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Waco Regional Airport

Coordinates: 31°36′41″N 097°13′50″W / 31.61139°N 97.23056°W / 31.61139; -97.23056
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(Redirected from Blackland Army Airfield)
Waco Regional Airport

Blackland AAF
2008 USGS airphoto
Summary
Airport typePublic
OwnerCity of Waco
ServesWaco, Texas
Elevation AMSL516 ft / 157 m
Coordinates31°36′41″N 097°13′50″W / 31.61139°N 97.23056°W / 31.61139; -97.23056
Websitewww.waco-texas.com/airport/
Map
ACT is located in Texas
ACT
ACT
ACT is located in the United States
ACT
ACT
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
01/19 7,107 2,166 Asphalt
14/32 5,103 1,555 Asphalt
Statistics (2022)
Aircraft operations (year ending 6/30/2022)66,191
Based aircraft74

Waco Regional Airport (IATA: ACT, ICAO: KACT, FAA LID: ACT) is five miles northwest of Waco, in McLennan County, Texas. It is owned by the City of Waco.[1]

The airport is a 15-20 minute drive from downtown and central Waco.

Facilities

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Waco Regional Airport covers 1,369 acres (554 ha) and has two asphalt runways: 1/19 is 7,107 x 150 ft and 14/32 is 5,103 x 150 ft.[2]

In the year ending June 30, 2022, the airport had 66,191 aircraft operations, averaging 181 per day: 83% general aviation, 10% military, 7% air taxi, and <1% airline. 74 aircraft at that time were based at the airport: 52 single-engine, 13 multi-engine, 3 jet and 6 helicopter.[1]

The airport has 2 jetways with 3 gates in use, with Envoy Air and SkyWest Airlines service to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.[3] The Aerodrome Cafe is located inside the terminal building.

Waco Regional Airport is host to one full service FBO: Texas Aero. Flight training at Waco Regional is provided by Chiota Aviation, Universal Flight Concepts which provides both helicopter and airplane training, and Waco Flight Training which specializes in initial tailwheel training and endorsements. The airport is also home to the Baylor University Flight Center,[4] where flight training is conducted in support of the Baylor University Aviation Sciences Program.

History

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Control tower and Beechcraft AT-10 Wichita trainer
parking ramp
cadets in formation

Waco Regional Airport's history begins in 1941 when some grazing farmland was chosen for the new Waco Municipal Airport. Construction began in late summer 1941.[5]

In early 1942, the War Department leased the site and it was provided to the United States Army Air Forces for a training airfield. At the time, construction consisted of three runways partly completed. The Army Air Force began to rush the project to completion and changed the civil building plans to that of a military airfield and ground station. Barracks, mess halls, a hospital, church, theater, administrative buildings, aircraft hangars and a control tower were built. The facility was initially named China Spring Army Air Field and later Waco Army Air Field No. 2 before being renamed Blackland Army Airfield after the local black soil.[5]

Blackland AAF was activated on 2 July 1942, initially being a glider training school. The AAF brought a nucleus of experienced airmen from other airfields in the AAF Gulf Coast Training Center, and then civilian specialists were recruited from around the United States to supplement the military garrison. The civilian workers were instructed in Army aviation procedures and to fill hundreds of jobs necessary to support the pilot training program.[5]

In October 1942, the Army Air Force Pilot School (Advanced Twin-Engine) was activated (phase 3 pilot training). On 8 January 1943, the War Department constituted and activated the 33d Flying Training Wing (Advanced Twin-Engine) at Blackland and assigned it to the AAF Central Flying Training Command. The school used a number of two-engine trainers, including the Cessna AT-17 Bobcat, Curtiss-Wright AT-9, Beechcraft AT-10 Wichita, and TB-25 Mitchell.[5]

The school's mission was to train cadets to fly twin-engine transports and bombers in a nine-week course. During training flight training was combined with ground school classes including radio navigation, aircraft and naval identification, armament, photo interpretation, weather forecasting and other courses. Several hours of instruction were taught in the ground-based Link Trainers. Pilot wings were awarded upon graduation and were sent on to group combat training by First, Second, Third or Fourth Air Force. Graduates were usually graded as Flight Officers (Warrant Officers); cadets who graduated at the top of their class were graded as Second Lieutenants.[5]

Flying training at the airfield ended on 4 February 1945 and it became a sub-base of Waco Army Airfield. The field became inactive on 31 October 31 1945. By 1950 the facility was disposed of by the War Assets Administration (WAA) and deeded to the local government, being operated as Waco Municipal Airport. Some buildings were used as a public housing project.

The first airline flights were on Braniff, which had been flying to the previous Waco airport since the 1930s. Pioneer arrived in 1947; successor Continental and Braniff pulled out in 1963. Trans-Texas DC-3s appeared in 1956 and left in 1959, then returned in 1963; Texas International's last Convair 600 left in 1978.

Airline and destination

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Passenger

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AirlinesDestinations
American Eagle Dallas/Fort Worth

Accidents at ACT

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  • On December 20, 1984, a Jet East Learjet 35 failed to maintain directional control during a simulated engine failure after reaching V1 on takeoff and crashed. There was one fatality among the three occupants on board.[6]

See also

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References

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

  1. ^ a b c FAA Airport Form 5010 for ACT PDF, effective 2023-08-10
  2. ^ Little, Clayton (3 January 2019). "Chart Supplement" (PDF). SkyVector (FAA Archive). Retrieved 19 February 2019.
  3. ^ COPELAND, MIKE (2023-06-09). "Waco air service facing turbulence, opportunities". Waco Tribune-Herald. Retrieved 2023-09-22.
  4. ^ "Baylor University Flight Center". aviation.artsandsciences.baylor.edu. 2023-04-13. Retrieved 2023-09-22.
  5. ^ a b c d e Forces, United States Army Air (June 29, 1943). "English: Class 43-06, Big Spring Flying School, Big Spring, Texas" (PDF) – via Wikimedia Commons.
  6. ^ Accident description for N95TC at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on August 28, 2023.
  • Shaw, Frederick J. (2004), Locating Air Force Base Sites History's Legacy, Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force, Washington, DC
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