Demopolis Municipal Airport
Encyclopedia
Demopolis Municipal Airport is a city-owned public-use airport
located six nautical mile
s (7 mi
, 11 km
) southwest of the central business district
of Demopolis
, a city in Marengo County
, Alabama
, United States
. It is also known as Demopolis Regional Airport and Julian D. "Buzz" Sawyer Airport.
This airport is included in the FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems
for 2011–2015 and 2009–2013, both of which categorized
it as a general aviation
facility.
Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier
for the FAA
and IATA
, this airport is assigned DYA by the FAA but has no designation from the IATA.
the airfield was built by the United States Army Air Force and opened in October 1943. It was assigned to Third Air Force
. It was used to train pilots as an axillary airfield to the group and replacement training center at Key Field
, Mississippi
. With the end of the war in September 1945, activities at Demopolis Army Airfield were diminished. The airfield was returned to civil control in 1946.
s (177 ha
) at an elevation
of 112 feet (34 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway
designated 4/22 with an asphalt
surface measuring 5,002 by 100 feet (1,525 x 30 m).
For the 12-month period ending September 9, 2010, the airport had 5,250 aircraft operations, an average of 14 per day: 99% general aviation
and 1% military
.
At that time there were 18 aircraft based at this airport: 89% single-engine
and 11% multi-engine.
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 six nautical mile
Nautical mile
The nautical mile is a unit of length that is about one minute of arc of latitude along any meridian, but is approximately one minute of arc of longitude only at the equator...
s (7 mi
Mile
A mile is a unit of length, most commonly 5,280 feet . The mile of 5,280 feet is sometimes called the statute mile or land mile to distinguish it from the nautical mile...
, 11 km
Kilometre
The kilometre is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one thousand metres and is therefore exactly equal to the distance travelled by light in free space in of a second...
) southwest 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 Demopolis
Demopolis, Alabama
Demopolis is the largest city in Marengo County, Alabama, United States. The population was 7,483 at the time of the 2010 United States Census....
, a city in Marengo County
Marengo County, Alabama
Marengo County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is named in honor of a battlefield near Turin, Italy, where the French defeated the Austrians on June 14, 1800. As of 2010 the population was 21,027...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is also known as Demopolis Regional Airport and Julian D. "Buzz" Sawyer Airport.
This airport is included in the FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems
National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems
The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems is an inventory of U.S. aviation infrastructure assets. It is developed and maintained by the Federal Aviation Administration . Its purposes are:* to identify all the airports in the U.S...
for 2011–2015 and 2009–2013, both of which categorized
FAA airport categories
The United States Federal Aviation Administration has a system for categorizing public-use airports that is primarily based on the level of commercial passenger traffic through each facility. It is used to determine if an airport is eligible for funding through the federal government's Airport...
it as a 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...
facility.
Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier
Location identifier
A location identifier is a symbolic representation for the name and the location of an airport, navigation aid, or weather station, and is used for manned air traffic control facilities in air traffic control, telecommunications, computer programming, weather reports, and related services.-ICAO...
for the FAA
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...
and IATA
International Air Transport Association
The International Air Transport Association is an international industry trade group of airlines headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where the International Civil Aviation Organization is also headquartered. The executive offices are at the Geneva Airport in SwitzerlandIATA's mission is to...
, this airport is assigned DYA by the FAA but has no designation from the IATA.
History
During World War IIWorld 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...
the airfield was built by the United States Army Air Force and opened in October 1943. It was assigned to Third Air Force
Third Air Force
The Third Air Force is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe . It is headquartered at Ramstein Air Base, Germany....
. It was used to train pilots as an axillary airfield to the group and replacement training center at Key Field
Key field
A key field is a field or set of fields of a database table which together form a unique identifier for a database record . The aggregate of these fields is usually referred to simply as "the key". Key fields also define searches...
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. With the end of the war in September 1945, activities at Demopolis Army Airfield were diminished. The airfield was returned to civil control in 1946.
Facilities and aircraft
The airport covers an area of 438 acreAcre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s (177 ha
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
) at an elevation
Elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of 112 feet (34 m) above mean sea level. It has one 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...
designated 4/22 with an 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...
surface measuring 5,002 by 100 feet (1,525 x 30 m).
For the 12-month period ending September 9, 2010, the airport had 5,250 aircraft operations, an average of 14 per day: 99% 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...
and 1% military
Military aviation
Military aviation is the use of aircraft and other flying machines for the purposes of conducting or enabling warfare, including national airlift capacity to provide logistical supply to forces stationed in a theater or along a front. Air power includes the national means of conducting such...
.
At that time there were 18 aircraft based at this airport: 89% single-engine
Aircraft engine
An aircraft engine is the component of the propulsion system for an aircraft that generates mechanical power. Aircraft engines are almost always either lightweight piston engines or gas turbines...
and 11% multi-engine.
See also
- Alabama World War II Army AirfieldsAlabama World War II Army AirfieldsDuring World War II, the United States Army Air Force established numerous airfields in Alabama for antisubmarine defense in the Gulf of Mexico and for training pilots and aircrews of USAAF fighters and bombers....
- List of airports in Alabama
External links
- Aerial image as of 23 January 1993 from USGS The National Map