Val Verde County Airport

Val Verde County Airport
Val Verde County Airport; Del Rio Field
	Val Verde County Airport - Texas, 26 October 1943
	IATA: none; ICAO: none;
Summary
Built	1919
In use	1919-1959
Coordinates	29°22′37″N100°49′12″W / 29.37694°N 100.82000°W Coordinates: 29°22′37″N100°49′12″W / 29.37694°N 100.82000°W
Map
	Val Verde County Airport Val Verde County Airport, Texas
Runways
	Runway information from: Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields:Texas - Laredo area

Last updated September 20, 2019

Val Verde County Airport is a former airport, located in Del Rio, Texas. Airport operations ended in 1959. Today the former airport is a residential site.

Del Rio is a city and the county seat of Val Verde County in southwestern Texas, United States. The city is 152 miles west of San Antonio. Located within six miles of its namesake the Rio Grande, Del Rio is connected to Ciudad Acuña by the Lake Amistad Dam International Crossing and Del Río – Ciudad Acuña International Bridge. As of 2015, Del Rio had a population of 40,549. It is also home to Laughlin Air Force Base, the busiest pilot-training base in the United States Air Force.

History

The airport was established by the Air Service, United States Army in 1919 as a military airfield. It was constructed as a base for observation overflights along the Mexican Border. During this period, Mexico was enduring a period of revolution and unrest, which led to border violations and the deaths of American citizens.

Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and to the east by the Gulf of Mexico. Covering almost 2,000,000 square kilometers (770,000 sq mi), the nation is the fourth largest country in the Americas by total area and the 13th largest independent state in the world. With an estimated population of over 129 million people, Mexico is the tenth most populous country and the most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world, while being the second most populous nation in Latin America after Brazil. Mexico is a federation comprising 31 states plus Mexico City (CDMX), which is the capital city and its most populous city. Other metropolises in the country include Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, Toluca, Tijuana, and León.

Flight "A" of the 90th Squadron (Surveillance) arrived at Del Rio Field on 12 June 192with de Havilland DH-4 aircraft, and flew observation missions along the border.^[1] The 90th operated from Del Rio until the Border Patrol operation ended in June 1921.^[1]

The next use of the airfield was when the Department of Commerce refitted the facility as one of its network of Intermediate Landing Fields, which were established in the 1920s & 1930s to serve as emergency landing fields along commercial airways between major cities. It was opened in November 1937 as Val Verde County Airport. On September 26, 1942, during World War II, the airport was taken over by the United States Army Air Forces and used as a contract primary pilot training airfield under the AAF Gulf Coast Training Center (later Central Flying Training Command). Flying training was performed with Fairchild PT-19s as the primary trainer. Also had several PT-17 Stearmans and a few P-40 Warhawks assigned. The training school was inactivated at the end of the war, and the airport was returned to civil control on January 11, 1946. ^[2]^[3]^[4]

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from more than 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 70 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

The United States Army Air Forces, informally known as the Air Force, was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army during and immediately after World War II (1939/41–1945), successor to the previous United States Army Air Corps and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force of today, one of the five uniformed military services. The AAF was a component of the United States Army, which on 2 March 1942 was divided functionally by executive order into three autonomous forces: the Army Ground Forces, the Services of Supply, and the Army Air Forces. Each of these forces had a commanding general who reported directly to the Army Chief of Staff.

The Fairchild PT-19 is an American Fairchild Aircraft monoplane primary trainer aircraft that served with the United States Army Air Forces, RAF and RCAF during World War II. It was a contemporary of the Kaydet biplane trainer and was used by the USAAF during Primary Flying Training. As with other USAAF trainers of the period, the PT-19 had multiple designation(s) based on the powerplant installed.

During the postwar years, the airport remained dormant. It was re-activated by the United States Air Force in 1952 as an auxiliary landing airfield supporting the pilot training mission of Laughlin AFB. In 1958 it was re-designated Laughlin Service Annex, and was disposed of in 1959.^[5]

The United States Air Force (USAF) is the aerial and space warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the seven American uniformed services. Initially formed as a part of the United States Army on 1 August 1907, the USAF was established as a separate branch of the U.S. Armed Forces on 18 September 1947 with the passing of the National Security Act of 1947. It is the youngest branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, and the fourth in order of precedence. The USAF is the largest and most technologically advanced air force in the world. The Air Force articulates its core missions as air and space superiority, global integrated intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, rapid global mobility, global strike, and command and control.

