locality of Douglas-Daly and named after flight lieutenant Clyde Fenton.

Livingstone Airfield was an airfield at what is now Livingstone, Northern Territory, Australia during World War II.

Vivigani Airfield was an airstrip at Vivigani on Goodenough Island, part of the D'Entrecasteaux Islands in Papua New Guinea.

Turnbull Field was an aerodrome near Gili Gili, Papua New Guinea.

Petrie Airfield was a World War II military airfield located just to the south of the North Pine River in what is now Lawnton, Queensland, Australia. After the war, the airfield was dismantled and the area is now part of the urban area of Petrie-Strathpine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mareeba Airfield</span> Airport in Queensland, Australia

Mareeba Airfield is an airfield located 4.3 nautical miles south of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. Built in 1942 as a US Army Air Force base during World War II, the airfield had two runways, with a complement of taxiways, hardstands and a containment area. After the war, much of the airfield reverted to agricultural use, while the southern runway remains as an active airfield.

Cape Gloucester Airport is an airport in West New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea.. The airport is a single runway general aviation facility; at the present time there is no scheduled commercial service to the airport.

Thomasville Regional Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located six nautical miles northeast of the central business district of Thomasville, a city in Thomas County, Georgia, United States. It is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a general aviation facility. The airport does not have scheduled commercial airline service.

Dale Mabry Army Airfield, was a World War II United States Army Air Force located at the Dale Mabry Field airport in Tallahassee, Florida. The military airfield closed in 1946 and the airport was returned to civil use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ambérieu-en-Bugey Air Base</span> Airport in Ambérieu-en-Bugey, France

Ambérieu-en-Bugey Air Base is a front-line French Air and Space Force base located approximately 5 km north-northwest of Ambérieu-en-Bugey, in the Ain department of the Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France.

Dole–Jura Airport, also known as Dole–Besançon–Dijon Airport, is an airport serving Dole, a commune in the Jura department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France. The airport is located 7 km (4 NM) southwest of Dole, and southeast of Tavaux. It was formerly known as Dole–Tavaux Airport. The airport is used for general aviation, and for a few commercial airline services.

Taranto-Grottaglie "Marcello Arlotta" Airport is an airport serving Taranto and Grottaglie, both comunes in the province of Taranto in Italy. The airport is located 1.5 km (0.8 NM) from the city of Monteiasi, 4 km (2.2 NM) from Grottaglie and 16 km (8.6 NM) from Taranto. It is named for Marcello Arlotta (1886-1918), an Italian aviator.

Decimomannu Air Base is an Italian Air Force air base located approximately 5 km (2.7 NM) north of Decimomannu a comune in the Province of Cagliari on the island of Sardinia in Italy.

The Battle of the Bismarck Sea took place in the South West Pacific Area (SWPA) during World War II.

References

This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

1 2 "Airport information for AYGN". World Aero Data. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) Data current as of October 2006. Source: DAFIF.
↑ Airport information for GUR at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
↑ Gurney Airport. PNG Gossip blog. 17 December 2008.
↑ This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency
↑ Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.
↑ www.pacificwrecks.com
1 2 "AYGN/Alotau/Gurney General Airport Information". acukwik.com. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
↑ Flight logs of 1st Lt William T. Brown
↑ Rae, CJE, Harris, AL & Bryant, RK 1987, On target: the story of the 2/3 Australian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment from formation on 18th July 1940 until disbandment on 14 July 1943 and the subsequent service of 7th Battery, 8th Battery, and 9th Battery, until the end of World War II , 2/3rd Australian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment Association, [Melbourne].

External links

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[WAD-1] 1 2 "Airport information for AYGN". World Aero Data. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) Data current as of October 2006. Source: DAFIF.

[GCM-2] Airport information for GUR at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).

[3] Gurney Airport. PNG Gossip blog. 17 December 2008.

[4] This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

[5] Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-89201-092-4.

[6] www.pacificwrecks.com

[AYGN-7] 1 2 "AYGN/Alotau/Gurney General Airport Information". acukwik.com. Retrieved 28 May 2020.

[8] Flight logs of 1st Lt William T. Brown

[9] Rae, CJE, Harris, AL & Bryant, RK 1987, On target: the story of the 2/3 Australian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment from formation on 18th July 1940 until disbandment on 14 July 1943 and the subsequent service of 7th Battery, 8th Battery, and 9th Battery, until the end of World War II , 2/3rd Australian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment Association, [Melbourne].

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]