Twentynine Palms Airport is a 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 six nautical miles (11 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 Twentynine Palms

Twentynine Palms, California

Twentynine Palms is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. It was previously called Twenty-Nine Palms...

, a city in San Bernardino County

San Bernardino County, California

San Bernardino County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 2,035,210, up from 1,709,434 as of the 2000 census...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, 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 County of San Bernardino.

History

Activated on 1 January 1942 by the United States Army Air Forces

United States Army Air Forces

The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....

. Started as USAAF contract glider training - Twenty-Nine Palms Air Academy until 16 February 1943. Had four axillary airfields in local area. Flying training was performed with Fairchild PT-19

Fairchild PT-19

|-See also:-Bibliography:* Mondey, David. American Aircraft of World War II . London: Bounty Books, 2006. ISBN 978-0-7537-1461-4....

s as the primary trainer. Also had several PT-17 Stearmans and a few P-40 Warhawks assigned. Conducted basic flying training from March 1943 until transferred to United States Navy April 1944; Under USN control became an axillary

Axillary

Axillary means "related to the axilla "."Axillary" may refer to:* Axillary artery* Axillary vein* Axillary nerve* Axillary bud...

 airfield to NAS San Diego.

Facilities and aircraft

Twentynine Palms Airport covers an area of 480 acres (194.2 ha) 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 1,888 feet (575 m) above mean sea level. It has 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: 8/26 is 5,531 by 75 feet (1,686 x 23 m) and 17/35 is 3,797 by 50 feet (1,157 x 15 m).

For the 12-month period ending February 16, 2006, the airport had 18,000 aircraft operations, an average of 49 per day: 97.% 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 3% 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 16 aircraft based at this airport: 68% 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...

, 6% multi-engine and 25% glider

Glider (sailplane)

A glider or sailplane is a type of glider aircraft used in the sport of gliding. Some gliders, known as motor gliders are used for gliding and soaring as well, but have engines which can, in some cases, be used for take-off or for extending a flight...

.

Other sources

• Shaw, Frederick J. (2004), Locating Air Force Base Sites History’s Legacy, Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force, Washington DC, 2004.
• Manning, Thomas A. (2005), History of Air Education and Training Command, 1942–2002. Office of History and Research, Headquarters, AETC, Randolph AFB, Texas ASIN: B000NYX3PC

External links

• Twentynine Palms Airport at County of San Bernardino web site
• openNav: TNP / KTNP charts