| Brownwood Regional Airport | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| IATA: BWD – ICAO: KBWD | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public/Military | ||
| Operator | City of Brownwood | ||
| Location | Brownwood, Texas | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 1,387 ft / 423 m | ||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 13/31 | 4,596 | 1,401 | Asphalt |
| 17/35 | 5,599 | 1,707 | Asphalt |
Brownwood Regional Airport (IATA: BWD, ICAO: KBWD) is a public airport located in west central Texas, near the cities of Brownwood and Early. The airport has 2 runways 35/17 & 31/13.
Though the airport is used mostly for general aviation, the 21st Cavalry Brigade of the III Corps, U.S. Army, utilize the airport as part of their flight training area for the Apache and Blackhawk helicopters.
The airport was opened during World War II as Brownwood Army Airfield and was used by the United States Army Air Forces as a training base.
The 68th and 77th Reconnaissance Groups trained at Brownwood during 1942 with a variety of aircraft, including B-17 Flying Fortresse, B-24 Liberators, P-40 Warhawks and A-20 Havocs. In addition to the training performed at the airfield, patrols were flown over the Gulf of Mexico and along the Mexican border. The role of the Brownwood Army Airfield from November, 1943, to September, 1944 was to operate as a refresher school and replacement training unit for liaison pilots within the Third Air Force. One of the primary aircraft used in this role was the Stinson L-5. In October, 1944, the airfield became the new combat crew training center. From January, 1945, until the end of World War II, the primary mission of the Brownwood Army Airfield was the training and preparation of combat crews for overseas replacement.
The U.S. Government deeded the airport to the City of Brownwood after World War II. There are static displays of an F-4 Phantom and an F-111 jets on the airport grounds.
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Air Force Historical Research Agency.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||