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Salina Regional Airport , formerly Salina Municipal Airport, is three miles southwest of
Salina, Kansas Salina is a city in, and the county seat of, Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,889. In the early 1800s, the Kanza tribal land reached eastward from the middle of the Kansas Territory. In 1 ...
, United States. The airport is owned by the Salina Airport Authority. It is used for
general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...
, with service by one passenger airline,
SkyWest Airlines SkyWest Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered in St. George, Utah, United States. SkyWest is paid to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by a partner mainline airline. Th ...
(operating as
United Express United Express is the brand name for the regional branch of United Airlines, under which six individually owned regional airlines operate short- and medium-haul feeder flights. On October 1, 2010, UAL Corporation and Continental Airlines merged t ...
), subsidized by the
Essential Air Service Essential Air Service (EAS) is a U.S. government program enacted to guarantee that small communities in the United States, which had been served by certificated airlines prior to deregulation in 1978, maintained commercial service. Its aim is t ...
program. Salina Regional Airport is the home of the
Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus Kansas State University Salina Aerospace and Technology Campus, also known as K-State Salina, is a branch campus of Kansas State University, and the home of the University's College of Technology and Aviation. It is located in Salina, Kansas, U ...
Aviation Program with degrees available in Airport Management, Aviation Certificates, Aviation Electronics, Aviation Maintenance Management, Aviation Safety, Professional Pilot, Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Unmanned Aircraft Systems Design and Integration, and Unmanned Aircraft Systems Flight and Operations.


History

The airport is on the site of Schilling Air Force Base (previously Smoky Hill Army Air Field and Smoky Hill Air Force Base). The construction of military airfields after the
Pearl Harbor Attack The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, ...
that caused the entry of the United States into World War II resulted in the construction of the Smoky Hill Army Air Field (AAF) on , southwest of
Salina, Kansas Salina is a city in, and the county seat of, Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,889. In the early 1800s, the Kanza tribal land reached eastward from the middle of the Kansas Territory. In 1 ...
. The first unit associated with the airfield was the 376th Base Headquarters and Air Base Squadron, whose engineers first laid out the base in April 1942. Construction began in May 1942 with the aid of nearly 7,000 workers. The airfield was activated on 1 September 1942 and was assigned to the
II Bomber Command The II Bomber Command is a disbanded United States Air Force unit. It was established in September 1941, shortly before the attack on Pearl Harbor to command heavy bomber units assigned to Second Air Force. Following the entry of the United St ...
,
Second Air Force The Second Air Force (2 AF; ''2d Air Force'' in 1942) is a USAF numbered air force responsible for conducting basic military and technical training for Air Force enlisted members and non-flying officers. In World War II the CONUS unit defende ...
.KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY, Summer 1959 issue
/ref>AFHRA Smoky Hill Army Air Field
/ref> Enough construction was completed that the 376th moved into facilities on 10 September. The first aircraft to arrive,
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Thea ...
es, arrived later that month and were assigned to the
346th Bombardment Group The 346th Bombardment Group is a former United States Army Air Forces unit. It was last assigned to the 316th Bombardment Wing at Kadena Airfield, Okinawa, where it was inactivated on 30 June 1946. The group was originally a heavy bomber train ...
. The mission of Smoky Hill AAF was that of a Second Phase Heavy Bomber Operational Training Unit (OTU). Combat groups formed in First Phase training were reassigned to the airfield, training focused to teamwork of the combat crew was stressed: bombing, gunnery, and instrument flight missions were performed by full crews. Upon completion, the groups moved on to third phase the final level of training before overseas deployment to the combat theaters.Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. . The 366th was joined by the
400th Bombardment Group 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...
in the training mission at Smoky Hill AAF on 31 July 1943. The 366th concentrated on B-17 Flying Fortress training; the 400th on
B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models ...
training. The airport was the takeoff and landing point for the
Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer The Scaled Composites Model 311 Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer ( registered N277SF) is an aircraft designed by Burt Rutan in which Steve Fossett first flew a solo nonstop airplane flight around the world in slightly more than 67 hours (2 days 19 h ...
, flown by
Steve Fossett James Stephen Fossett (April 22, 1944 – September 3, 2007) was an American businessman and a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer. He was the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon and in a fixed-wing aircraf ...
in the first nonstop, non-refueled solo circumnavigation of the earth from February 28 to March 3, 2005. Fossett's later nonstop non-refueled solo circumnavigation in the GlobalFlyer was also Salina to Salina, from March 14 to March 17, 2006, setting a new record for greatest distance traveled on a closed course. Salina Regional Airport has memorialized the records set by Steve Fossett with Fossett Plaza. The plaza has a memorial, seating area, plaques with the story of the Global Flyer and Steve Fossett, and a viewing area to observe operations.


