West Mesa Airport
Encyclopedia
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...
on Albuquerque, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
's West Side. Built in 1929, it was the city's second airport after the original Albuquerque Airport (completed in 1928). West Mesa was built by Western Air Express and was originally known as "Western Air Express Airport." TWA
Twa
The Twa are any of several hunting peoples of Africa who live interdependently with agricultural Bantu populations, and generally hold a socially subordinate position: They provide the farming population with game in exchange for agricultural products....
and Continental Airlines
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...
operated out of this airport until the Albuquerque Municipal Airport (now Albuquerque International Sunport
Albuquerque International Sunport
Albuquerque International Sunport is a public airport located 3 miles southeast of the central business district of Albuquerque, a city in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States. It is the largest commercial airport in the state, handling 5,888,811 passengers in 2009...
) was built in 1939. Cutter-Carr Flying Service (known later as Cutter Flying Service or Cutter Aviation operated flight instruction and fuel service until shortly before West Mesa Airport closed in 1967.
The airport had four unpaved 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 arranged in a star shape. The longest was 16/34 at 6300 feet, followed by 7/25 (5700 feet), 2/20 (5400 feet), and 11/29 (4550 feet).
When built, the airport stood alone on the West Mesa, surrounded by acres of empty desert. Today, the site is bounded by Coors, Unser, Central
Central Avenue (Albuquerque)
Central Avenue is a major east-west street in Albuquerque, New Mexico, which historically served as the city's main thoroughfare and principal axis of development. It runs through many of Albuquerque's oldest neighborhoods, including Downtown, Old Town, Nob Hill, and the University of New Mexico...
, and I-40 and has been mostly covered up by new development, though several of the old runways are still at least partially visible. The largest and most obvious remnant of West Mesa is the quarter-mile stretch of Runway 11 on the north side of Los Volcanes Road, but traces of Runways 7 and 16 can also be identified.