Moton Field Municipal Airport
Encyclopedia
Moton Field Municipal Airport is a public-use airport
located three nautical miles (3.5 mi, 5.6 km) north of the central business district
of Tuskegee
, a city in Macon County
, Alabama
, United States
. The airport is owned by the City of Tuskegee. It is included in the FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems
for 2011–2015, which categorized
it as a general aviation
facility.
Moton Field is home to the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site
.
, the second president of the Tuskegee Institute. Pre-flight training was conducted on the campus of Tuskegee Institute. Moton Field was the site for the primary flight training facility for the Tuskegee Airmen
during World War II
. Basic and Advanced flight training was done at the nearby Tuskegee Army Air Field, also known as Sharpe Field
.
In 1972, the City of Tuskegee took ownership of Moton Field and continues to operate it as a municipal airport.
of 264 feet (80 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway
designated 13/31 with an asphalt
surface measuring 5,005 by 100 feet (1,526 x 30 m).
For the 12-month period ending December 9, 2009, the airport had 19,530 general aviation
aircraft operations, an average of 53 per day. At that time there were 9 aircraft based at this airport: 100% single-engine
.
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...
located three nautical miles (3.5 mi, 5.6 km) north of the central business district
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
of Tuskegee
Tuskegee, Alabama
Tuskegee is a city in Macon County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 11,846 and is designated a Micropolitan Statistical Area. Tuskegee has been an important site in various stages of African American history....
, a city in Macon County
Macon County, Alabama
Macon County is a county in the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Nathaniel Macon, a member of the United States Senate from North Carolina. Developed for cotton plantation agriculture in the nineteenth century, it is one of the counties in Alabama within the Black Belt of the South.As...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The airport is owned by the City of Tuskegee. It is included in the FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems
National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems
The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems is an inventory of U.S. aviation infrastructure assets. It is developed and maintained by the Federal Aviation Administration . Its purposes are:* to identify all the airports in the U.S...
for 2011–2015, which categorized
FAA airport categories
The United States Federal Aviation Administration has a system for categorizing public-use airports that is primarily based on the level of commercial passenger traffic through each facility. It is used to determine if an airport is eligible for funding through the federal government's Airport...
it as a general aviation
General aviation
General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
facility.
Moton Field is home to the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site
Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site
Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, at Moton Field in Tuskegee, Alabama, commemorates the contributions of African American airmen in World War II. Moton Field was the site of primary flight training for the pioneering pilots known as the Tuskegee Airmen. It was constructed in 1941 as a new...
.
History
Moton Field, built between 1940 and 1942, was named for Robert Russa MotonRobert Russa Moton
Robert Russa Moton was an African American educator and author. He served as an administrator at Hampton Institute and was named principal of Tuskegee Institute in 1915 after the death of Dr. Booker T. Washington, a position he held for 20 years until retirement in 1935.-Youth, education,...
, the second president of the Tuskegee Institute. Pre-flight training was conducted on the campus of Tuskegee Institute. Moton Field was the site for the primary flight training facility for the Tuskegee Airmen
Tuskegee Airmen
The Tuskegee Airmen is the popular name of a group of African American pilots who fought in World War II. Formally, they were the 332nd Fighter Group and the 477th Bombardment Group of the U.S. Army Air Corps....
during 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...
. Basic and Advanced flight training was done at the nearby Tuskegee Army Air Field, also known as Sharpe Field
Sharpe Field
Sharpe Field is a private use airport located six nautical miles northwest of the central business district of Tuskegee, a city in Macon County, Alabama, United States. This airport is privately owned by the Bradbury Family Partnership....
.
In 1972, the City of Tuskegee took ownership of Moton Field and continues to operate it as a municipal airport.
Facilities and aircraft
Moton Field Municipal Airport covers an area of 275 acres (111.3 ha) at an elevationElevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of 264 feet (80 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
designated 13/31 with an asphalt
Asphalt
Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...
surface measuring 5,005 by 100 feet (1,526 x 30 m).
For the 12-month period ending December 9, 2009, the airport had 19,530 general aviation
General aviation
General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
aircraft operations, an average of 53 per day. At that time there were 9 aircraft based at this airport: 100% single-engine
Aircraft engine
An aircraft engine is the component of the propulsion system for an aircraft that generates mechanical power. Aircraft engines are almost always either lightweight piston engines or gas turbines...
.
See also
- Alabama World War II Army AirfieldsAlabama World War II Army AirfieldsDuring World War II, the United States Army Air Force established numerous airfields in Alabama for antisubmarine defense in the Gulf of Mexico and for training pilots and aircrews of USAAF fighters and bombers....