Val Verde County Airport was presumably never reused after that point for civilian aviation, undoubtedly caused by its proximity to Laughlin AFB. The land was sold to private developers and houses and streets began to be overlaid over the former airport.^[5] However, the runways remained visible in aerial photography over the years, with some of the runways being converted into streets. Today, some of the old runways remain abandoned but quite visible in aerial imagery.

Related Research Articles

Mesa Del Rey Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located one nautical mile (2 km) northeast of the central business district of King City, in Monterey County, California, United States. It is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a general aviation facility.

Grider Field is a public airport five miles southeast of Pine Bluff, in Jefferson County, Arkansas. The FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2009–2013 categorized it as a general aviation airport.

Fort Stockton–Pecos County Airport is two miles NW of Fort Stockton, Texas; it is owned and operated by Pecos County, Texas.

Garner Field is an airport in Uvalde County, Texas, three miles east of the city of Uvalde, which owns it. It is named for John Nance Garner, 32nd Vice President of the United States.

Marlboro County Jetport, also known as H.E. Avent Field, is a county-owned public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) west of the central business district of Bennettsville, in Marlboro County, South Carolina, United States.

Charleston Executive Airport is a public use airport located in Charleston in Charleston County, South Carolina, United States. It is approximately six nautical miles (11 km) southwest of the central business district of the city. It is owned by the Charleston County Aviation Authority. The airport serves the general aviation community, with no scheduled commercial airline service.

Fletcher Field is a public use airport in Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States. It is owned by the Coahoma County Airport Board and located seven nautical miles (13 km) northeast of the central business district of Clarksdale, Mississippi. This airport is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a general aviation facility. There is no scheduled commercial airline service.

Perryville Regional Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located nine nautical miles (17 km) north of the central business district of Perryville, a city in Perry County, Missouri, United States.

Echeverria Field is an abandoned airfield, located approximately 15 miles (24 km) west of Wickenburg, Arizona.

Lancaster Airport was an airport about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) northwest of Lancaster, California. It was closed in the late 1940s and is now a housing development.

Terrell County Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport in Terrell County, Texas, United States. The airport is located five nautical miles west of the central business district of Dryden, Texas, and about 14 miles southeast of Sanderson, Texas. It provides general aviation service.

Eagle Field is a privately owned, private use airport in Fresno County, California, United States. It is located seven nautical miles southwest of the central business district of Dos Palos, a city in neighboring Merced County.

Cuero Municipal Airport is a public airport located approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) east-southeast of Cuero, Texas. It provides general aviation service.

C. David Campbell Field is six miles southeast of downtown Corsicana, in Navarro County, Texas It provides general aviation service.

Coleman Municipal Airport is two miles northeast of Coleman, Texas.

W. R. Byron Airport is a privately owned, private use airport in Riverside County, California, United States. It is located four nautical miles northwest of the central business district of Blythe, California, within the city limits.

Arledge Field is a public general aviation airport located approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) east of Stamford, Texas. Owned by the city of Stamford, it provides general aviation service. Approximately 80 aircraft use the airport on a weekly basis.

Eagle Pass Army Airfield is a former World War II military airfield complex. It is located 10.6 miles (17.1 km) north of Eagle Pass, Texas. It operated as a training base for the United States Army Air Forces from 1943 until 1945.

Vaughn Airport is an abandoned airport located 9 miles south-southeast of Columbus, Mississippi.

Eagle Pass Municipal Airport is a former airport, located in Eagle Pass, Texas. Airport operations ended around 1998, being transferred to the Maverick County Memorial International Airport. Today the former airport is a commercial site.

References

This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/ .

1 2 "AFHRA 90th Fighter Squadron". Archived from the original on 2011-09-14. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
↑ This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/ .
↑ Shaw, Frederick J. (2004), Locating Air Force Base Sites History’s Legacy, Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force, Washington DC, 2004.
↑ Manning, Thomas A. (2005), History of Air Education and Training Command, 1942–2002. Office of History and Research, Headquarters, AETC, Randolph AFB, Texas ASIN: B000NYX3PC
1 2 Abandoned Airfields: Val Verde County Airport

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.

[AFHRA-1] 1 2 "AFHRA 90th Fighter Squadron". Archived from the original on 2011-09-14. Retrieved 2011-11-20.

[2] This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/ .

[3] Shaw, Frederick J. (2004), Locating Air Force Base Sites History’s Legacy, Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force, Washington DC, 2004.

[4] Manning, Thomas A. (2005), History of Air Education and Training Command, 1942–2002. Office of History and Research, Headquarters, AETC, Randolph AFB, Texas ASIN: B000NYX3PC

[AA-5] 1 2 Abandoned Airfields: Val Verde County Airport

Val Verde County Airport

Contents

History

See also

Related Research Articles

References

External links