St. Louis Downtown Airport
Encyclopedia
St. Louis Downtown Airport is a public-use airport
located in the St. Louis Metropolitan Area, one mile (2 km) east of the central business district
of Cahokia
, in St. Clair County
, Illinois
, United States
. It is owned by the Bi-State Development Agency
. The airport is located less than 3 miles from the Gateway Arch Riverfront and is used by many business aircraft visiting the St. Louis region. Airport services include two full-service 24-hour fixed base operators, an instrument landing system, an FAA air traffic control tower, and its own dedicated Index B aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) service.
The St. Louis metropolitan area is also served by Lambert-St. Louis International Airport
in St. Louis, Missouri
; MidAmerica St. Louis Airport
in Belleville, Illinois
; St. Louis Regional Airport
in Alton, Illinois
; and Spirit of St. Louis Airport
in Chesterfield, Missouri
.
s: 12R/30L measuring 7,001 x 100 ft. (2,133 x 30 m), 12L/30R measuring 3,800 x 75 ft. (1,158 x 23 m) and 5/23 measuring 2,799 x 75 ft. (853 x 23 m).
For the 12-month period ending September 30, 2005, the airport had 170,000 aircraft operations, an average of 465 per day: 97% general aviation
, 2% air taxi
and 1% military
. At that time there were 281 aircraft based at this airport: 62% single-engine
, 21% multi-engine, 12% jet
and 5% helicopter
.
Historic Hangar #2 houses the Greater Saint Louis Air & Space Museum
http://www.airandspacemuseum.org/ and the airport is still home to the nation's oldest flight school, Parks College of Engineering
and Aviation's Center for Aerospace Sciences, which holds CAA Flight School Certificate #1.
Taken over by the United States Army Air Force on 1 August 1939 as a basic (level 1) pilot training airfield. Assigned to USAAF Gulf Coast Training Center (later Central Flying Training Command). Parks Air College conducted contract basic flying training. Flying training was performed with Fairchild PT-19
s as the primary trainer. Also had several PT-17 Stearmans and a few P-40 Warhawks assigned. Inactivated 12 March 1944 with the drawdown of AAFTC's pilot training program.
The airport closed in 1959 and reopened six years later as Bi-State Parks Airport. It was renamed St. Louis Downtown-Parks Airport in 1984 and received its current name in 1999. Today, it is the third busiest airport in Illinois.
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 in the St. Louis Metropolitan Area, one mile (2 km) east 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 Cahokia
Cahokia, Illinois
Cahokia is a village in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a population of 16,391. The name is a reference to one of the clans of the historic Illini confederacy, who were encountered by early French explorers to the region.Early European settlers also...
, in St. Clair County
St. Clair County, Illinois
St. Clair County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. In 1970, the U.S. Census Bureau placed the mean center of U.S. population in St. Clair County. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 270,056, which is an increase of 5.5% from 256,082 in 2000. Its county seat is...
, 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...
. It is owned by the Bi-State Development Agency
Bi-State Development Agency
The Bi-State Development Agency is an interstate compact formed by Missouri and Illinois in 1949. Since February 2003 the agency has been doing business as Metro. It operates with a budget of $160 million, which is funded by sales taxes from the City of St. Louis and St. Louis County, the St...
. The airport is located less than 3 miles from the Gateway Arch Riverfront and is used by many business aircraft visiting the St. Louis region. Airport services include two full-service 24-hour fixed base operators, an instrument landing system, an FAA air traffic control tower, and its own dedicated Index B aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) service.