Historical airline service

Salina received its first scheduled airline service in the early 1930s by United States Airways, which flew a
Metal Aircraft Flamingo The Metal Aircraft Flamingo was a monoplane produced in Cincinnati, Ohio by the Metal Aircraft Corporation in the 1930s. Design and development The Metal Aircraft Corporation purchased the design from the Halpin Development Co. and unveiled it ...
on an airmail route between Denver and Kansas City, stopping at Goodland, Salina, and Topeka, Kansas. This route was discontinued about 1933 and airline service did not return to Salina until 1949.
Continental Airlines Continental Airlines, simply known as Continental, was a major United States airline founded in 1934 and eventually headquartered in Houston, Texas. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers. Continental started ...
then began stopping at Salina with
Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper versi ...
s in 1949, also on a route between Denver and Kansas City, making as many as ten stops at smaller cities throughout Colorado and Kansas. Continental's service continued until 1961.
Central Airlines Central Airlines was a passenger airline (the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) called it a "local service" air carrier) in Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas from 1949 to 1967. It was founded by Keith Kahle in 1944 to opera ...
replaced Continental in 1961, also using DC-3s, but later upgrading with
Convair 240 The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inro ...
and
Convair 600 The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inroa ...
aircraft. In 1967 Central merged into
Frontier Airlines Frontier Airlines is a major ultra-low-cost U.S. airline headquartered in Denver, Colorado. It operates flights to over 100 destinations throughout the United States and 31 international destinations, and employs more than 3,000 staff. The ca ...
which used
Convair 580 The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inroa ...
s, and in early 1978 introduced
Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton Factory in Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating with two u ...
jets to Salina on flights to Denver and Chicago, the latter making three stops en route. The Chicago flights were later replaced with service to Kansas City, and Frontier was soon flying all 737 jets through Salina up to four times per day. All Frontier service ended on January 6, 1983.
Air Midwest Air Midwest, Inc., was a Federal Aviation Administration Part 121 certificated air carrier that operated under air carrier certificate number AMWA510A issued on May 15, 1965. It was headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, United States, and was a sub ...
first began service to Salina as an air taxi in the late 1960s, with flights to Wichita using
Cessna 402 The Cessna 401 and 402 are a series of 6 to 10 seat, light twin-piston engine aircraft. This line was manufactured by Cessna from 1966 to 1985 under the name Utiliner and Businessliner.Montgomery, MR & Gerald Foster: ''A Field Guide to Airplane ...
s. The carrier suspended service for a few years, then returned from 1972 through 1976 with flights to both Kansas City and Wichita using
Beechcraft 99 The Beechcraft Model 99 is a civilian aircraft produced by Beechcraft. It is also known as the Beech 99 Airliner and the Commuter 99. The 99 is a twin-engine, unpressurized, 15 to 17 passenger seat turboprop aircraft, derived from the earlier Be ...
s. Air Midwest returned again in 1983 to replace Frontier's service with flights to Denver, Kansas City, and Wichita, using
Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner The Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner (previously the Swearingen Metro and later Fairchild Aerospace Metro) is a 19-seat, pressurized, twin-turboprop airliner first produced by Swearingen Aircraft and later by Fairchild Aircraft at a plant in San ...
s; however, the Denver flights were soon discontinued. In 1986 Air Midwest began a series of code share relationships with major carriers operating feeder flights on behalf of a major carrier: 1986-1988 as Eastern Express to Kansas City using the Metroliners as well as
Saab 340 The Saab 340 is a Swedish twin-engine turboprop aircraft designed and initially produced by Saab AB and Fairchild Aircraft. It is designed to seat 30-36 passengers and, as of July 2018, there were 240 operational aircraft used by 34 different o ...
aircraft. 1988-1989 as Braniff Express to Kansas City using Metroliners. 1990-1991 as Trans World Express (on behalf of TWA) to St. Louis with a stop in
Manhattan, Kansas Manhattan is a city and county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. As of the 2020 c ...
, using
Embraer 120 Brasilia The Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia is a twin-turboprop 30-passenger commuter airliner designed and manufactured by the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer. The EMB 120 began development during 1974. While initially conceived as a modular series o ...
's. 1991-2008 as
USAir Express US Airways Express was the brand name for the regional affiliate of US Airways, under which a number of individually owned commuter air carriers and regional airlines operate short and medium haul routes. This code sharing service was previously ...
to Kansas City using
Beechcraft 1900 The Beechcraft 1900 is a 19-passenger, pressurized twin-engine turboprop regional airliner manufactured by Beechcraft. It is also used as a freight aircraft and corporate transport, and by several governmental and military organizations. With ...
aircraft. All Air Midwest service ended in mid-2008. Capitol Air Service provided a single daily flight to Kansas City with stops in Manhattan and Topeka, Kansas from 1982 through 1988. The carrier used a
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada, which produced the aircraft from 1965 to 1988; Viking Air purchased the type certificate, then restart ...
and operated as Braniff Express during its final two years.
Great Lakes Airlines Great Lakes Airlines was an American regional airline operating domestic scheduled and charter services. Corporate headquarters were in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with a hub at Denver International Airport. As of November 2013, Great Lakes Airlines ...
first served Salina briefly in 2000-2001, operating as
United Express United Express is the brand name for the regional branch of United Airlines, under which six individually owned regional airlines operate short- and medium-haul feeder flights. On October 1, 2010, UAL Corporation and Continental Airlines merged t ...
with flights to Hays and Denver, using
Beechcraft 1900D The Beechcraft 1900 is a 19-passenger, pressurized twin-engine turboprop regional airliner manufactured by Beechcraft. It is also used as a freight aircraft and corporate transport, and by several governmental and military organizations. With c ...
s. The carrier returned in 2008, replacing Air Midwest's service to Kansas City until 2010.
SeaPort Airlines SeaPort Airlines was a US-based regional airline with its headquarters at Portland International Airport in Portland, Oregon. It operated scheduled service from its bases at Portland International Airport (PDX) (Pacific Northwest region) and Me ...
came to Salina in 2010, replacing Great Lakes with flights to Kansas City. SeaPort first flew
Pilatus PC-12 The Pilatus PC-12 is a pressurized, single-engined, turboprop aircraft, manufactured by Pilatus Aircraft of Stans, Switzerland, since 1991. It was designed as a high-performance utility aircraft that incorporates a large aft cargo door in ...
aircraft then later flew
Cessna 208 Caravan The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna. The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982. The production model was certified by the FAA in October 1984 and its Cargo ...
s. Service ended in 2016. Great Lakes returned once again in 2016, replacing SeaPort, but operating flights to Denver using
Embraer 120 Brasilia The Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia is a twin-turboprop 30-passenger commuter airliner designed and manufactured by the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer. The EMB 120 began development during 1974. While initially conceived as a modular series o ...
s. Great Lakes went out of business in 2018.
SkyWest Airlines SkyWest Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered in St. George, Utah, United States. SkyWest is paid to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by a partner mainline airline. Th ...
, the current provider operating as
United Express United Express is the brand name for the regional branch of United Airlines, under which six individually owned regional airlines operate short- and medium-haul feeder flights. On October 1, 2010, UAL Corporation and Continental Airlines merged t ...
, began service in 2018 using
Bombardier CRJ100/200 The Bombardier CRJ100 and CRJ200 (previously Canadair CRJ100 and CRJ200) is a regional jet designed and manufactured by Bombardier Aerospace between 1991 and 2006, the first of the Bombardier CRJ family. The ''Canadair Regional Jet'' (CRJ) p ...
regional jets. Initially, one daily nonstop to Chicago and two daily flights to Denver with a stop in Hays, KS were provided; however, service was trimmed back in 2020 to one daily nonstop to each city. The airport is served under the
Essential Air Service Essential Air Service (EAS) is a U.S. government program enacted to guarantee that small communities in the United States, which had been served by certificated airlines prior to deregulation in 1978, maintained commercial service. Its aim is t ...
program where an individual carrier is selected and receives government funding to provide service to smaller communities.


