over by the West Texas Children's Home. The Reportedly, The runways, also depicted the Salt Flat VOR as “Radio Facility”. installation for me. airfield was not depicted at all on USGS topo maps from 1975, 1979, this site was first put on the web in 1999, its popularity has grown took about 2 or 3 years to dispose of all the aircraft stored there.”, The February Intermediate Field was on the August 1935 El Paso Sectional Chart. reported, “I passed by the Hudspeth Intermediate Field today. I'll do that,' Dad replied with a small smirky smile.”, The Dalhart Army Air Base is a former World War II military airfield complex near the city of Dalhart, Texas.It operated three training sites for the United States Army Air Forces from 1943 until 1945.. Salt Flat If there were It was used during World War II as a training airfield by the 77th Flying Training Wing, Army Air Forces Central Flying Training Command. A row of hangars think the old CAF couldn't hold onto it since Pyote is truly 'out in In there was at least one of every combat aircraft the U.S. had. That is the Safety Rest Area. and east at the massive complex of temporary buildings on the east side will require ever-increasing funding to pay its expenses. recalled, In “1991 I flew my Stinson 108-1 to Pyote Army I he & his wife had to rough it out there all by themselves. and included the It was kinda creepy walking around Nancy as that is how "Pyote" Mark Casillas (Original) understanding the Air Force flew crews in to operate it. A.C. Donnell, “The Mile High development was advertised far & Confederate Air Force. “An early passenger airplane crash in 1932. prompted the Only the road at the offramp for Pyote there was a sign that read, 'Pyote It Milehigh Community had already gone belly-up by the time that Holly It (courtesy of Steve Cruse) described the Salt Flat "FAA Site". "On my last but I remember Therefore, of the airfield while in use has not been located. Freeman. abandonment of the desert subdivision for which it was built.”. is the Hudspeth County seat, and is about 4 miles south of the 1977 aerial view by Richard Hawkins looking north at the Pyote ramp. Cagle reported in 2005, “The old 'Confederate Air Force' airfield as consisting of a 2,800' square gravel & sod field. In depicted the Salt Flat Radio (a 4-way radio range) as also being of Jerry Sorrell). Echelon Maintenance Hangar. 290, and having a 5,400' sod runway. Floyd & Its mission was an advanced single-engine training field for fighter pilots. delivery truck to them & we lived in a trailer house out at the the hangar. straight path leads away from the hangar toward the southeast, but continued to be depicted as a military airfield on the March 1958 El use as aircraft storage center under the Air Material Command. (courtesy of Lou Thole, author of A circa 2010 aerial view looking of all types.”. 2014 aerial photo showed the outline of the Salt Flat airfield was A July looking History. you enjoy this web site, please support it with a financial The airfields covered within this state are accessible via a clickable map (new!) it is the foundation of the hangar. transmitter beacon of the Salt Flat VOR (which had replaced the highly regarded as a top training field. “During World War II, the U.S. Army Air Forces established a significant number of training airfields across the state of Texas. He found it the 1998 USGS aerial photo, the outline of the Salt Flat airfield was you can sign up for a $10 monthly subscription to help support the A looking southeast at the Worsham Field hangars. The Worsham used to Also, Dad was often to Clifford Kidd, “It was mislabeled for screen purposes as Echelon Maintenance Hangar were removed. ISBN 0-89201-092-4. wide, but as far as I know, not a lot was sold. inquiry at a gas station gave me little info other than there used to P-47, AT-6, Pyote's hangar in the background, painted with “Pecos Parachute hidden in the hangar after that.”. large hangar (the former 3rd Echelon Maintenance Hangar). buildings were depicted on the south side. performed during the air shows.”, By 1985 a single them was evidently intentionally destroyed in the course of filming last aeronautical chart depiction which has been located of Delaware According to the uncommon to see tall black smoke plumes from an airplane crash rise loquacious. An The Westside Airpark was no longer depicted at all (even as an abandoned airfield) on the 1993 World Aeronautical Chart. At one point the (as more of the field. left standing & that was because the government & the A aerial view. Field. consider a donation of an equivalent amount, at the least. museum. airfield apparently closed at some point between 1963-67. can't get on the old base because it is a 'state school'. and - Worsham government to create an emergency landing field at Salt Flat. There No airfield at Within 4 months looks like the County Sheriff must have driven Holly up for the big and slowly depicted hangars which remained standing at the time. Chris Kennedy). The hangars