Rentschler Field was an airport in

East Hartford, Connecticut East Hartford is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 51,045 at the 2020 census. The town is located on the east bank of the Connecticut River, directly across from Hartford, Connecticut. It is home to aerospac ...

in use from 1933 to 1999. Originally a military facility, later a private corporate airport, it was decommissioned in 1999, after which the football stadium of the same name was built on the site. On Nov 22, 2021 it was announced that the undeveloped remainder of Rentschler Field, was acquired from

Raytheon Technologies Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitaliz ...

(formerly United Technologies, Pratt and Whitney) by Massachusetts development firm National Development. The property will offer businesses more than 280 acres for development. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. From 1930 to 1939, the Chance Vought Aircraft Corporations's manufacturing facility was located here, as was the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company and the Hamilton Standard Propellers Corporation.

History

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the airfield was used by the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

First Air Force The First Air Force (Air Forces Northern; 1 AF-AFNORTH) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Its primary mission is the air defense of the Co ...

as a fighter base, providing coastal air defense over the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. After the war, the airfield was returned to civilian use. Rentschler Field was decommissioned as an airport and donated to the state of Connecticut by United Technologies in 1999. Part of the former airport became the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from Hart ...

's new football stadium,

Rentschler Field Rentschler Field was an airport in East Hartford, Connecticut in use from 1933 to 1999. Originally a military facility, later a private corporate airport, it was decommissioned in 1999, after which the football stadium of the same name was bui ...

References

* Thole, Lou (1999), Forgotten Fields of America : World War II Bases and Training, Then and Now - Vol. 2. Publisher: Pictorial Histories Pub,

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20100113104552/http://airfields-freeman.com/CT/Airfields_CT_C.html#Rentschler *https://www.courant.com/business/hc-biz-pratt-whitney-site-sale-20211122-pf3rx6sr35hsppmbraspo4q4dy-story.html Defunct airports in Connecticut Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in Connecticut Airports in Hartford County, Connecticut 1933 establishments in Connecticut 1999 disestablishments in Connecticut {{Connecticut-airport-stub

History

See also

References

External links