Arkansas International Airport

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Arkansas International Airport
Arkansas International Airport, 25 March 2001
City of Blytheville, Arkansas showing Arkansas International Airport northeast of town
IATA: BYH – ICAO: KBYH – FAA: BYH
Summary
Airport type		Public
Operator		Gosnell Regional Airport Authority
Location		Blytheville, Arkansas
Elevation AMSL		254 ft / 77 m
Coordinates		35°57′52″N 89°56′38″W / 35.96444, -89.94389
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
Direction	ft	m	Surface
18/36	11,602	3,536	Asphalt/Concrete

Arkansas Int'l Airport Diagram
© Jeppesen Sanderson, Inc.

For the military use of this facility before 1992, see Eaker Air Force Base

Arkansas International Airport (IATA: BYH, ICAO: KBYH, FAA LID: BYH) is a public airport located 3 miles (5 km) northwest of the central business district of Blytheville, a city in Mississippi County, Arkansas, USA.

1 Facilities
2 History
3 See also
4 References
- 4.1 Notes
5 External links

[edit] Facilities

Arkansas International Airport covers 1,100 acres (445 ha) and has one runway:

Runway 18/36: 11,602 x 150 ft (3,536 x 46 m), Surface: Asphalt/Concrete

It consists of 1.5 million square feet of available space, which makes it the second largest industrial complex in Arkansas. The complex consists of commercial, community, recreation, educational, garage, industrial, office, residential, and warehousing facilities, which makes it very open for many uses.

Because it was an air force base, it has room and facilities that are not available in many other complexes. Some of these extra functions include full length parallel runways, five million square feet of tamp space and 6 full size hangars. These full size hangars are large enough to accommodate a DC-10 or a Boeing 747. Facilities also include a full airplane maintenance and test hangar, with enough space to maintain the planes listed above. These buildings add up to approximately 300,000 square feet.

The airport has the longest runway in the state of Arkansas. It is approximately 11,600 feet in length. The airport also has very reasonable seasonal climate conditions, which makes it convenient for year-round travel. The airport can accommodate up to 50 aircraft, and has large hanger and storage areas for maintenance and repair needs.

The airport also accommodates deployment and pick-up of National Guard troops, as well as training grounds for military flight training maneuvers.

[edit] History

Arkansas International Airport was developed from the closed Eaker Air Force Base, after its closure by the United States Air Force on 15 December 1992.

The facilty secured a lease with USA Floral, a major floral distributor based near Washington, D.C., that needed a southern locale for its regular flights to South America to import flowers. USA Floral was expected to create hundreds of jobs in Blytheville.^[1]

The Arkansas Archaeological Society hosted a training program at the former air base from 2004-2006. Archaeologists have been studying the Mississippian culture that lived in the region, focusing on the years 900-1600.