Reading Regional Airport
Encyclopedia
Reading Regional Airport , also known as Carl A. Spaatz Field, is a public airport located three miles (5 km) northwest 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 Reading
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading is a city in southeastern Pennsylvania, USA, and seat of Berks County. Reading is the principal city of the Greater Reading Area and had a population of 88,082 as of the 2010 census, making it the fifth most populated city in the state after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown and Erie,...

, a city in Berks County
Berks County, Pennsylvania
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 373,638 people, 141,570 households, and 98,532 families residing in the county. The population density was 435 people per square mile . There were 150,222 housing units at an average density of 175 per square mile...

, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

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

. It is owned by the Reading Regional Airport Authority.

As per Federal Aviation Administration
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...

 records, the airport had 2,268 passenger boardings in calendar year
Calendar year
Generally speaking, a calendar year begins on the New Year's Day of the given calendar system and ends on the day before the following New Year's Day. By convention, a calendar year consists of a natural number of days. To reconcile the calendar year with an astronomical cycle , certain years...

 2006, 2,445 in 2005 and 9,288 in 2004. The airport formerly had scheduled service on US Airways Express
US Airways Express
US Airways Express is an airline brand name, rather than a fully certified airline, and as such, the US Airways Express name is used by several individually owned airlines or airline holding companies which provide regional airline and commuter service for US Airways.Operations are conducted from...

 carrier Air Midwest
Air Midwest
Air Midwest, Inc., was a Federal Aviation Administration Part 121 certificated air carrier operating under air carrier certificate number AMWA510A issued on May 15, 1965. It was headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, United States, and was a subsidiary of Mesa Air Group. It operated flights as US...

, which ended on September 3, 2004. The airport is now served by three charter airlines.

Charter airlines

  • Millennium Aviation
    Millennium Aviation
    Millennium Aviation is a passenger Charter airline based in Reading, Pennsylvania. It is also an FBO at the Reading Regional Airport.-Fleet:*Two Learjet 35s*One Learjet 55*One Learjet 60*One Hawker 850XP*One Cessna Citation II-Works Cited and Links:*...

  • Reading Air Charter
    Reading Air Charter
    Reading Air Charter is a passenger Charter airline based in Reading, Pennsylvania. It operates out of the Reading Regional Airport.-External links:* *...

  • Southwest Airlines
    Southwest Airlines
    Southwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline based in Dallas, Texas. Southwest is the largest airline in the United States, based upon domestic passengers carried,...

     (Orlando) provided by Boscov's
    Boscov's
    Boscov's is an American department store founded by Solomon Boscov in 1911. The first store was in Reading, Pennsylvania, and today 40 stores are spread throughout the Mid-Atlantic states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, New York, and Delaware....

     Travel.

Facilities and aircraft

Reading Regional Airport covers an area of 888 acres (359.4 ha) which contains two 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...

 paved 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: 13/31 measuring 6,350 x 150 ft (1,935 x 46 m) and 18/36 measuring 5,151 x 150 ft (1,570 x 46 m).

For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2006, the airport had 124,650 aircraft operations, an average of 341 per day: 91% 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...

, 5% 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...

, 3% military, 1% commuter/cargo and <1% scheduled commercial. There are 177 aircraft based at this airport: 63% single-engine, 21% multi-engine, 11% jet, 2% 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...

, 2% ultralight 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...

.

History

Opened as a civil airport in April 1938, Reading Airport was used by the United States Army Air Force First Air Force
First Air Force
The First Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida....

 as a training airfield during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

Reading Army Airfield was opened on 1 June 1943, with the 309th Base Headquarters and Air Base Squadron as its host unit. The mission of the airfield was to train tactical reconnaissance units. The 26th Tactical Reconnaissance Group was activated on the airfield the same date, with the 37th, 39th, 40th and 91st Photo Reconnaissance Squadrons.

Aircraft used by the group for training were the Curtiss O-52 Owl; Douglas O-53 Havoc; Douglas O-46, and the Stinson O-49 Vigilant . The 72d Liaison Squadron, flying the Aeronaca O-58 Grasshopper arrived on 7 June and remained assigned to the station until 29 July 1943 when it was assigned to Camp Mackall
Camp Mackall
Camp Mackall is an active U.S. Army training facility located in eastern Richmond County and northern Scotland County, North Carolina, south of the town of Southern Pines. The facility is in close proximity to and is a sub-installation of Fort Bragg Camp Mackall is an active U.S. Army training...

, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

.

On 11 November 1943, the 26th was reassigned to Camp Campbell, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

 to train with the 101st Airborne Division
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division—the "Screaming Eagles"—is a U.S. Army modular light infantry division trained for air assault operations. During World War II, it was renowned for its role in Operation Overlord, the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944, in Normandy, France, Operation Market Garden, the...

 before deploying to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, and engaging in combat operations as part of Ninth Air Force
Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command . It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina....

. It was replaced by the 11th Photographic Group
11th Photographic Group
The 11th Photographic Group is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Third Air Force stationed at MacDill Field, Florida...

 on 1 December 1943. The 11th Photo Group used Reading as its worldwide headquarters, as its reconnaissance and photo squadrons were deployed to various parts of the world.

On 1 January 1944, Reading AAF was reassigned to Air Technical Service Command and became a sub-base of the Middletown Air Depot near Harrisburg. The mission of the station became to repair and overhaul aircraft and return them to active service. The 11th Photo Group moved out to MacDill Airfield, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

.

