YEAGER AIRPORT

'Yeager Airport' is a public airport located three miles (5 km) east of the central business district (CBD) of Charleston, a city in Kanawha County, West Virginia, USA. The airport covers 767 acres (3.1 km²) and has two runways. It is also home to the nine C-130s from the U.S. Air Force's 130th Airlift Wing.
The airport sits on a hilltop over 300 feet (about 100 m) above the valleys of the Elk and Kanawha Rivers, and the hill drops off sharply on all sides. Due to the airfields unique location, passengers flying in to Yeager enjoy a scenic approach of either downtown Charleston, or the rolling hills to the north and east of the field.
A common belief is that due to the airport's runway lengths, it can not accommodate larger, transcontinental aircraft. This assumption lead to debate in 2000/2001 over whether or not a new regional airport, that was to be built in the Charleston-Huntington corridor, was needed (alternative plans called for an expansion and lengthening of Yeager's runways). However, aircraft performance statistics, direct from Boeing and Airbus, prove that newer generations of mid-sized aircraft, such as the Boeing 737NG, Airbus A319, and even the larger Boeing 757 can operate out of Yeager.

Contents

History

Airlines and destinations

Concourse A

Concourse B

Concourse C

References

External links

History

During World War II, Charleston's airport at that time, Wertz Field, closed when the airport's approaches were blocked once the federal government built a synthetic rubber plant next to the airport; this left the city without an airport. However, there were plans before the war to build a new Charleston airport, as Wertz Field was already becoming commercially obsolete.
The city started construction of its new airport in 1944; the facility opened in 1947 as Kanawha Airport. The airport received its current name in 1985, honoring then-Brigadier General Chuck Yeager, a native of nearby Lincoln County who piloted the world's first supersonic flight in the Bell X-1.
The airport's construction was one of the most remarkable engineering accomplishments of the 1940s. The original topography of the area where Yeager Airport now stands consisted of three large and four small hilltops on a ridge overlooking the Elk River. In order to create enough flat land for an airport, it was necessary to shear off the tops of all seven hills, and use the soil to fill in the valleys in between. At that time, the construction of Kanawha Airport was reportedly the second-largest earth-moving project in history, behind the construction of the Panama Canal.

Airlines and destinations

Concourse A

Gates A1-A7

★ Continental Airlines

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★ Continental Connection operated by CommutAir (Cleveland)

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★ Continental Express operated by ExpressJet Airlines (Houston-Intercontinental)

★ Delta Air Lines

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★ Delta Connection operated by Atlantic Southeast Airlines (Atlanta, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky)

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★ Delta Connection operated by Chautauqua Airlines (Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky)

★ Southern Skyways operated by Private Air Charters (Myrtle Beach)

Concourse B

Gates B1-B2

★ United Airlines

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★ United Express operated by Colgan Air (Washington-Dulles)

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★ United Express operated by SkyWest (Chicago-O'Hare)

Concourse C

Gates C1-C5

★ Northwest Airlines

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★ Northwest Airlink operated by Mesaba Airlines (Detroit)

★ US Airways

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★ US Airways Express operated by Colgan Air (Pittsburgh, Washington-Reagan)

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★ US Airways Express operated by Piedmont Airlines (Charlotte, Philadelphia)

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★ US Airways Express operated by PSA Airlines (Charlotte)

References

★ Yeager Airport (official web site)

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External links

★ West Virigina Airport Directory: Charleston/Yeager Airport

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