The St. Louis metropolitan area is also served by Lambert-St. Louis International Airport
Lambert-St. Louis International Airport
Lambert-St. Louis International Airport is a Class B international airport serving Greater St. Louis. It is located approximately northwest of downtown St. Louis in unincorporated St. Louis County between Berkeley and Bridgeton. It is the largest and busiest airport in the state with 250 daily...
in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
; MidAmerica St. Louis Airport
MidAmerica St. Louis Airport
MidAmerica St. Louis Airport is an airport co-located on the grounds of Scott Air Force Base. MidAmerica has operated as a Joint Use Airport since beginning operations in November 1997 and has not been served by any commercial airlines since Allegiant Air pulled out of the airport on January 3,...
in Belleville, Illinois
Belleville, Illinois
Belleville is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city has a population of 44,478. It is the eighth-most populated city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area and the most populated city south of Springfield in the state of Illinois. It is the county...
; St. Louis Regional Airport
St. Louis Regional Airport
St. Louis Regional Airport is a public airport located four miles east of the central business district of Alton, a city in Madison County, Illinois, United States...
in Alton, Illinois
Alton, Illinois
Alton is a city on the Mississippi River in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 27,865 at the 2010 census. It is a part of the Metro-East region of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area in Southern Illinois...
; and Spirit of St. Louis Airport
Spirit of St. Louis Airport
Spirit of St. Louis Airport is a public airport located 17 miles west of the central business district of St. Louis, in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. It is owned by St. Louis County.- Facilities and aircraft :Spirit of St...
in Chesterfield, Missouri
Chesterfield, Missouri
Chesterfield is a second-ring western suburb of St. Louis and is the largest city in west St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. As of the 2010 census the population is 47,484. Chesterfield also celebrated its 20th birthday in 2008.- Geography :...
.
Facilities and aircraft
St. Louis Downtown Airport covers an area of 1013 acres (409.9 ha) which contains three paved runwayRunway
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: 12R/30L measuring 7,001 x 100 ft. (2,133 x 30 m), 12L/30R measuring 3,800 x 75 ft. (1,158 x 23 m) and 5/23 measuring 2,799 x 75 ft. (853 x 23 m).
For the 12-month period ending September 30, 2005, the airport had 170,000 aircraft operations, an average of 465 per day: 97% 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...
, 2% 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 281 aircraft based at this airport: 62% 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...
, 21% multi-engine, 12% 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 5% 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...
.
Historic Hangar #2 houses the Greater Saint Louis Air & Space Museum
Greater Saint Louis Air & Space Museum
The Greater Saint Louis Air & Space Museum is a museum with the mission to preservation and display of historic air and space craft and artifacts, and provide educational programs.-Architecture:...
http://www.airandspacemuseum.org/ and the airport is still home to the nation's oldest flight school, Parks College of Engineering
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology is a college within Saint Louis University.-History:right|thumb|[[de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver]] restored by Parks students in 1991...
and Aviation's Center for Aerospace Sciences, which holds CAA Flight School Certificate #1.
History
The airport opened in 1929 as Curtiss-Steinberg Airport. In 1940 it was renamed Curtiss-Parks Airport, followed by Parks Metropolitan Airport later that same year.Taken over by the United States Army Air Force on 1 August 1939 as a basic (level 1) pilot training airfield. Assigned to USAAF Gulf Coast Training Center (later Central Flying Training Command). Parks Air College conducted contract basic flying training. Flying training was performed with Fairchild PT-19
Fairchild PT-19
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Mondey, David. American Aircraft of World War II . London: Bounty Books, 2006. ISBN 978-0-7537-1461-4....
s as the primary trainer. Also had several PT-17 Stearmans and a few P-40 Warhawks assigned. Inactivated 12 March 1944 with the drawdown of AAFTC's pilot training program.
The airport closed in 1959 and reopened six years later as Bi-State Parks Airport. It was renamed St. Louis Downtown-Parks Airport in 1984 and received its current name in 1999. Today, it is the third busiest airport in Illinois.
See also
- Illinois World War II Army AirfieldsIllinois World War II Army AirfieldsDuring World War II, the United States Army Air Force established numerous airfields in Illinois for training pilots and aircrews of USAAF fighters and bombers....
External links
- St. Louis Downtown Airport (official web site)