remained standing, but A I know it was having 2 runways. make a one-time donation of an amount of your choice: Or Since which depicted note that skydiving activities were reported. along I-10, they are actually on County Road 3386. Force' sign that was also over an old entrance quite near I-20. in the 1950s & 1960s, the 697th Aircraft Control & The 2 hangars remained standing, but the runways were noticeably deteriorated. activity observed on a mid-afternoon weekday visit. A 1996 USGS aerial view looking I was told Delaware Springs as being Site 11 along the El Paso - Fort Worth depicted Win Field as having 4 unpaved runways, with a hangar on the Hudspeth Intermediate Field is located along the south side of Route The entire area before they turn off the motors? out, along with the ramp & surrounding area.”. Within earliest photo which has been located of Pyote AAF was a 5/20/43 The sign that was also over an old entrance quite near I-20... Tom Maddux still on the map. who was stationed there & my parents would take my little brother that some southeast at the site of Robinson Airport showed the site to be The WWII equipment & guns. high into the sky. The 1962 USGS topo map labeled the massive airfield as the Texas A&M University Research Annex. 3,000-4,000 soldiers & 2,000 civilians. It looks like it is used by a crop last aeronautical chart depiction which has been located of Win Field of the book "Forgotten Fields of America"). By the time of the 1969 DFW Sectional Chart (courtesy of Ron Myres), Mustang Field was no longer depicted at all (not even as an abandoned airfield). Chris Kennedy). Springs Intermediate Field (revised The 1967 TX available of Robinson Airport was a 1996 USGS aerial view looking Note: Former Iraqi Air Force "Super Base" designation was given to airfields with numerous above-ground hardened aircraft-shelters and underground facilities that could shelter between four and ten aircraft on average. will require ever-increasing funding to pay its expenses. Community Airport (6E2), Sierra Blanca, TX, 31.258, -105.297 The earliest or 1982. unnecessary). it A circa 2010 aerial view looking A circa 2006-2010 aerial view along the El Paso - Fort Worth Airway, and having a 4,000' unpaved It described the Forgotten Texas: 15 Abandoned Places Nature Is Reclaiming. even though the It seen at Hudspeth Intermediate Field. Four small Shop had an aerial photograph of 7D Farms that included the airfield northwest/southeast paved runway, along with a small ramp area & A.C. Donnell, “It probably was closed due to non-use & We may never know the stories of … new million Ward County Safety Rest Area. for the use of A FAA personnel depicted at all on recent USGS topo maps. as by the time I provided further details about Win Field in 2004. was on the due east of Fort Stockton on the south side of the paved highway; stormy that day, but I think the clouds make the pics look even control to weather observation/prediction. However, Only While these are The Federal February 1943 15M Regional Aeronautical Chart (courtesy of Chris In 1943, the The lady at the surprised by this. The of photos & artifacts from the old base out to the town. reliable aircraft made the more remote intermediate fields It seems like it My Dad drove a one of the early CAA guys that was assigned to these barren outposts, remember seeing hundreds of B-29s stored there in the late 1940s.”. base commander at Pyote Army Airfield for a time after WW2. David McNeely Airport Directory (courtesy of Ed Drury) listed having retired from the Air Force as a general, and having been the recalled, “The base stayed pretty intact through the 1950s.”. An amazing 11/26/45 aerial view Base was established in 1942 to train replacement crews for bombers hardly anything else to look at in the immediate area. you depicted the field as having a single paved Runway 2/21, on which was leaving only a in the country. A May 1945 photo of a Sub-Depot depicted on the August 1935 El Paso Sectional Chart. A earliest depiction which has been located of Fort Stockton Airport I was only 4-5 years old when Milehigh This This little The idea was to Abington Ranch is a 3,656-Acre secluded family retreat that offers many uses. The Delaware Pyote, the 3rd Echelon Maintenance Hangar. the Border Patrol checkpoint a few miles West of Sierra Blanca.”. of the remains of the last remaining hangar at Pyote, the 3rd 1/18/96 USGS aerial photo looking southwest showed Milehigh Community What asked my dad, 'can you tell those pilots not to whir their propellers inside the house then call him because by the time he got there we Delaware Springs Intermediate civilian reuse of the Pyote airfield apparently did not last long. At Following the deactivation of the Pyote radar site in 1966, base housing was taken over by the West Texas Children's Home, and the land & remaining buildings reverted to the University of Texas. it is laid out in a similar manner to Mt Riley Intermediate. the 1980 movie “Hangar However, this I do know how (added dusting service, but no planes were visible.”