Kearney Regional Airport

Infobox Airport
name = Kearney Regional Airport


image-width = 150
IATA = EAR
ICAO = KEAR
FAA = EAR
type = Public
owner = City of Kearney
operator =
city-served = Kearney, Nebraska
location =
elevation-f = 2,131
elevation-m = 650
website = [http://www.flykearney.org/ www.FlyKearney.org]
r1-number = 18/36
r1-length-f = 7,094
r1-length-m = 2,162
r1-surface = Asphalt
r2-number = 13/31
r2-length-f = 4,498
r2-length-m = 1,371
r2-surface = Concrete
stat-year = 2006
stat1-header = Aircraft operations
stat1-data = 33,672
footnotes = Source: FAAFAA-airport|ID=EAR|use=PU|own=PU|site=12783.*A, effective 2007-10-25] and airport website [ [http://www.flykearney.org/ Kearney Regional Airport] (official website)]

Kearney Regional Airport airport codes|EAR|KEAR|EAR, formerly known as Kearney Municipal Airport, is a public airport located four miles (6 km) northeast of the central business district of Kearney, a city in Buffalo County, Nebraska, United States. The airport is owned by the City of Kearney. It is served by one commercial airline, with service subsidized by the Essential Air Service program.

History

Kearney Regional Airport began as Keens Municipal Airport in 1942 when it was learned that the United States Army Air Force was considering the site for a military airfield. Construction was approved on 5 September for the Kearney airfield and for satellite fields at McCook, Grand Island and Harvard. The City of Kearney not only offered the use of the Keens 532 acre (2.2 km²) airfield, but signed a long-term lease with the Army for $1.00 per year for as long as the field was needed. An additional 2,227.5 acres (9.0 km²) of farmland was condemned by the Army to provide more room.

World War II

Kearney AAF was one of eleven United States Army Air Force training bases in Nebraska during World War II. The base was under the command of Second Air Force Headquarters, Colorado Springs, Colorado.

The 485th Army Air Force Base Unit commanded the support elements at Kearney as part of Air Technical Service Command. The 485th was assigned to the 21st Bombardment Wing (Feb - Aug 1943) then transferred to the 17th Bombardment Operational Training Wing in Aug 1943 for Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress training. The 485th was transferred back to the 21st Bombardment Wing (Nov 1943 - on).

The following unit was assigned this base - 3rd Heavy Bombardment Processing Headquarters (Provisional) & 7th Heavy Bombardment Processing Headquarters.

The base served a dual purpose during 1943: one for training, the other for processing. It became a training field with the arrival of the 100th Bombardment Group. The 100th became the parent group responsible for producing cadres for new Army Air groups being formed and for training of combat crews. The ground crews were stationed at Kearney while the air crews were divided among various bases where they served as instructors. Then, having organized its offspring units, the 100th reunited at Kearney in mid-April and prepared for overseas movement. It departed Kearney in May and joined the Eighth Air Force in England.

After the 100th moved out in May, it was decided to move the processing unit out of Kearney and to make the Kearney Air Base a replacement training center to develop replacement crews, provide them with second and third phase training before sending them off to staging centers for overseas duty. The 393d Bombardment Group replaced the 100th BG in that role.

However, Kearney's days as a replacement training center lasted only from August to November 1943. On 1 November 393d Bomb Group was transferred to Sioux City AAF Iowa, and was replaced by the bombardment processing units for B-17, and later Boeing B-29 Stratofortress, crews and planes.

From then until the end of the war Kearney Army Airfield remained a processing station.

With the end of the war in Europe in May, 1945, work at Kearney increased as attention was devoted to the war against Japan and the expanding B-29 program. After Japan's surrender in August, 1945, the number of base personnel gradually diminished, and by 1 March 1946 the base was reduced to mere housekeeping functions and it seemed as if it might be deactivated.

Kearney Air Force Base

With the establishment of Strategic Air Command the Eighth Air Force 27th Fighter Wing was activated at Kearney Army Airfield on 28 July 1947. The operational squadrons of the 27th Fighter Wing were:

* 522d Fighter Squadron (Formerly WWII 6th Fighter Squadron)
* 523d Fighter Squadron (Formerly WWII 7th Fighter Squadron)
* 524th Fighter Squadron (Formerly WWII 91st Fighter Squadron)

The 27th was initially equipped with the North American P-51D Mustang, and in 1948 was upgraded to the new North American F-82E Twin Mustang. In June 1948 the designation "P" for pursuit was changed to "F" for fighter. Subsequently, all P-51s were redesignated F-51s.

The mission of the 27th Fighter Wing was to fly long-range escort missions for SAC B-29 bombers. With the arrival of the F-82s, the older F-51s were sent to Air National Guard units.

From a key personnel numbering only four in July 1946 the base population increased to 795 by 31 August and to a postwar peak of 2,344 by March 1948. With the activation of the United States Air Force in September 1947 the name of the airfield was changed to Kearney Air Force Base in January, 1948.

However, the Air Force considered the facility substandard. The two major deficiencies were inadequate housing facilities (even though twenty-six new fourplex apartment houses had been built) and a need for additional funds of $2,800,000 to bring existing facilities up to desired operating standards. With the tight defense budgets in the late 1940s, the decision was made by Strategic Air Command decided to close the base. The official announcement to move the 27th Fighter Wing was made on 16 February 1949 and operations officially ceased at Kearney on 15 March.

The 27th Fighter Wing was transferred to Bergstrom AFB Texas on 16 March 1949, ending military use of the facility.

Facilities and aircraft

Kearney Regional Airport covers an area of 2,500 acres (1,012 ha) which contains two runways: 18/36 with a asphalt pavement measuring 7,094 x 150 ft. (2,162 x 46 m) and 13/31 with an concrete surface measuring 4,498 x 75 ft. (1,371 x 23 m). For the 12-month period ending September 30, 2006, the airport had 33,672 aircraft operations, an average of 92 per day: 95% general aviation, 3% scheduled commercial, 2% air taxi, <1% military.

Airline and destination

* Great Lakes Airlines (Denver)

See also

* Second Air Force
* Eighth Air Force
* Strategic Air Command
* United States Army Air Force
* Nebraska World War II Army Airfields

References

* Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0892010924.
* Menard, David W. (1993) USAF Plus Fifteen: A Photo History, 1947-1962. Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 9780887404832
* Ravenstein, Charles A. (1984). Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947-1977. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0912799129.
* [http://armyairforces.com/ ArmyAirForces.Com]
* [http://home.att.net/~jbaugher/usafserials.html USAAS-USAAC-USAAF-USAF Aircraft Serial Numbers--1908 to present]
* [http://bchs.kearney.net/BTales_198804.html The Kearney Army Air Base]

External links

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