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Glasgow Valley County Airport

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Glasgow Airport

Wokal Field
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorGlasgow / Valley County
LocationGlasgow, Montana
Elevation AMSL2,296 ft / 700 m
Coordinates48°12′45″N 106°36′53″W / 48.21250°N 106.61472°W / 48.21250; -106.61472
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
8/26 5,000 1,524 Asphalt
12/30 5,000 1,524 Asphalt

Glasgow Airport (IATA: GGW, ICAO: KGGW), also known as Wokal Field/Glasgow International Airport, is a public airport located one mile (2 km) northeast of the central business district (CBD) of Glasgow, a city in Valley County, Montana, United States. The airport covers 1,552 acres and has two runways. It is mostly used for general aviation, but is also served by Big Sky Airlines. Service is subsidized by the Essential Air Service program. As reported in the Sindey Herald Great Lakes Airlines has recently been given D.O.T. approval to take over E.A.S. service to and from Billings, Montana and Glasgow. The article [1] states that this change in airlines could happen, as early as February 1, 2008.

History

Glasgow Army Air Field

Glasgow Army Air Field (Glasgow AAF), also known as the Glasgow Satellite Airfield, was activated on 10 November 1942. It was one of three satellite fields of Great Falls Army Air Base which accommodated a bombardment group. There were four Bomber Squadrons within this group, one located at the Great Falls Army Air Base and one at each of the three satellite air fields at Lewistown, Glasgow and Cut Bank. The 96th Bombardment Squadron of the 2d Bombardment Group arrived at Glasgow Army Air Field on 29 November 1942. The satellite field was used by B-17 Flying Fortress bomber crews from the Second Air Force during the second phase of their training. Actual bombing and gunnery training was conducted at the airfield's associated sites, Glasgow Pattern Bombing Range and the Glasgow Pattern Gunnery Range, though other training sites within the bombardment group were probably also used. The target-towing aircraft assigned to the Fort Peck Aerial Gunnery Range were also stationed at Glasgow. The last unit to complete training at Glasgow Satellite Field was the 614th Bombardment Squadron of the 401st Bombardment Group, which left for England in October 1943. On 1 December 1944 a German prisoner-of-war camp was established at the site. On 15 July 1946 the Glasgow Army Air Field was classified surplus and it was subsequently transferred to the War Assets Administration on 18 November 1946.

Glasgow Air Force Base

The former Glasgow Air Force Base should not be confused with the current Glasgow International Airport/Wokal Field. They are separate facilities. The former Glasgow AFB is located approximately 17 miles north of the city of Glasgow, Montana, not far from the Canadian border. Prior to DoD ownership, 605 acres of this land were used as a municipal airport and the rest for agricultural purposes.

The 91st Bombardment Wing was previously stationed at Glasgow Air Force Base in new facilities which were completed in 1960. In February 1961, the 326th Bombardment Squadron, equipped with B-52 aircraft, moved to the base as the nucleus for the organization of the 4141st Strategic Wing. In its first year, this became the top wing in Fifteenth Air Force. The 4141st Strategic Wing inactivated at Glasgow AFB on 01 February 1963 and its aircraft were transferred to the to 322nd Bombardment Squadron, 91st Bombardment Wing, at Glasgow AFB. This uint subsequnetly inactivated in 1968.

Glasgow Army Air Field, also known as the Glasgow Satellite Airfield, was activated on 10 November 1942. It was one of three satellite fields of Great Falls Army Air Base which accommodated a bombardment group. There were four Bomber Squadrons within this group, one located at the Great Falls Army Air Base and one at each of the three satellite air fields at Lewistown, Glasgow and Cut Bank. The 96th Bombardment Squadron of the Second Bombardment Group arrived at Glasgow Army Air Field on 29 November 1942. Heavy bomber squadrons of the time usually consisted of 8 B-17s with 37 officers and 229 enlisted men. The satellite field was used by B-17 bomber crews from the Second Air Force during the second phase of their training. Actual bombing and gunnery training was conducted at the airfield's associated sites, Glasgow Pattern Bombing Range and the Glasgow Pattern Gunnery Range, though other training sites within the bombardment group were probably also used. The target-towing aircraft assigned to the Fort Peck Aerial Gunnery Range were also stationed at Glasgow. The last unit to complete training at Glasgow Satellite Field was the 614th Bombardment Squadron of the 401st Bombardment Group, which left for England in October 1943. On 01 December 1944 a German prisoner-of-war camp was established at the site. On 15 July 1946 the Glasgow Army Air Field was classified surplus and it was subsequently transferred to the War Assets Administration on 18 November 1946.

Glasgow AFB began shutting down in the late 1960s and for some time was an unfortunate example of failed local policies. When the base closed, 16,000 people left the Glasgow area, a trend that continued among the civilian population. In 1970, Glasgow had an emigration rate of 33 percent; in 1980 the population fell to 4,500, and it was expected to fall below 4,000 in 1990.

Glasgow AFB was briefly reactivated as a SAC dispersal base from 1972 to 1976, and was also used as an Army Safeguard ABM depot supporting construction of a second ABM complex northwest of Malmstrom AFB, which was not completed. When Glasgow AFB finally closed out all USAF activities in 1976, it was so isolated and without business advantages that it sat idle for years until The Boeing Company began testing aircraft there.

In February 1997, Montana Senator Conrad Burns announced that he had helped set up negotiations between the Saint Marie Condominium Association (SMCA) and Boeing regarding the possible lease of the officers club on the old Glasgow Air Force Base. With the exception of the Glasgow Industrial Airport located in Glasgow, Montana, which is company-owned, runways and taxiways used by Boeing are located on airport properties owned by others and are used by the company jointly with others.

The Boeing Company continues to own most of the former Glasgow AFB and it is now known as the Boeing Glasgow Flight Test Facility. The facility supports Boeing Technology Services (BTS) customers and is maintained and operated by Montana Aviation Research Company (MARCO), a subsidiary of The Boeing Company.

When Glasgow Air Force Base (Glasgow AFB) was reactivated in 1957 as a base for Air Defense Command interceptors, it initially possessed a single 8,900 ft runway that was subsequently lengthened to 13,500 ft for B-52 operations. Glasgow was the home of the 467th Fighter Group from 1957-60, and the 13th Fighter Interceptor Squadron from 1959-68. Both units were equipped with the F-101B Voodoo. In February 1961 the 326th Bombardment Squadron, equipped with B-52 aircraft, moved to Glasgow as the nucleus for the 4141st Strategic Wing, as part of the Fifteenth Air Force. The 4141st Strategic Wing inactivated on 1 February 1963, and its aircraft were transferred to the to 322nd Bombardment Squadron. Due to Glasgow's pending deactivation, the 91st Bombardment Wing, Heavy departed to Minot AFB, North Dakota in 1968.

Glasgow Airport

Military units at Glasgow

Airlines

References

  1. ^ [1]
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