Facilities

The airport covers 2,862
acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial and US customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, of a square mile, 4,840 square ...
s (1,158 ha) at an elevation of 1,288 feet (393 m). It has four
asphalt Asphalt, also known as bitumen (, ), is a sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum. It may be found in natural deposits or may be a refined product, and is classed as a pitch. Before the 20th century, the term ...
runways: 17/35 is 12,300 by 150 feet (3,749 x 46 m); 12/30 is 6,510 by 100 feet (1,984 x 30 m); 18/36 is 4,301 by 75 feet (1,311 x 23 m); 4/22 is 3,648 by 75 feet (1,112 x 23 m). In the year ending January 30, 2014 the airport had 91,101 aircraft operations. Having a long runway and being 85 miles southeast from the continental center of the United States, the airport sees many corporate and private jets that stop to refuel and allow passengers to have a break, earning Salina the moniker "America's Fuel Stop." Avflight Salina is responsible for all fueling and ground handling of transient and military aircraft. The airport hosts a variety of Forward Operating Location (FOL) activity and has been the operating site for many missions by
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeedin ...
,
NOAA The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...
, Wings of Freedom, the
Commemorative Air Force The Commemorative Air Force (CAF), formerly known as the Confederate Air Force, is an American non-profit organization based in Dallas, Texas, that preserves and shows historical aircraft at airshows, primarily in the U.S. and Canada. The CAF h ...
and Virgin Atlantic Global.


Airline and destinations


Passenger


Environmental contamination

A report from the 40th Bombardment Wing in 1953 described the problem. "One of the foremost and the first problems encountered was an excessive amount of solvent being required to properly wash and clean aircraft," the report said. "Some method of reducing the amount of solvent used was needed. This problem was met by installing a system of settling tanks ... Approximately 12,000 to 14,000 gallons of solvent are used per month." In 1989 the Salina School District unearthed three of 107 underground fuel storage tanks on its vo-tech property. It first became known that Trichlorethylene (TCE), a degreaser used to clean aircraft and a carcinogen, as well as other compounds disposed of on the former base, have migrated into the soil and groundwater, forming a toxic plume. In 1999, the
US Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...
published its first remedial investigation. In 2005 the Corps shared the draft of a second remedial investigation of the contamination in the Salina Airport Industrial Area. Residents in the area of the plume were advised not to drink the water, per the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Soilwater intrusion assays in 1999 by EPA and again in 2005 showed vapor levels inside Kansas State University's Tullis building did not exceed state standards for air quality, but they may exceed federal EPA guidelines. As of 2005, the federal government had spent more than $17 million studying the problem in its jurisdiction. In December 2007 the Corps groundwater contamination cleanup was put on hold. In August 2008, the city of Salina offered to clean-up former Schilling AFB, as suggested by the Corps. In 2010, after the plume had reached residential areas near the former base, Salina officials, the Salina Airport Authority, the Salina school district and Kansas State University – Salina (now
Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus Kansas State University Salina Aerospace and Technology Campus, also known as K-State Salina, is a branch campus of Kansas State University, and the home of the University's College of Technology and Aviation. It is located in Salina, Kansas, U ...
), who own 96% of the property filed a federal lawsuit in
Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...
, for the clean up costs. In spring of 2013 the Department of Justice signed a settlement that the government would pay $8.4 million merely toward developing the plan to clean up the former base. A remedial investigation, feasibility study and cleanup remedy were estimated to cost about $9.3 million, of which the Salina public entities agreed to pay $936,300. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment oversees the cleanup process. As of September 2015 studies have continued to find groundwater contamination in soil and bedrock, and no concentrations of vapor requiring immediate action were found in an area around Salina Regional Airport.