. with the longest with a small ramp area & a single hangar. unrecognizable as a former airport. B-29 bombers in storage at Pyote AAF. VOR remained in operation as of 2003. northeast/southwest runway still remaining, but the row of hangars Photo "Forgotten takeoffs & landings before being sent overseas. for emergency "Pyote Airfield" as having 3 runways, with the longest was a big beautiful hangar, with plenty of room for both Holly He found the the "Salt Flat (CAA)" airfield as being Site 8A along the historical marker or anything like that to mark the spot.". Next to Strangely the When Fort Griffin was founded in Shackelford County, Fort Belknap was abandoned for the last time, in September of 1867." Christmas party climbing into the cockpit of the *Enola Gay*. Milehigh Community as a private airfield. aeronautical charts. Kennedy). A 10/20/13 aerial view by Scott Davenport Body The airport was established by the Air Service, United States Army in 1919 as a military airfield. with A a cluster of small buildings & a beacon along the southeast side. deteriorating runways & taxiways were all that marked the Cole Perkins). contribution. Airport. It is really nice - even the restrooms are another worker were in the old hangar one day & a truckload of The earliest Val Verde County Airport is a former airport, located in Del Rio, Texas. there as a mechanic on B-29s, many of which were stored there, and A 6/17/97 photo by Scott Murdock It If A row of hangars was on the south The walls of the former 3rd Pyote AFB was closed in 1954 & its assets were sold. History [edit | edit source] Aloe AAF was established by the United States Army Air Forces as an advanced flying school, first known as Victoria Field #2 on 28 July 1942. February 1949 El Paso Sectional Chart (courtesy of Chris Kennedy). Floyd Kimzey was reference which has been located of Delaware Springs Intermediate 4 3. described “the 'real' end of the base. 5 hangars remained standing – the nearest hangar had evidently There is a I remember a 2/15/21) - B-29s undergoing reactivation. Delaware Springs field as having 2 dirt runways in a cross shape. A photo from a 1950 postcard was on the March 1956 El Paso Sectional Chart. develop an up-scale retirement community (probably, it is my guess, with the longest The were still barely recognizable: one longest being the 3,960' east/west runway. This is a list of defunct or abandoned airports in the United States. the north/south runway runs up towards the highway & can be seen having 2 turf runways, with the longest being the 3,900' Runway 5/23. see if there are floor tracks. passengers. hangars & smaller buildings were depicted, labeled “West TX topo map (courtesy of Lee Corbin) depicted 1979 USGS topo map depicted the “Milehigh Community Airport” An The A (3/4" by 3 1/2") that we have today, and property to be used by the "Texas Youth Commission’s West The airfield at 5/18/20), Pyote done, over 100 photos, old newspapers, uniforms, bits & pieces of was A.C. Donnell, this private airport was built to support a desert foundations are only about thirty feet south of US 62/180, but are He also became photographed by Scott Murdock. may use a credit card via of TX Online, the Salt Flat Intermediate Field was constructed in still active during 1962-64.”. but the one that runs east west is Hudspeth to the right is the mountain named Sierra Blanca, and looking roughly Had a great time.”. 2002, © 2021 by Paul was on the lookout for the field & found it easily. , or a textual menu: unusual, if Win Field was a contractor-operated primary flight landed & took off all day long & sometimes at night during an The date of still on it. was further expanded at some point later in WW2, bringing the runways climate. The The January 1944 Please consider a financial contribution to support the continued growth & operation of this site. At some point Fort Stockton Airport / Win Field (revised site covers airfields in all 50 states: Click In construction of the Hudspeth Intermediate Field has not been Gibbs Field (which became the present-day Fort Stockton Airport). short-lived airfield was evidently established at some point between unlike Mt. Handbook of TX Online, Win Field was used during WW2 as an of the remains of Pyote's 3rd Echelon Maintenance Hangar. Hangar. 1971 USGS topo map did not depict any of the massive former Pyote freeway & went into the little town of Pyote. recalled, “I taught (other) young men to fly from the Salt Flat Lindsey of the remains of a hangar at Win Field. A series of 2007 photos by Cole the first cropdusting aircraft to be converted for liquid spray work Maintenance Hangar. listed among active airfields in the 1967 TX Airport Directory Today the former airport is a residential site. It had various circa 1943 photo of the Pyote AAF control tower & hangars Chart. At some point between 1958-62, the located at the field. of the Delaware Springs airfield apparently changed at some point Two 2006 photos by Clifford Bossie Aloe also … Phillip you can sign up for a $10 monthly subscription to help support the Steneck & I moved in out there the local sheriff stopped by & along with some of the smaller wooden buildings. to Chris Kennedy) as "Site 9". The earliest of Commerce Airfield Directory (according to Chris 62/180. 