Port Heiden Airport
Encyclopedia
Port Heiden Airport is a state-owned, public-use airport
located six nautical miles (11 km) northeast of the central business district
of Port Heiden
, in the Lake and Peninsula Borough
of the U.S. state
of Alaska
. Scheduled airline service to King Salmon Airport
is provided by Peninsula Airways (PenAir).
As per Federal Aviation Administration
records, this airport had 919 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year
2008, a decrease of 9.6% from the 1,017 enplanements in 2007. Port Heiden is included in the FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems
(2009–2013), which categorizes
it as a general aviation
facility.
s with gravel
surfaces: 5/23 is 5,000 by 100 feet (1,524 x 30 m) and 13/31 is 4,000 by 100 feet (1,219 x 30 m). For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2006, the airport had 1,000 aircraft operations, an average of 83 per month: 50% air taxi
and 50% general aviation
.
Japanese attack on the Aleutian Islands. On 17 June 1942 the United States Army established a garrison of 1,400 officers and enlisted men at Port Heiden on the north side of the Alaska Peninsula, with the mission of developing and holding an air base intermediate between the Kodiak and Cold Bay fields, this new garrison becoming the Army's Fort Morrow Army Airfield. The airfield did not have any permanent assigned units during the war, but hosted numerous temporary assigned USAAF and Naval Air units during the Aleutian Campaign and aided in the defense of Kodiak Island.
Beginning in 1958 the airport was used to support Port Heiden Air Force Station, a Cold War
United States Air Force
Distant Early Warning Line
radar station. The station was operated by Detachment 5, 714th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron based at Cold Bay Air Force Station
, near Cold Bay, Alaska
. The radar station was inactivated in September 1969, ending military use of the airport.
The Air Force remediated the radar site around 2000, removing all abandoned military structures and returning the site to a natural condition.
business jet veered off the gravel runway 23 upon landing in a crosswind
. The plane sustained substantial damage, thought there were no injuries among the six occupants.
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 miles (11 km) northeast 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 Port Heiden
Port Heiden, Alaska
Port Heiden is a city in Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska, United States. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 119.-Geography:Port Heiden is located at ....
, in the Lake and Peninsula Borough
Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska
-National protected areas:* Alagnak Wild River* Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge ** Sutwik Island* Alaska Peninsula National Wildlife Refuge * Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve...
of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. Scheduled airline service to King Salmon Airport
King Salmon Airport
King Salmon Airport is a state-owned public-use airport located just southeast of King Salmon, in Bristol Bay Borough, Alaska, United States. It was formerly the Naknek Air Force Base, named for its location near the Naknek River....
is provided by Peninsula Airways (PenAir).
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, this airport had 919 commercial passenger boardings (enplanements) 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...
2008, a decrease of 9.6% from the 1,017 enplanements in 2007. Port Heiden 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...
(2009–2013), which categorizes
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.
Facilities and aircraft
Port Heiden Airport has two runwayRunway
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 with gravel
Gravel
Gravel is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel can be sub-categorized into granule and cobble...
surfaces: 5/23 is 5,000 by 100 feet (1,524 x 30 m) and 13/31 is 4,000 by 100 feet (1,219 x 30 m). For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2006, the airport had 1,000 aircraft operations, an average of 83 per month: 50% 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 50% 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...
.
History
The airport was built in 1942 after the 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...
Japanese attack on the Aleutian Islands. On 17 June 1942 the United States Army established a garrison of 1,400 officers and enlisted men at Port Heiden on the north side of the Alaska Peninsula, with the mission of developing and holding an air base intermediate between the Kodiak and Cold Bay fields, this new garrison becoming the Army's Fort Morrow Army Airfield. The airfield did not have any permanent assigned units during the war, but hosted numerous temporary assigned USAAF and Naval Air units during the Aleutian Campaign and aided in the defense of Kodiak Island.
Beginning in 1958 the airport was used to support Port Heiden Air Force Station, a Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
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...
Distant Early Warning Line
Distant Early Warning Line
The Distant Early Warning Line, also known as the DEW Line or Early Warning Line, was a system of radar stations in the far northern Arctic region of Canada, with additional stations along the North Coast and Aleutian Islands of Alaska, in addition to the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Iceland...
radar station. The station was operated by Detachment 5, 714th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron based at Cold Bay Air Force Station
Cold Bay Air Force Station
Cold Bay Air Force Station is a closed United States Air Force General Surveillance Radar station. It is located southwest of Anchorage, Alaska....
, near Cold Bay, Alaska
Cold Bay, Alaska
Cold Bay is a city in Aleutians East Borough, Alaska, United States.Cold Bay is one of the main commercial centers of the Alaska Peninsula, and is home to Cold Bay Airport.-History:...
. The radar station was inactivated in September 1969, ending military use of the airport.
The Air Force remediated the radar site around 2000, removing all abandoned military structures and returning the site to a natural condition.
Incidents and accidents
On 30 April 2008, a Cessna Citation ExcelCessna Citation Excel
|-Operators:The aircraft is operated by private individuals, companies, fractionals, charter operators and aircraft management companies.*******-See also:-External links:* * *...
business jet veered off the gravel runway 23 upon landing in a crosswind
Crosswind
A crosswind is any wind that has a perpendicular component to the line or direction of travel. In aviation, a crosswind is the component of wind that is blowing across the runway making landings and take-offs more difficult than if the wind were blowing straight down the runway...
. The plane sustained substantial damage, thought there were no injuries among the six occupants.
See also
- Alaska World War II Army AirfieldsAlaska World War II Army AirfieldsDuring World War II, Alaska was a major United States Army Air Force location for personnel, aircraft, and airfields to support Lend-Lease aid for the Soviet Union...
External links
- FAA Alaska airport diagram (GIFGIFThe Graphics Interchange Format is a bitmap image format that was introduced by CompuServe in 1987 and has since come into widespread usage on the World Wide Web due to its wide support and portability....
)
