Big Spring Airport celebrated 90 years

This past weekend the Big Spring Airport celebrated 90 years in Big Spring. The anniversary ceremony took place, during the annual Prairie Dog Fly In on Saturday. Pilots, community members, and Airpark board members gathered together to commemorate memories made over the past 90 years. Pictured above left: the Prairie Dog Fly in weekend kicked off with a screening of the movie “Planes”; pictured above right: pilots and community members discuss memories at the airpark.

For 90 years aviation has been thriving in Howard County. From a municipal airport, to commercial flights, to a military base, to hosting national hang glider competitions, the McMahon-Wrinkle Airpark has seen it all.

This past weekend, the 13th annual Prairie Dog Fly in began with a screening of Disney’s “Planes.” This is the third year a movie has been offered to the public for free.

According to Airpark volunteers at the movie, there were about 60 people – a little more than 40 kids, a handful of teenagers, and their parents – who turned out for the movie night. In addition to being able to watch the movie, kids were able to take part in a photo op and “become a pilot” by taking a photo on a miniature plane; the Big Spring Fire Department was on hand allowing the kids to see a fire truck and an ambulance first hand. There was even an opportunity for the attendees to see the inside of an airplane. Several door prizes were handed out before the movie started.

Saturday morning the festivities continued with the Fly In Breakfast, which brought in pilots from around the area. Community members, board members and pilots gathered together to reminisce through the 90 years of history built at McMahon Wrinkle Airpark.

Colonel Jim Little, Director of the Airpark, presented a brief history of the airpark, as part of a semi-formal anniversary ceremony.

“Back in 1911 time frame, planes were flying in and out of here. Planes like to land here,” Col. Little said.

Sept. 11, 1929, is the day the city of Big Spring celebrates the founding day of the airpark, but that was not the beginning of aviation in Big Spring, according to Col. Little.

“Before the base was here, before the airpark as you see it today was here, there were a number of landing strips, so the planes that came in would use those,” he said.

According to Col. Little, Big Spring was actually a center of aviation.

“Big Spring was the crossroads, the crossroads of aviation, but the crossroads of a lot of other things,” he said.

For the original opening, 15,000 people came out to see the first airplanes come through.

The celebration of the airpark concluded with cake, punch and the take off of numerous planes.