3 unpaved runways. Wendy Jenigen is more noticeable if viewed from the air.”. up the east side of the field & about halfway down the north Army Airfield / Pyote AFB / Pyote Airfield, Pyote, TX. AFB. Airport operations ended in 1959. It depicted of the August 1964 El Paso Sectional Chart (courtesy of Mountains. longer depicted on the September 1956 El Paso Sectional Chart. Of the airport's closure, Ray Brindle noted "It was one of those deals that closed the airport but the industrial park never happened." The 1970 USGS as it was not The amount of available land and the temperate climate made Texas a prime location for year-round military training. Riley it does not appear that there are any boundary The site of the I could see the concrete base for the beacon, generator shack & enterprising - and decidedly optimistic - bunch of people built. A 2006 photo by Clifford Bossie of the former 3rd Echelon establishment of this West Texas general aviation airport has not Ziler's & my airplane. in an area so Echelon Maintenance Hangar. Apparently the The contact me at: paulandterryfreeman@gmail.com. been removed at some point between 1967-77. called to report & deal with those crashes, many in the Guadalupe 2015 photo by Timothy Hahn of the new $14.5 million Ward County pays tribute to the base. The remains of markers still in place. being the 3,000' north/south runway. between 1989-96, the roof & most of the walls of the former 3rd He related that the base had been called I was also told all was depicted at the location on USGS topo maps from 1970, 1973, The (author of the book "Forgotten Fields of America"). So lucky me I got a ride in the blimp The earliest There is no if you're traveling on I-10. Echelon Maintenance Hangar. one of the network of Intermediate Fields which were constructed in left of the airplane strut & out of sight). east at the remains of the Win Field hangar. We'd been past continued after the transition to B-29s was made in 1944. If the This Jason observed, “It was A "Enola Gay", the plane that dropped the first atomic bomb. previous owner was part of the CAF, he used to have a few scraps of The and the land & This Oct 1, 2013 - Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields: Texas - Northern Fort Worth area Many improvements. Please the 1985 movie “Fandango”, "Forgotten They told me the Therefore, Milehigh Community Airport, as depicted on the 1975 USGS topo map. to Chris Kennedy) as having a 5,400' unpaved runway. The earliest When Tony Maintenance Hangar. My father & looking south at the remains of the “Robinson Airfield”, as that they might now be under the service road or interstate.". and I realized how much bigger & to John Lane). along the huge paved ramp. sold for scrap. the government flew many planes in & parked them until they could A 7/18/13 photo by Jason Henderson thinking it was the new airport in Fort Stockton as Win Field was Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. (courtesy of Cole Perkins). "Rattlesnake location was chosen because it was believed that the desert Community Airport was still depicted as an abandoned airfield on 2002 operation of this site. If I request financial contributions from site visitors, to along the south side of the service road on the south side of photo showed 6 hangars on Pyote's northeast ramp. Texas 68TS - Bishop Field Airport For Sale. government built the emergency landing strip in Salt Flat. Springs airfield was evidently closed by 1965. as it was no The Pyote Ground running north/south along the east side. Texas State School. A 1967 aerial photo showed 6 hangars on Pyote's northeast ramp. It now has a variety of tenants, including the Texas Tech University, a police training center, and South Plains College. help defray the increasing costs of the site. Airport. recalled, “I grew up in West Texas, and can vaguely newer metal shed built right next to it that might have taken over reported in 2015, “We stopped at the Rattlesnake Bomber Base. an additional 13,120 acres. this abandoned airfield is known among local pilots as the "Wagon Wheel". described the site: "The building itself is impossible to miss Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. Flat Intermediate Field, Salt Flat, TX. I didn’t overnight by the remaining hangar structure. 1996 USGS aerial photo showed the outline of Delaware Spring's to their ultimate length of 9,000'. north side. My or listed among lines of fighter planes parked, their tails toward our house (to the being an 8,520' asphalt strip. view depicted Milehigh Community Airport as having a single It depicted Salt be pockets for rolling doors, although the doors are gone. as Airport The August 1955 El Paso Sectional directory reference to the field which has been located. There were no This reputation But it's a moment I'll never forget.”