Thompson-Robbins Airport
Encyclopedia
Thompson-Robbins Airport is a public-use airport
located five nautical mile
s (6 mi
, 9 km
) northwest of the central business district
of Helena-West Helena
, in Phillips County, Arkansas
, United States
. It is owned by the City of Helena-West Helena.
This airport is included in the FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems
for 2011–2015, which categorized
it as a general aviation
airport.
The airfield was operated under contract to USAAF by Aero-Tech providing basic flight (level 1) instruction to aviation cadets. Fairchild PT-19
s were the primary trainer used. It also had several PT-17 Stearmans and a few P-40 Warhawks assigned. It performed contract training until airfield was inactivated on 4 August 1944 with the drawdown of AAFTC's pilot training program.
The airfield was turned over to civil control at the end of the war though the War Assets Administration (WAA).
s (247 ha
) at an elevation
of 242 feet (74 m) above mean sea level. It has two asphalt
paved runway
s: 17/35 is 5,000 by 96 feet (1,524 x 29 m) and 8/26 is 3,009 by 60 feet (917 x 18 m).
For the 12-month period ending July 31, 2009, the airport had 35,000 aircraft operations, an average of 95 per day: 97.1% general aviation
, 1.4% air taxi
, and 1.4% military
. At that time there were 42 aircraft based at this airport: 79% single-engine
, 17% multi-engine, 2% jet
, and 2% helicopter
.
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 five nautical mile
Nautical mile
The nautical mile is a unit of length that is about one minute of arc of latitude along any meridian, but is approximately one minute of arc of longitude only at the equator...
s (6 mi
Mile
A mile is a unit of length, most commonly 5,280 feet . The mile of 5,280 feet is sometimes called the statute mile or land mile to distinguish it from the nautical mile...
, 9 km
Kilometre
The kilometre is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one thousand metres and is therefore exactly equal to the distance travelled by light in free space in of a second...
) northwest 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 Helena-West Helena
Helena-West Helena, Arkansas
Helena-West Helena is the county seat of and the largest city within Phillips County, Arkansas, United States. The current city represents a consolidation, effective on January 1, 2006, of the two Arkansas cities of Helena and West Helena. West Helena is located on the western side of Crowley's...
, in Phillips County, Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
, 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 City of Helena-West Helena.
This airport 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...
airport.
History
The airport was established in 1941 by the United States Army Air Force and is also known as Thompson-Robbins Field.The airfield was operated under contract to USAAF by Aero-Tech providing basic flight (level 1) instruction to aviation cadets. 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 were the primary trainer used. It also had several PT-17 Stearmans and a few P-40 Warhawks assigned. It performed contract training until airfield was inactivated on 4 August 1944 with the drawdown of AAFTC's pilot training program.
The airfield was turned over to civil control at the end of the war though the War Assets Administration (WAA).
Facilities and aircraft
Thompson-Robbins Airport covers an area of 610 acreAcre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s (247 ha
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
) at an elevation
Elevation
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 242 feet (74 m) above mean sea level. It has two 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: 17/35 is 5,000 by 96 feet (1,524 x 29 m) and 8/26 is 3,009 by 60 feet (917 x 18 m).
For the 12-month period ending July 31, 2009, the airport had 35,000 aircraft operations, an average of 95 per day: 97.1% 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...
, 1.4% 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 1.4% 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 42 aircraft based at this airport: 79% 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...
, 17% multi-engine, 2% 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 2% 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...
.
External links
- Thompson-Robbins Airport (HEE) at Arkansas Department of Aeronautics
- Aerial image as of 28 February 2001 from USGS The National Map