Duncan A. McIntyre
Encyclopedia
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
to visit an old army buddy. Originally intending to stay a short while on his way to Spokane
Spokane
Spokane is a city in the U.S. state of Washington.Spokane may also refer to:*Spokane *Spokane River*Spokane, Missouri*Spokane Valley, Washington*Spokane County, Washington*Spokane-Coeur d'Alene-Paloos War*Spokane * USS Spokane...
, Washington, McIntyre decided that Tulsa was fertile ground for establishing an aviation business. He soon established a private airport on an 80-acre tract at the corner of Admiral Place and Sheridan Avenue. McIntyre Field had three hangars to house 40 aircraft and a beacon for landings after sundown. Within just a few years, McIntyre's airport was considered by many early flyers to be one of the finest airports in Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
. Established almost a decade before Tulsa's municipal airport, McIntyre's offered flying lessons, charter services, mechanical services, and hosted transient flyers.
1927 was a busy year for McIntyre. The Ford National Reliability Air Tour
Ford National Reliability Air Tour
The Ford Reliability Tour, properly called "The National Air Tour for the Edsel B. Ford Reliability Trophy", was a series of Aerial Tours sponsored in part by Ford from 1925 to 1931 and re-created in 2003. Top prize was the Edsel Ford Reliability Trophy. Henry and Edsel Ford were shareholders in...
chose his airport as one of its tour stops, bringing thousands of Tulsans to the airport to see an armada of touring aircraft. Later, on September 30, 1927, Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
visited Tulsa. He had been persuaded to visit Tulsa by William G. Skelly, who was then president of the local Chamber of Commerce, as well as a booster of the young aviation industry. In addition to being a wealthy oilman and founder of Skelly Oil Company, Skelly also founded Spartan Aircraft Company
Spartan Aircraft Company
The Spartan Aircraft Company was an American aircraft manufacturing company formerly known as Mid-Continent Aircraft Company and reorganized under the Spartan name in 1928 by oil baron William G. Skelly in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The manufacturing plant was on Sheridan Avenue near the Tulsa Municipal...
. Lindbergh had already landed at Oklahoma City Municipal Airport
Will Rogers World Airport
Will Rogers World Airport , also known as Will Rogers Airport or simply Will Rogers, is located in southwestern Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 6 miles from downtown and is the principal commercial airport of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Area...
, Bartlesville Municipal Airport and Muskogee's
Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee is a city in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. It is the county seat of Muskogee County, and home to Bacone College. The population was 38,310 at the 2000 census, making it the eleventh-largest city in Oklahoma....
Hatbox Field. All of these were superior to the privately-owned McIntyre Field. Lindbergh pointed this out at a banquet given that night in his honor. Landing at McIntyre's airport, Lindbergh complimented McIntyre on his facility while simultaneously criticizing the city fathers for their failure to establish a city-owned airport. Lindbergh's speech galvanized some of Tulsa's early leaders. Within two years, Tulsa had its own municipal airport.
McIntyre evidently closed his airport during the 1930s and became the manager of Brown Airport, another private facility. In 1940, McIntyre accepted a position with Lockheed and moved to California.
McIntyre stayed in Tulsa until 1940, when he moved to California to take a job with Lockheed
Lockheed Corporation
The Lockheed Corporation was an American aerospace company. Lockheed was founded in 1912 and later merged with Martin Marietta to form Lockheed Martin in 1995.-Origins:...
. He returned to Tulsa on one more occasion, to dedicate the new modern terminal in 1961.