Pueblo Memorial Airport
Encyclopedia
Pueblo Memorial Airport is a city-owned public-use airport
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 miles (8 km) east 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 Pueblo
Pueblo, Colorado
Pueblo is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The population was 106,595 in 2010 census, making it the 246th most populous city in the United States....

, a city in Pueblo County
Pueblo County, Colorado
Pueblo County is the tenth most populous of the 64 counties of the state of Colorado of the United States. The county was named for the historic city of Pueblo which took its name from the Spanish language word meaning "town" or "village". The United States Census Bureau estimates that the...

, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is mostly used for 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...

, but is also served by one commercial airline. The Pueblo Airport is a popular starting point for the growing population of cyclists in the city. Service is subsidized by the Essential Air Service
Essential Air Service
Essential Air Service is a U.S. government program enacted to guarantee that small communities in the United States, which, prior to deregulation, were served by certificated airlines, maintained commercial service. Its aim is to maintain a minimal level of scheduled air service to these...

 program.

Pueblo Memorial Airport is also home to the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...

's Initial Flight Screening (IFS) program of the Air Education and Training Command
Air Education and Training Command
Air Education and Training Command was established July 1, 1993, with the realignment of Air Training Command and Air University. It is one of the U.S. Air Force's ten major commands and reports to Headquarters, United States Air Force....

 (AETC), which began operations on 1 October 2006. Doss Aviation, under contract with the USAF, will conduct flight screening for between 1300 and 1700 USAF 2nd Lieutenants annually. As the gateway to USAF Aviation, Doss will provide initial flying training allowing students to successfully transition to Undergraduate Flying Training (Pilot and Combat Systems Officer) at one of several Air Force bases throughout the United States. The 45 acres (182,108.7 m²) IFS campus is located immediately adjacent to the Pueblo Memorial Airport, Pueblo, Colorado. See #4 on the bottom for reference.

Facilities and aircraft

Pueblo Memorial Airport covers an area of 3872 acres (1,566.9 ha) which contains three 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:
  • Runway 8L/26R: 10,496 x 150 ft (3,199 x 46 m), the primary commercial service runway.
  • Runway 17/35: 8,308 x 150 ft (2,532 x 46 m), a crosswind runway.
  • Runway 8R/26L: 3,767 x 75 ft (1,148 x 23 m), for use by small aircraft.


Runways 8L/26R and 17/35 are constructed of 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...

 with a porous friction course overlay to improve surface drainage and increase aircraft braking action. Runway 8R/26L has a 3-4 inch asphalt overlay on 7 inches (177.8 mm) of Portland cement
Portland cement
Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world because it is a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco and most non-specialty grout...

 concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...

.

For the 12-month period ending January 31, 2006, the airport had 88,715 aircraft operations, an average of 243 per day: 62% 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...

, 32% military, 6% 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% scheduled commercial. There are 75 aircraft based at this airport: 76% single-engine, 13% multi-engine, 8% jet, 1% 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...

 and 1% glider
Glider aircraft
Glider aircraft are heavier-than-air craft that are supported in flight by the dynamic reaction of the air against their lifting surfaces, and whose free flight does not depend on an engine. Mostly these types of aircraft are intended for routine operation without engines, though engine failure can...

 (1).

Airlines and destinations

Military History

First constructed in 1941 as the Pueblo Army Air Base, it was used as an advanced flying school to train B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...

 four engine heavy bomber crews. It was under the command of the United States Army Air Force Second Air Force
Second Air Force
The Second Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Education and Training Command . It is headquartered at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi....

 360th Army Air Force Base Unit. Known bomb groups which trained or based at Pueblo were:
  • 94th Bombardment Group (B-17) January - April 1943
  • 302d Bombardment Group (B-24) 30 September 1942 - 1 December 1942
  • 351st Bombardment Group (B-17) 1 March - 12 April 1943
  • 381st Bombardment Group (B-17) 5 April - 9 May 1943
  • 400th Bombardment Group (B-17) 2 May - 31 July 1943
  • 466th Bombardment Group (B-29) 25 July - 15 August 1945
  • 469th Bombardment Group (B-24) 1–7 May 1943
  • 471st Bombardment Group (B-24) 7 May 1943 - 28 January 1944


The history of the Air Base is preserved with the Pueblo Historical Aircraft Society
Pueblo Historical Aircraft Society
The Pueblo Historical Aircraft Society , Pueblo, Colorado hosts a large collections of military aircraft in Colorado, USA through the operation of the Weisbrod Museum and the International B-24 Memorial Museum ,together as the Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum.The Society is a volunteer group of...

 and its Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum
Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum
The Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum is a combination of the Weisbrod Museum and the International B-24 Memorial Museum, designed to honor the men and women who served during World War II with emphasis on the Pueblo Army Air Base and the B-24 Liberator bomber...

.

In 1948, it was handed over to the City of Pueblo for commercial and public use. In the 1960s the main east-west runway (8/26) was extended from 6,000' to 10,000' to accommodate jet aircraft.

Today, Pueblo Memorial Airport is now the home of the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...

 Initial Flight Screening (IFS) program, under command of Air Education and Training Command
Air Education and Training Command
Air Education and Training Command was established July 1, 1993, with the realignment of Air Training Command and Air University. It is one of the U.S. Air Force's ten major commands and reports to Headquarters, United States Air Force....

 (AETC), which began operations on October 1, 2006. Doss Aviation, under contract with the USAF conducts flight screening for between 1300 and 1700 USAF 2nd Lieutenants, 1st Lieutenants and Captains annually. As the Gateway to USAF Aviation, Doss will provide initial flying training allowing students to successfully transition to Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) (Pilot) and Undergraduate Navigator Training (Combat Systems Officer) at one of several AETC air force bases throughout the United States.

See also

  • Colorado World War II Army Airfields
    Colorado World War II Army Airfields
    Colorado World War II Army Airfields were major United States Army Air Force training centers for pilots and aircrews.During World War II these Colorado airfields were under the command of Third Air Force or the Army Air Forces Training Command...


External links

  • Pueblo Memorial Airport at the City of Pueblo website
  • Pueblo Memorial Airport at the Colorado DOT
    Department of Transportation
    The Department of Transportation is the most common name for a government agency in North America devoted to transportation. The largest is the United States Department of Transportation, which oversees interstate travel. All U.S. states, Canadian provinces, and many local agencies also have...

    website
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