Palwaukee Municipal Airport
Encyclopedia
Chicago Executive Airport , formerly known as Palwaukee Municipal Airport, is a public airport
located 18 nautical miles (33 km) northwest of Chicago
, in the village of Wheeling
in Cook County
, Illinois
, United States
. This airport is publicly owned by the City of Prospect Heights
and the Village of Wheeling.
This airport logs over 167,000 take-offs and landings each year and is the third busiest airport
in Illinois.
. In 1953, the airport was purchased by George J. Priester. He developed the airport over the next 33 years, installing paved runways, lighting, hangars and an air traffic control tower. In 1986, George's son Charlie negotiated the sale of the airport to Wheeling and Prospect Heights, at which time it was renamed Palwaukee Municipal Airport.
Charlie Priester kept an FBO
at the airport along with a charter company called Priester Aviation. Priester sold the FBO to Signature Flight Support in 2001, and turned over operational control of Priester Charter to his son Andy in 2004.
In August 2006, trustees from the village of Wheeling and alderman from the City Council of Prospect Heights voted to approve a name change. On October 17, 2006, Palwaukee Municipal Airport was officially renamed Chicago Executive Airport.
of 647 feet (197 m) above mean sea level. It has three asphalt
paved runway
s:
6/24 is 3,660 by 50 feet (1,116 x 15 m); 12/30 is 4,415 by 75 feet (1,346 x 23 m); 16/34 is 5,000 by 150 feet (1,524 x 46 m).
For the 12-month period ending May 31, 2008, the airport had 108,429 aircraft operations, an average of 297 per day: 87% general aviation
, 13% air taxi
, and <1% military
. At that time there were 265 aircraft based at this airport: 64% single-engine
, 16% multi-engine, 19% jet
and 1% helicopter
.
The airport can comfortably handle executive jet aircraft in the 20-seat range, such as the Grumman Gulfstream and the Bombardier Challenger. Larger aircraft occasionally visit the field. Occasional military transport aircraft
, such as the Lockheed C-130, use the airport when transporting service members to local military facilities such as Great Lakes Naval Training Center or the North Chicago V.A. Hospital.
Major tenants of the airport include two national fixed base operators, Atlantic Aviation and Signature Flight Support, who provide fueling and handling for transient aircraft and a significant portion of the locally based aircraft. Priester Air Charter, Palwaukee Flyers, and several smaller firms and aircraft operators are also present.
In 2007 Chicago Executive's management created a public viewing area
east of the south end of Runway 16-34 along Palatine Frontage Road. This area provides parking, a picnic table, bleacher seating and a PA speaker to allow visitors to monitor Air Traffic Control
radio communications. A bulletin board provides a copy of the current FAA chart, posters for events and educational information. The area is open to the public 24/7.
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 18 nautical miles (33 km) northwest of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, in the village of Wheeling
Wheeling, Illinois
Wheeling is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, and a suburb of Chicago. The population was 34,496 at the 2000 census, and 38,555 at the 2006 special village census.-Geography:Wheeling is located at ....
in Cook County
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. This airport is publicly owned by the City of Prospect Heights
Prospect Heights, Illinois
Prospect Heights is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, which is a suburb of Chicago. The population was 17,081 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Prospect Heights is located at ....
and the Village of Wheeling.
This airport logs over 167,000 take-offs and landings each year and is the third busiest airport
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...
in Illinois.
History
The airport opened in 1925 as Gauthier's Flying Field. The airport was named Pal-Waukee in November 1928. That name was derived from its location near the intersection of Palatine Road and Milwaukee AvenueMilwaukee Avenue (Chicago)
Milwaukee Avenue is a major diagonal street in the city of Chicago and the northern suburbs. True to its name, it once led to the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Starting with a short section at N. Canal and W. Lake Streets, it begins in earnest at the corner of N Desplaines and W. Kinzie Streets...
. In 1953, the airport was purchased by George J. Priester. He developed the airport over the next 33 years, installing paved runways, lighting, hangars and an air traffic control tower. In 1986, George's son Charlie negotiated the sale of the airport to Wheeling and Prospect Heights, at which time it was renamed Palwaukee Municipal Airport.
Charlie Priester kept an FBO
Fixed base operator
A Fixed-base operator or commonly abbreviated FBO is a term developed in the United States after the passage of the Air Commerce Act of 1926...
at the airport along with a charter company called Priester Aviation. Priester sold the FBO to Signature Flight Support in 2001, and turned over operational control of Priester Charter to his son Andy in 2004.
In August 2006, trustees from the village of Wheeling and alderman from the City Council of Prospect Heights voted to approve a name change. On October 17, 2006, Palwaukee Municipal Airport was officially renamed Chicago Executive Airport.
