| Kearney Regional Airport | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| USGS aerial photo - 6 Apr 1999 | |||
| IATA: EAR – ICAO: KEAR – FAA LID: EAR
EAR
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| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Owner | City of Kearney | ||
| Serves | Kearney, Nebraska | ||
| Location | Center Township, Buffalo County, near Kearney, Nebraska | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 2,131 ft / 650 m | ||
| Website | |||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 18/36 | 7,094 | 2,162 | Asphalt |
| 13/31 | 4,498 | 1,371 | Concrete |
| Statistics (2008) | |||
| Aircraft operations | 30,040 | ||
| Based aircraft | 29 | ||
| Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||
Kearney Regional Airport (IATA: EAR, ICAO: KEAR, FAA LID: EAR), formerly known as Kearney Municipal Airport, is a public airport located four nautical miles (7 km) northeast of the central business district of Kearney, a city in Buffalo County, Nebraska, United States. The airport is owned by the City of Kearney.[1] It is served by one commercial airline, with service subsidized by the Essential Air Service program.
Contents |
Kearney Regional Airport covers an area of 2,500 acres (1,000 ha) at an elevation of 2,131 feet (650 m) above mean sea level. It has two runways: 18/36 with a asphalt pavement measuring 7,094 x 150 ft (2,162 x 46 m) and 13/31 with an concrete surface measuring 4,498 x 75 ft (1,371 x 23 m).[1]
For the 12-month period ending September 30, 2008, the airport had 30,040 aircraft operations, an average of 82 per day: 93% general aviation, 5% scheduled commercial, 2% air taxi and <1% military. At that time there were 29 aircraft based at this airport: 83% single-engine, 14% multi-engine and 3% helicopter.[1]
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Great Lakes Airlines | Denver |
In 1940, Kearney had a population of 9,643 people. In the early 1940s, three Nebraska cities, Kearney, Grand Island and Hastings joined together to form the Central Nebraska Defense Council when it was learned that the United States Army Air Force was considering the site for a military airfield. The group attempted to convince Washington that central Nebraska was a suitable location for defense related activities. Kearney and Grand Island effectively competed with one another as locations for defense airports which would serve as storage for aircraft being produced at Offutt Field and the Glenn L. Martin Bomber Plant near Omaha.
As early as 1941 the City of Kearney voted on a $60,000 bond to finance a new airport. Kearney Regional Airport began as Keens Municipal Airport. The total cost ended up being more than $360,000, with the balance funded by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Construction began at the site five miles east of Kearney on Highway 30 on 21 October 1941, and was dedicated as Keens Airport on 23 August 1942, with asphalt runways and a single hangar only a handful of buildings from the military era remain at Kearney Airport. The predominant one being Hangar #385.