Other sources

* Essential Air Service documents
Docket DOT-OST-2002-11376
from the U.S. Department of Transportation: *
90 Day Notice (January 23, 2002)
from Midwest Express Inc., a Mesa Air Group subsidiary, of intent to discontinue scheduled non-subsidized Essential Air Service between Salina, Kansas, and Kansas City effective April 20, 2002. *
Order 2002-3-31 (March 29, 2002)
prohibiting Air Midwest, Inc., d/b/a US Airways Express, from terminating its unsubsidized service at Salina, Kansas; and requiring the carrier to maintain service between the community and Kansas City, Missouri, for an initial 30-day period following the end of the notice period; and requesting proposals from carriers interested in providing replacement service at the community. *
Order 2004-2-14 (February 17, 2004)
selects Air Midwest, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Mesa Air Group, Inc., d/b/a US Airways Express, to provide subsidized essential air service (EAS) for a two-year period at Manhattan and Salina, Kansas, at a combined annual subsidy rate of $721,605. *
Order 2006-3-15 (March 15, 2006)
re-selecting Air Midwest, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Mesa Air Group, Inc., d/b/a US Airways Express, to provide subsidized essential air service (EAS) for the two-year period beginning March 1, 2006, at Manhattan and Salina, Kansas, at a combined annual subsidy rate of $974,008. *
Order 2007-12-25 (December 21, 2007)
re-selecting Air Midwest, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Mesa Air Group, Inc., d/b/a US Airways Express to provide subsidized essential air service (EAS) at Manhattan and Salina, Kansas, for a total annual subsidy of $1,619,566 for the two-year period beginning March 1, 2008. *
Order 2008-2-5 (February 1, 2008)
prohibiting Air Midwest, Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary of Mesa Air Group, Inc., d/b/a US Airways Express from suspending its subsidized essential air services at Manhattan and Salina, Kansas, until Great Lakes Aviation, Ltd. begins full replacement service, and selecting Great Lakes to provide those services for a new two-year period at an annual subsidy rate of $1,997,237. *
Order 2009-11-25 (November 30, 2009)
requesting proposals from carriers interested in providing essential air service (EAS) at Salina, Kansas, for the two-year period beginning April 1, 2010, with or without subsidy. With respect to this order, we are soliciting proposals for service to Salina only. In the past, the communities of Salina and Manhattan were handled under the same contract because the flights were historically routed Salina-Manhattan-Kansas City. However, on or about August 26, 2009, American Eagle inaugurated subsidy-free regional jet service from Dallas-Fort Worth to Manhattan. *
Order 2010-3-17 (March 12, 2010)
selecting SeaPort Airlines to provide essential air service (EAS) at Salina, Kansas, for a first-year annual subsidy of $1,489,435 and a second-year of $1,493,381 for the two-year period beginning when it inaugurates full EAS. *
Order 2012-2-4 (February 3, 2012)
re-selecting SeaPort Airlines Inc. to provide Essential Air Service (EAS) at Salina, Kansas, using 9-seat Pilatus PC-12 aircraft for the four-year period beginning April 1, 2012, through March 31, 2016, for an annual subsidy of $1,490,479.


References


External links

*
Aerial image as of August 1991
from
USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...
''
The National Map ''The National Map'' is a collaborative effort of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and other federal, state, and local agencies to improve and deliver topographic information for the United States. The purpose of the effort is to prov ...
'' * * * {{authority control Airports in Kansas Essential Air Service Salina, Kansas Buildings and structures in Saline County, Kansas