On 1 June 1944, the 309th Air Base Squadron was redesignated as the 85th Army Air Force Base Unit. The activity at Reading was phased down during the summer of 1945, and with the war ending, it was inactivated as an active military airfield on 26 February 1946 and the airport was designated as an Air Force Reserve base. On that same date, the field was turned over to Air Defense Command, Eleventh Air Force as a reserve airfield, and the 2237th Air Force Reserve Training Center was activated to coordinate reserve training. The 438th Army Air Forces Base Unit was activated on 15 December for coordinating operations of the airfield and control of the military base facilities. On 1 January 1948, jurisdiction of the field was transferred to the ADC First Air Force.

During the late 1940s, a series of reserve bombardment groups were assigned to the airport, these being:
  • On 24 May 1946 the 148th Fighter Squadron
    148th Fighter Squadron
    The 148th Fighter Squadron is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the 162d Fighter Wing, Arizona Air National Guard. It is stationed at Tucson Air National Guard Base, Arizona.-Overview:...

    , Pennsylvania Air National Guard
    Pennsylvania Air National Guard
    The Pennsylvania Air National Guard is the air force militia of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is, along with the Pennsylvania Army National Guard, an element of the Pennsylvania National Guard. It is considered a part of the United States Air Force, as well as of the state.-Overview:The...

     was assigned to the Airport. It was formerly the Twelfth Air Force 347th Fighter Squadron
    347th Fighter Squadron
    The 347th Fighter Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 350th Fighter Group stationed at Seymour Johnson Field, North Carolina. It was inactivated on 7 November 1945.-History:...

     which was inactivated on 7 November 1945 prior to being re designated and turned over to the Air National Guard. The squadron was activated at the airport on 22 April 1947 with P (later F-47) Thunderbolts
    P-47 Thunderbolt
    Republic Aviation's P-47 Thunderbolt, also known as the "Jug", was the largest, heaviest, and most expensive fighter aircraft in history to be powered by a single reciprocating engine. It was heavily armed with eight .50-caliber machine guns, four per wing. When fully loaded, the P-47 weighed up to...

     under the 112th Fighter Group at Pittsburgh Airport. On 10 February 1951 the squadron was federalized due to the Korean War
    Korean War
    The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...

     and brought to active duty at Dover AFB, Delaware. It was released from active duty on 1 November 1952 and was re-equipped with the F-51 Mustang for interceptor duty. In 1956, as propeller driven F-51 Mustang fighters faded into history, the unit was redesignated the 140th Aeromedical Transport Squadron, flying the C-46 Commando
    C-46 Commando
    The Curtiss-Wright C-46 Commando was a transport aircraft originally derived from a commercial high-altitude airliner design. It was instead used as a military transport during World War II by the United States Army Air Forces as well as the U.S. Navy/Marine Corps under the designation R5C...

     and later the C-119 Flying Boxcar
    C-119 Flying Boxcar
    The Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar was an American military transport aircraft developed from the World War II-era Fairchild C-82 Packet, designed to carry cargo, personnel, litter patients, and mechanized equipment, and to drop cargo and troops by parachute...

    . In 1964, the unit relocated to its current location at Olmsted Air National Guard Base (present day Harrisburg International Airport)

  • 322d Bombardment Group (Light), 9 August 1947-27 June 1949, Flew the A-26 Invader
    A-26 Invader
    The Douglas A-26 Invader was a United States twin-engined light attack bomber built by the Douglas Aircraft Co. during World War II that also saw service during several of the Cold War's major conflicts...

59th, 451st and 452d Bombardment Squadrons. Also had the 55th Troop Carrier Group assigned, but never equipped.

  • 319th Bombardment Group (Light), 27 June-2 September 1949, Flew the A-26 Invader
    A-26 Invader
    The Douglas A-26 Invader was a United States twin-engined light attack bomber built by the Douglas Aircraft Co. during World War II that also saw service during several of the Cold War's major conflicts...

49th and 51st Bombardment Squadrons

  • 512th Troop Carrier Group (Combat Cargo), 2 September 1949-1 May 1950, Flew the C-46 Commando
    C-46 Commando
    The Curtiss-Wright C-46 Commando was a transport aircraft originally derived from a commercial high-altitude airliner design. It was instead used as a military transport during World War II by the United States Army Air Forces as well as the U.S. Navy/Marine Corps under the designation R5C...

1st, 2d, 3d and 4th Combat Cargo Squadrons


Due to budgetary cutbacks, the Reserve Training Center at Reading was inactivated on 1 May 1950 and reassigned to New Castle County Airport, Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...

. The Air Force closed its facilities at Reading airport and it was returned to full civil control.

On 5 December 1984, Reading Airport was dedicated as Carl Andrew Spaatz Field. Carl Spaatz was a nearby Boyertown, Pennsylvania
Boyertown, Pennsylvania
Boyertown is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,940 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...

 native and a World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 General. General Spaatz was the first Chief of Staff 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...

.

Since the 1950's, the airport has also been home to the Reading Composite Squadron (Pennsylvania Wing designation Squadron 811) of the U.S. Civil Air Patrol.

Mid-Atlantic Air Museum

The Mid-Atlantic Air Museum
Mid-Atlantic Air Museum
The Mid-Atlantic Air Museum is membership supported museum and aircraft restoration facility located at the Carl A. Spaatz Field, the regional airport serving Reading, Pennsylvania. The museum, founded by Russ Strine, the current President, collects and actively restores historic war planes and...

 is located at Reading Airport. It collects and actively restores historic war planes and classic airliners as well as rare civilian and military aircraft, with large number of historic aircraft on display to the public. It has also embarked on an ambitious project to restore its P-61B-1-NO Black Widow, recovered from New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...

 in 1989, to flying condition.

See also

  • Pennsylvania World War II Army Airfields
    Pennsylvania World War II Army Airfields
    During World War II, the United States Army Air Force established numerous airfields in Pennsylvania for training pilots and aircrews of USAAF fighters and bombers....


External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK