Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

's first aeronautical event was the flight of a balloon around 1850 by Professor Silas Brooks. Iowa's first

powered flight A powered aircraft is an aircraft that uses onboard propulsion with mechanical power generated by an aircraft engine of some kind. Aircraft propulsion nearly always uses either a type of propeller, or a form of jet propulsion. Other potential ...

was made by Art J. Hartman in his Iowa built, Hartman monoplane on 10 May 1910.

Events

*On 13 October 1910

Thomas Scott Baldwin Thomas Scott Baldwin (June 30, 1854 – May 17, 1923) was a pioneer balloonist and U.S. Army major during World War I. He was the first American to descend from a balloon by parachute. Early career Thomas Scott Baldwin was born on June 30, 18 ...

demonstrated the

Baldwin Red Devil The Baldwin Red Devil was a series of early pusher configuration aircraft employing steel tube construction. The aircraft were designed by Thomas Scott Baldwin. Development After building several aircraft, Baldwin had C. and A. Wittemann of S ...

at the Iowa city fair. *September 5, 1912,

Lincoln Beachey Lincoln Beachey (March 3, 1887 – March 14, 1915) was a Aviation in the pioneer era, pioneer American aviator and barnstorming, barnstormer. He became famous and wealthy from flying exhibitions, staging aerial stunts, helping invent aerobatics ...

delivers the first Iowa airmail letters. *19 July 1989,

United Airlines Flight 232 United Airlines Flight 232 was a regularly scheduled United Airlines flight from Stapleton International Airport in Denver to O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, continuing to Philadelphia International Airport. On July 19, 1989, the DC ...

DC-10 The McDonnell Douglas DC-10 is an American trijet wide-body aircraft manufactured by McDonnell Douglas. The DC-10 was intended to succeed the DC-8 for long-range flights. It first flew on August 29, 1970; it was introduced on August 5, 1971, ...

makes a crash landing with complete hydraulic failure at

Sioux Gateway Airport Sioux Gateway Airport , also known as Colonel Bud Day Field, is a public and military use airport in Woodbury County, Iowa, United States. It is located six nautical miles (7 mi, 11 km) south of the central business district of Sioux ...

Aircraft Manufacturers

* Angel Aircraft Corporation,

Orange City, Iowa Orange City is a city in, and the county seat of, Sioux County, Iowa, United States. Its population was 6,267 in the 2020 census, an increase from 5,582 in 2000. Named after William of Orange, the community maintains its Dutch settler tradition ...

Builds the

AAC Angel AAC may refer to: Aviation * Advanced Aircraft, a company from Carlsbad, California * Alaskan Air Command, a radar network * American Aeronautical Corporation, a company from Port Washington, New York * American Aviation, a company from Cleveland ...

pusher light twin. * Grinnell Aeroplane Company (1914-1918)

Grinnell, Iowa Grinnell is a city in Poweshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 9,564 at the time of the 2020 census. It is best known for being the home of Grinnell College. History Grinnell was founded by settlers from New England who were ...

- Manufactured early biplanes. * Central States Aero (1926-) was founded in

Davenport, Iowa Davenport is a city in and the county seat of Scott County, Iowa, United States. Located along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state, it is the largest of the Quad Cities, a metropolitan area with a population of 384,324 and a ...

building an aircraft designed by

Clayton Folkerts Clayton Folkerts (1897–1964) was an American aircraft designer. Early life Self-taught in aircraft design, Clayton built five aircraft at his family farm between 1916 and 1926, including a Henderson powered high-wing. Folkerts worked ...

that would become the popular Monocoupe series.

Aerospace

Adams-Farwell The Adams Company is an American manufacturing concern. It was founded in 1883 and is based in Dubuque, Iowa, United States. Between 1905 and 1912 it produced the Adams-Farwell, a brass era automobile. History The Roberts & Langworthy Iron Works ...

Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Il ...

- An early automobile manufacturer developed radial engines used in early aircraft.

Airports

Des Moines International Airport Des Moines International Airport is a commercial service airport 5 miles (8 km) southwest of Des Moines, Iowa, Des Moines, the capital of Iowa. The airport's 2,600 acre campus includes two runways, 46 buildings, 7 parking facilities, and ...

is the busiest airport in Iowa with 898,840 passenger movements in 2010. *

List of Airports in Iowa This is a list of airports in Iowa (a U.S. state), grouped by type and sorted by location. It contains all public-use and military airports in the state. Some private-use and former airports may be included where notable, such as airports that were ...

Commercial Service

Organizations

*The Iowa Aviation Promotion Group is a non-profit organization with a mission to promote aviation within Iowa

Government and Military

*All flight operations in Iowa are conducted within

FAA The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...

oversight. *The Iowa State Patrol Air Wing was founded in 1956. It now operates 3

Cessna 182 The Cessna 182 Skylane is an American four-seat, single-engined light airplane built by Cessna of Wichita, Kansas. It has the option of adding two child seats in the baggage area. Introduced in 1956, the 182 has been produced in a ...

, 5

Cessna 172 The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is an American four-seat, single-engine, high wing, fixed-wing aircraft made by the Cessna Aircraft Company.

, and one Piper Saratoga.

Museums

Iowa Aviation Museum The Iowa Aviation Museum is located at the Greenfield Municipal Airport in Greenfield, Iowa, and is dedicated to preserving Iowa's aviation heritage. The Iowa Aviation Hall of Fame, located at the museum, honors Iowans who have contributed signi ...

, located in

Greenfield, Iowa Greenfield is a city and county seat of Adair County, Iowa, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 2,062. History The area around Greenfield was settled in 1854. The plan for the town of Greenfield was created in 1856 wh ...

* Iowa Aviation Heritage Museum,

Ankeny, Iowa Ankeny (, ) is a city in Polk County, Iowa, United States and a suburb of the state capital of Des Moines, as part of the Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA metropolitan statistical area. As of the 2020 census, the population of Ankeny was 67,887, m ...

References

{{Reflist, 2 Transportation in Iowa