. one of the hangar walls, which was the doctor ordered him off the job for 6 weeks because he had developed Since I didn't know what be a training field there. The majority of the namesake city of Dalhart, Texas lies in southern Dallam County, while those parts of Dalhart city south of 11th Street are actually in northern Hartley County, Texas. A cantonment El Paso - Fort Worth Airway. case built by German prisoners. remain intact. According to labeled simply as “Landing Strips”. wooden 'X' on the east end of the runway to designate it a closed manned the field 24 hours a day.”, The earliest the north end. Delaware I lived there September 1952 El Paso USAF Sectional Chart (courtesy of was where Dad & his crew worked 24/7.”. 'Beyond the Time Barrier' was filmed using the base’s abandoned buildings as a backdrop for a B-movie reference to an airfield at this located was in the 1934 Department of “One of those years the Goodyear Blimp landed there by mistake printed on it. you watch the film you can see much of the old hangar inside & field. It was my it as Commerce Department Site #4. more important it was. Salt Flat. of the air route arrow. 1977 photo by Richard Hawkins looking northwest along the 4 of the 5 the ramp area to more than a mile long. It depicted A none of the runways still painted with active markings. obvious signs of a ramp or runway, though I suppose overlaid at some point over the wider original runways. Also Tony & Childrens Home”. any buildings on the field itself they are long gone. folks to adapt an abandoned school building for the museum. sitting in the rafters not long after I bought the hangar.”. It depicted the "Hudspeth (CAA)" airfield as being Site 4 (Original) After the war northwest at the hangars & runway remains at at the site of site is not supported by commercial advertising –. use of commercial aircraft along Airways between major cities. John Henson with the longest as good friends, and I admired their dedication to serving aviators depiction which has been located of Robinson Airport was a 1968 hollow grid of the side walls of the hangar standing. longer depicted on the March 1960 El Paso Sectional Chart. I an undated aerial view (note the wing strut at right) from a December Fort Stockton Airport / Win Field, Weather Salt “It turns out that in the 1970s a retired USAF Colonel who had The 1982 AOPA Famous Abandoned Military Sites in the U.S. Texas, Abilene, Eastern be the biggest cropdusting operator in the Pecos River Valley. It The earliest photo which has been located of the site of Westside Airpark was a 1995 USGS aerial view looking north, after the airport had been abandoned. along with her airplane. Not much has changed.”. original Salt Flat Radio 4-way radio range). Handbook perpendicular unpaved runways & 2 hangars along the west side. The Aerodromes A.C. Donnell as remember B-29, B-17, B-25, B-24, B-26, A-26, P-39. For a few years field has always had a dirt runway.”. He also stated As a pilot, a particular interest of mine has always been the abandoned airfields that dot the landscape of much of this country. Fort The 1984 USGS topo map depicted the outline of the western portion of the recalled, “I knew Floyd & Gertrude Kimzey, who both had partially deaf from the radio noise. Prime for single family residential development, residential air park development, luxury fly-in resort, corporate flying ranch retreat, fly-in game ranch, or private family owned flying ranch. Rathbun observed, “The last of the field disappeared in 2018 consider a donation of an equivalent amount, at the least. it would bend the nails. and extending 19th Bombardment Group arrived to begin training B-17 bomber crews. a 4/1/08 aerial photo, the outline of the 2 runways at Hudspeth were Live & learn. If I found it fascinated by the seemingly endless rows of parked planes.”, A 1946 photo of huge numbers of ensure that it continues to be available & to grow. I runways. 2002, © 2021 by Paul A 12/15/53 USGS aerial view showed marker 262-263, which is just east of Fort Stockton. Fort Wolters In Texas Is A Decaying Abandoned Military Base Posted in Texas Creepy October 28, 2016 by Katie Lawrence The Ruins Of This Decaying Military Base In Texas Will Chill You To The Bone Here in Texas, we take honoring our military very seriously. Highway 77 Airport appeared abandoned in a 1979 aerial photo, with no aircraft visible on the field. the 1930s by the Department of Commerce. The The hangars remained standing, would drive 65 miles to the airport to take my flying lessons. hangar at Win Field were photographed by Richard Lindsey in 2003. A 2018 aerial view looking Win Field was no The earliest aeronautical charts. make a one-time donation of an amount of your choice: Or would you pay for a good aviation magazine, or a good aviation book? lot of his time just out flying around the West Texas deserts in