Greater Southwest International Airport
Encyclopedia
Greater Southwest International Airport was the commercial airport
serving Fort Worth
, Texas
from 1953 until 1972. Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
(or DFW) opened in 1974 on property adjacent to the north side of the airport.
had unsuccessfully proposed a regional airport that would serve the need of the entire metropolitan area
. This did not come to fruition, and after World War II
, Fort Worth decided to move its commercial aviation operations from Meacham Field
to a new facility, Amon Carter
Field. Fort Worth annex
ed a finger of land to the east, thus extending the city limits to encompass the new site.
American
, Braniff, Central
, Continental
, Delta
, Eastern
, and Trans-Texas Airways were among the carriers which operated from the airport, which had three paved runways and a rather elaborate terminal building (including gold-plated murals). However, the airport never reached its operating capacity, and saw its traffic steadily dwindle while traffic at Love Field in Dallas continued to grow.
On December 20, 1959, jet service began with American Airlines Boeing 707
flights between Carter Field and Los Angeles
.
In 1960, the airport was renamed Greater Southwest International Airport in a failed attempt to try to increase passenger traffic. In this same year, the city of Fort Worth purchased the airport to try to marginalize Dallas Love Field.
, having grown weary of funding separate airports for Dallas and Fort Worth, announced it would no longer support both facilities. The Civil Aeronautics Board ordered the two cities to finally come up with a working plan for one jointly-operated regional airport. In 1965, a parcel of land located directly north of Greater Southwest was selected for the creation of Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. As traffic boomed at Dallas-Love Field it slumped at Fort Worth with most carriers attempting to pull out by 1968. Fort Worth lost all airline traffic in 1969. As soon as Dallas-Fort Worth International opened, the FAA closed the runways at Greater Southwest as a safety precaution to avoid accidents.
crashed at Greater Southwest International Airport while performing "touch and go" training landings. The National Transportation Safety Board
determined that wake turbulence
from another training flight, an American Airlines DC-10
, had caused the Delta DC-9
to lose control as it neared touchdown. As this was a training flight, only four people were aboard the flight 9570 at the time of the crash: three crew and an FAA operations inspector. All were killed.
Following the closure of the airport, Runway 18/36 became Amon Carter Boulevard, and for several years the old runway served in this capacity before it was torn up and replaced with an actual street. As of 2008, a small section of the taxiway and run-up area of Runway 18 still exists on the north side of State Highway 183. American Airlines expanded its headquarters
to new buildings on the airport site during the 1980s and 1990s (the airline's former hangar
had remained in use as a reservations center for several years before it was finally demolished). The airport's IATA airport code
, GSW, is still in use by the American Airlines Flight Academy, which sits across State Highway 360 from the former airport site.
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
serving Fort Worth
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
from 1953 until 1972. Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is located between the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas, and is the busiest airport in the U.S. state of Texas...
(or DFW) opened in 1974 on property adjacent to the north side of the airport.
Early history
As far back as 1927, the cities of Fort Worth and DallasDallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
had unsuccessfully proposed a regional airport that would serve the need of the entire metropolitan area
Metropolitan area
The term metropolitan area refers to a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories, sharing industry, infrastructure, and housing. A metropolitan area usually encompasses multiple jurisdictions and municipalities: neighborhoods, townships,...
. This did not come to fruition, and after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Fort Worth decided to move its commercial aviation operations from Meacham Field
Fort Worth Meacham International Airport
Fort Worth Meacham International Airport is an airport in Fort Worth, Texas. The airport is located at the intersection of Interstate 820 and U.S. Business Highway 287 in northwest Fort Worth, near the downtown business district...
to a new facility, Amon Carter
Amon G. Carter
Amon G. Carter, Sr. was the creator and publisher of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and a nationally known civic booster for Fort Worth, Texas. A legacy in his will was used to create Fort Worth's Amon Carter Museum....
Field. Fort Worth annex
Annexation
Annexation is the de jure incorporation of some territory into another geo-political entity . Usually, it is implied that the territory and population being annexed is the smaller, more peripheral, and weaker of the two merging entities, barring physical size...
ed a finger of land to the east, thus extending the city limits to encompass the new site.
American
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
, Braniff, Central
Central Airlines
Central Airlines was a regional airline providing service in Texas and Oklahoma from 1949 to 1967. Central was founded by Keith Kahle in 1944 to operate charter and fixed base services in Oklahoma. Due to financing difficulties, it did not begin scheduled air service until September 15, 1949, just...
