July 10, 2004

Abandoned & little-known airfields. Slightly arcane, but lavishly illustrated and rich with obscure history on forgotten US airports. Being a Dallas native, my favorite entry describes the massive Greater Southwest Airport, which brought American Airlines 707 and DC-10 service into Dallas but was demolished and forgotten by the end of the 1970s as DFW Airport came online. (mirror in case it goes over bandwidth)
posted by rolypolyman 20 years ago
  • Wow. Super arcane alright, but super interesting, too. Sort of thing my Aspie brain digs muchly. Lots of reading here for me while I munch my sprouts. Thanks! /bow I wonder what became of that gold-leaf encrusted mural from Greater Southwest, that you linked, roly? That's some piece of work. Probly it says here somewhere, I'm still ploughing thru. An acre of gold leaf!!
  • Fatastic post rolypolyman. I guess you realize that aviation is just like any other industry...sink or swim. Just because you pave two square kilometers of land dosen't mean anyone is going to land their plane on it.
  • Very interesting. I work a couple of blocks from the former Grand Rapids Municipal Airport and although no buildings from the airport are left anymore, a boulevard (with an incredibly wide island down the middle) was built on on of the old runways. I found my workplace in the 2001 satellite photo at the end of the section.
  • Interesting links, rolypolyman<, and some handsome pictures. Thanks!
  • rolypolyman- This is very good. My god-sister works in a small airport in Ohio. She went ga-ga over this site. Her comment, "What idiod builds a curved runway on a hill?"
  • Does Love Field still operate in Dallas? I didn't see it among the missing. And Argh - where is that one located, and what's the story behind it? The runway, combined with the boat docks looks as though it would have been quite nice. And, RXR, does the runway eventually lead to the freeway after the curve?
  • i was surprised by how interesting i found that. i always kind of wonder how some people get such specific obsessions, and of all the hobbies i would never ever have thought of, this is my favorite.
  • path: Dallas Love Field is alive and kicking with SouthWest Airlines. If DFW doesn't have a domestic flight to a city, the Love will.