Facilities and aircraft
Chicago Executive Airport covers an area of 411 acres (166.3 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 647 feet (197 m) above mean sea level. It has three 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...
paved 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...
s:
6/24 is 3,660 by 50 feet (1,116 x 15 m); 12/30 is 4,415 by 75 feet (1,346 x 23 m); 16/34 is 5,000 by 150 feet (1,524 x 46 m).
For the 12-month period ending May 31, 2008, the airport had 108,429 aircraft operations, an average of 297 per day: 87% 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...
, 13% air taxi
Air taxi
An air taxi is an air charter passenger or cargo aircraft which operates on an on-demand basis.-Regulation:In the United States, air taxi and air charter operations are governed by Part 135 of the Federal Aviation Regulations , unlike the larger scheduled air carriers which are governed by more...
, and <1% military
Military aviation
Military aviation is the use of aircraft and other flying machines for the purposes of conducting or enabling warfare, including national airlift capacity to provide logistical supply to forces stationed in a theater or along a front. Air power includes the national means of conducting such...
. At that time there were 265 aircraft based at this airport: 64% 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...
, 16% multi-engine, 19% jet
Jet aircraft
A jet aircraft is an aircraft propelled by jet engines. Jet aircraft generally fly much faster than propeller-powered aircraft and at higher altitudes – as high as . At these altitudes, jet engines achieve maximum efficiency over long distances. The engines in propeller-powered aircraft...
and 1% helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
.
The airport can comfortably handle executive jet aircraft in the 20-seat range, such as the Grumman Gulfstream and the Bombardier Challenger. Larger aircraft occasionally visit the field. Occasional military transport aircraft
Military transport aircraft
Military transport aircraft are typically fixed and rotary wing cargo aircraft which are used to deliver troops, weapons and other military equipment by a variety of methods to any area of military operations around the surface of the planet, usually outside of the commercial flight routes in...
, such as the Lockheed C-130, use the airport when transporting service members to local military facilities such as Great Lakes Naval Training Center or the North Chicago V.A. Hospital.
Major tenants of the airport include two national fixed base operators, Atlantic Aviation and Signature Flight Support, who provide fueling and handling for transient aircraft and a significant portion of the locally based aircraft. Priester Air Charter, Palwaukee Flyers, and several smaller firms and aircraft operators are also present.
In 2007 Chicago Executive's management created a public viewing area
Public viewing area
A public viewing area is a space set aside for members of the public to safely view sites of interest, such as airports, railroads, construction sites or other facilities...
east of the south end of Runway 16-34 along Palatine Frontage Road. This area provides parking, a picnic table, bleacher seating and a PA speaker to allow visitors to monitor Air Traffic Control
Air traffic control
Air traffic control is a service provided by ground-based controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and in the air. The primary purpose of ATC systems worldwide is to separate aircraft to prevent collisions, to organize and expedite the flow of traffic, and to provide information and other...
radio communications. A bulletin board provides a copy of the current FAA chart, posters for events and educational information. The area is open to the public 24/7.
Incidents
- October 30, 1996, a twin engine Gulfstream IVGulfstream IVThe Gulfstream IV and derivatives are a family of twin-jet aircraft, mainly for private or business use. The aircraft was designed and built by Gulfstream Aerospace, a General Dynamics company based in Savannah, Georgia, United States from 1985 until 2003.-Design and development:Gulfstream, in...
business jet with three crew members and one passenger lost control upon takeoff and crashed immediately to the north of the airport. All four aboard perished. - January 30, 2006, an eight-seat twin engine Cessna 421Cessna 421-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Taylor, John W.R. . Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1976-77. London:Jane's Yearbooks, 1976. ISBN 0-354-00538-3....
B with four passengers crashed about one mile (1.6 km) south of the airport. The aircraft was heading from Kansas to Palwaukee. There were no survivors. - January 5, 2010, a Learjet 35A crashed into the Des Plaines RiverDes Plaines RiverThe Des Plaines River is a river that flows southward for through southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois in the U.S. Midwest, eventually meeting the Kankakee River west of Channahon to form the Illinois River, a tributary of the Mississippi River....
in the Cook County Forest PreserveCook County Forest PreservesThe Cook County Forest Preserves are a network of open spaces, containing forest, prairie, wetland, streams, and lakes, that are set aside as natural areas. Cook County contains Chicago, Illinois, and is the center of a densely-populated urban metropolitan area in northeastern Illinois...
about a mile south of the airport while on final approach. The jet, operated by Royal Air Freight Inc. of Waterford, Michigan, was empty at the time of the crash. The pilot and co-pilot were killed.
External links
- Priester Aviation, charter flight services
- Signature Flight Support, fixed base operator (FBO)
- Atlantic Aviation, fixed base operator (FBO)
- Aerial photo as of 10 April 2002 from USGS The National Map
- OpenNav airspace and charts for KPWK