, Continental
Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines was a major American airline now merged with United Airlines. On May 3, 2010, Continental Airlines, Inc. and UAL, Inc. announced a merger via a stock swap, and on October 1, 2010, the merger closed and UAL changed its name to United Continental Holdings, Inc...
, Delta
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
, Eastern
Eastern Air Lines
Eastern Air Lines was a major United States airline that existed from 1926 to 1991. Before its dissolution it was headquartered at Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida.-History:...
, and Trans-Texas Airways were among the carriers which operated from the airport, which had three paved runways and a rather elaborate terminal building (including gold-plated murals). However, the airport never reached its operating capacity, and saw its traffic steadily dwindle while traffic at Love Field in Dallas continued to grow.
On December 20, 1959, jet service began with American Airlines Boeing 707
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
flights between Carter Field and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.
In 1960, the airport was renamed Greater Southwest International Airport in a failed attempt to try to increase passenger traffic. In this same year, the city of Fort Worth purchased the airport to try to marginalize Dallas Love Field.
Decline and closure
In 1964, the Federal Aviation AdministrationFederal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...
, having grown weary of funding separate airports for Dallas and Fort Worth, announced it would no longer support both facilities. The Civil Aeronautics Board ordered the two cities to finally come up with a working plan for one jointly-operated regional airport. In 1965, a parcel of land located directly north of Greater Southwest was selected for the creation of Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. As traffic boomed at Dallas-Love Field it slumped at Fort Worth with most carriers attempting to pull out by 1968. Fort Worth lost all airline traffic in 1969. As soon as Dallas-Fort Worth International opened, the FAA closed the runways at Greater Southwest as a safety precaution to avoid accidents.
After closure
On May 30, 1972, Delta Air Lines Flight 9570Delta Air Lines Flight 9570
Delta Air Lines Flight 9570 crashed on 30 May 1972 at the Greater Southwest International Airport in Fort Worth, Texas while conducting a training flight. The aircraft, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-14, began to oscillate about the roll axis after crossing the runway threshold during a landing...
crashed at Greater Southwest International Airport while performing "touch and go" training landings. The National Transportation Safety Board
National Transportation Safety Board
The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine...
determined that wake turbulence
Wake turbulence
Wake turbulence is turbulence that forms behind an aircraft as it passes through the air. This turbulence includes various components, the most important of which are wing vorticies and jetwash. Jetwash refers simply to the rapidly moving gases expelled from a jet engine; it is extremely turbulent,...
from another training flight, an American Airlines DC-10
McDonnell Douglas DC-10
The McDonnell Douglas DC-10 is a three-engine widebody jet airliner manufactured by McDonnell Douglas. The DC-10 has range for medium- to long-haul flights, capable of carrying a maximum 380 passengers. Its most distinguishing feature is the two turbofan engines mounted on underwing pylons and a...
, had caused the Delta DC-9
McDonnell Douglas DC-9
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is a twin-engine, single-aisle jet airliner. It was first manufactured in 1965 with its maiden flight later that year. The DC-9 was designed for frequent, short flights. The final DC-9 was delivered in October 1982.The DC-9 was followed in subsequent modified forms by...
to lose control as it neared touchdown. As this was a training flight, only four people were aboard the flight 9570 at the time of the crash: three crew and an FAA operations inspector. All were killed.
Following the closure of the airport, Runway 18/36 became Amon Carter Boulevard, and for several years the old runway served in this capacity before it was torn up and replaced with an actual street. As of 2008, a small section of the taxiway and run-up area of Runway 18 still exists on the north side of State Highway 183. American Airlines expanded its headquarters
Headquarters
Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top of a corporation taking full responsibility managing all business activities...
to new buildings on the airport site during the 1980s and 1990s (the airline's former hangar
Hangar
A hangar is a closed structure to hold aircraft or spacecraft in protective storage. Most hangars are built of metal, but other materials such as wood and concrete are also sometimes used...
had remained in use as a reservations center for several years before it was finally demolished). The airport's IATA airport code
IATA airport code
An IATA airport code, also known an IATA location identifier, IATA station code or simply a location identifier, is a three-letter code designating many airports around the world, defined by the International Air Transport Association...
, GSW, is still in use by the American Airlines Flight Academy, which sits across State Highway 360 from the former airport site.