| Logan Field | |
|---|---|
| Baltimore, Maryland | |
| Built | 1920 |
| In use | 1920-1945 |
Logan Field, also known as Dundalk Flying Field is a former airport located northeast of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, near Baltimore, in the town of Dundalk, Maryland.
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Although Logan Field was named originally named the Dundalk Flying Field, it was almost immediately renamed. On July 5, 1920, Army Lt. Patrick H. Logan was fatally injured after his aircraft, a Nieuport 28 nicknamed the "Red Devil," crashed at the field's inaugural air show.[1] In response to the tragedy, the airfield was renamed in his honor, with the announcement of the new name being made at the closing ceremonies of the airshow during which he died.
Opened in 1920, Logan Field was a 100-acre tract located at the intersection of Dundalk Avenue and Belclare Road. At the time, it was one of the premier airports on the U.S. East Coast. Beginning in 1921, it was also the home base of the Maryland National Guard's 104th Observation Squadron.
By the 1930s, Logan Field boasted regular flights between Baltimore and Washington, New York, Atlantic City, and Miami. It also hosted regular air meets and was visited by such aviation luminaries as Charles Lindbergh, Amelia Earhart and Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan.[2]
During World War II, Logan Field, along with the newly constructed adjacent Baltimore Municipal Airport, were taken under military control. In 1943, Logan was closed to air traffic and converted into a POW camp.[3] It was one of several satellite camps housing German POWs, who provided labor at farms in the area.
Logan Field was not reopened after World War II. Instead, civil aviation moved to the new Baltimore Municipal Airport (which had been constructed adjacent to Logan Field). Within a few years of the end of the war, the land had once been Logan Field was transformed into the neighborhood of Logan Village. Today, with the exception of a historical marker at the "Logan Village" shopping center, there is no evidence of its existence.
Logan Field consisted of three landing strips, all of turf-and-cinder construction: a 3,000-foot runway and two 2,000-foot runways. The field consisted of a number of small clapboard buildings to handle passengers and mail, as well as simple hangar facilities, including military facilities for the Maryland National Guard's 104th Observation Squadron.