| Millville Municipal Airport | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 USGS aerial photo | |||
| IATA: MIV – ICAO: KMIV – FAA LID: MIV | |||
| Summary | |||
| Airport type | Public | ||
| Owner | DRBA - City of Millville | ||
| Serves | Millville, New Jersey | ||
| Elevation AMSL | 85 ft / 26 m | ||
| Coordinates | |||
| Map | |||
|
KMIV
|
|||
| Runways | |||
| Direction | Length | Surface | |
| ft | m | ||
| 10/28 | 6,002 | 1,829 | Asphalt |
| 14/32 | 5,057 | 1,541 | Concrete |
| Statistics (2010) | |||
| Aircraft operations | 60,000 | ||
| Based aircraft | 73 | ||
| Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||
Millville Municipal Airport (IATA: MIV, ICAO: KMIV, FAA LID: MIV) is a public-use airport located three nautical miles (3.5 mi, 5.6 km) southwest of the central business district of Millville, a city in Cumberland County, New Jersey, United States. The airport is owned by the Delaware River and Bay Authority (DRBA) and the City of Millville.[1]
It was dubbed "America's First Defense Airport" because of the nearly 1,500 pilots who trained in gunnery practice at the airport with the Republic P-47 "Thunderbolt" plane during World War II.[2]
After the end of World War II, the buildings of Millville Airport accommodated returning veterans. By the end of the 1970s, these buildings were no longer of much use. The airport is now used for general aviation. It also home to Dallas Airmotive, Air Two Air Ambulance operated by Cooper University Hospital, Atlantic Air Ambulance, and PHI Helicopters.
Contents |
The Millville airport was dedicated on August 2, 1941 by local, state, and federal officials. The first contingent of Air Corps personnel arrived on 17 December 1942. In less than a year, construction of military base facilities began, and in January 1943, the Millville Army Air Field opened as a United States Army Air Forces gunnery school for fighter pilots. It was assigned to First Air Force.
Gunnery training began with Curtiss P-40 Warhawk aircraft, but after a few weeks, the P-40s were gone, and the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt ruled the skies over Cumberland County. During its three year existence, thousands of soldiers and civilians served here, with about 1,500 pilots receiving advanced fighter training in the Thunderbolt. The 361st Fighter Group trained at Millville during July and August 1943 prior to their deployment to Ninth Air Force in England. In 1944, the 135th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Flying) took control of the airfield.
On 30 October 1945 Millville AAF was inactivated and on 31 December the airfield was declared excess to the governments needs, and returned to the City of Millville through the War Assets Administration (WAA). Most of the airport buildings were converted to apartments for the many veterans returning from the war. The last of the apartments vanished in the early 1970s, and the airport soon became a hub of industry and aviation for Southern New Jersey.
Millville Municipal Airport covers an area of 916 acres (371 ha) at an elevation of 85 feet (26 m) above mean sea level. It has two runways: 10/28 is 6,002 by 150 feet (1,829 x 46 m) with an asphalt surface and 14/32 is 5,057 by 150 feet (1,541 x 46 m) with a concrete surface.[1]
For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2010, the airport had 60,000 aircraft operations, an average of 164 per day: 95% general aviation and 5% military. At that time there were 73 aircraft based at this airport: 78% single-engine, 12% multi-engine, 8% jet, and 1% helicopter.[1]
|
|||||||||||