Greenwood Airport
In May 1929 the Greenwood Index Journal printed the Following:
“Greenwood is one of 22 cities in the U. S. that have announced in the last two weeks their intention of establishing municipal airports, thus showing that Greenwood is alive to the growth of aviation.”
The first Greenwood Municipal Airport was dedicated on the evening of June 19, 1929. The rest of the week, attention was centered on the airport, stunt flying, and parachuting exhibitions performed by the “Charlotte Flying Circus”. The airport was located just off Hodges Rd. (now Montague Ave.). The runway ran east-west from Montague across from Roseland Ave. The runway can be seen in 1939 aerial photograph below.
1939 Aerial Photo of First Greenwood Municipal Airport
Chinquapin (Second Greenwood Municipal) Airport (Johnson Field)
The airport off of Montague was probably used into the late 30’s or early 40’s. It was replaced a “new” airport on the west end of the city just off of Chinquapin Rd. This airport, eventually referred to as Johnson Field, was constructed with funds provided by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the 1935-36 time period. It had two grass or dirt runways reportedly 2,400 ft. long. It appears in the 1939 aerial photograph below that one of the runways also had an oval automobile racing track around it. Earl “Bunker” Smith owned a 40-horsepower Piper Cub in which he gave rides and flying lessons. A group of six young men pooled their funds, bought Smith’s airplane, took flying lessons, and built the first hanger. They were responsible for the first operations at this airport. Four of the men in this group were Ed Seymour (who would later become a member of the County Airport Commission), Truman Witt, Myers Page, and Butler Culbertson. Other airplane enthusiasts at that time were B. F. McKellar, Jr., Jack Whatley, James Telford, and Homer Tribble.
After Bunker Smith left, Luther Johnson came to be the next airport operator and flight instructor (hence, Johnson Field). In 1940 a government-sponsored Civilian Air Training course was begun at this airport. The first class had approximately 30 students including young men and young women. These classes were continued into the early 1940’s. In 1943 this airport was used for potential Army Air Service preliminary pilot training. The airport was under contract with the Army Air Service to instruct potential Air Service pilots from Erskine College. This program was part of an overall national program designed to reduce the high number of “wash-outs” at the Army Air Service flight schools. Students were bused in from Erskine College, given approximately ten hours of instruction, following which the instructors would provide an evaluation of each student as to his potential to be a pilot. Those not showing good piloting potential would be recommended for navigator or bombardier school. As many as 100 or more students went through this program at Johnson Field. A fleet of about 15 Piper Cubs and Aeroncas, “borrowed” by the government from civilian pilots, were used for this training.
1939 Aerial Photo of the Chinquapin Airport (Johnson Field)
1944 “Class” of Potential Army Air Service Cadets from
Erskine at Johnson Field.
Coronaca Army Air Field
In 1919 the Army Air Service had 69 airfields in the United States. In 1935 Congress passed the Army Air Base Bill, and in 1940 Congress appropriated money for DLAND (Development of Landing Areas for National Defense). During World War II under the DLAND program, $3.2 Billion were expended on the development of air bases. There were 114 Army Air Bases by December 1941, with 47 more projected at that time. The number of bases peaked in 1943 at 783---345 main bases and 438 auxiliary bases. At the end of World War II, more than 500 of these bases were given to Civil Aviation.
Aviation-minded officials and citizens of Greenwood, knowing that the government was going to construct a large number of these Army Air Bases around the country, worked hard to have one of these bases located near Greenwood. Coronaca Army Air Field (CAAF) was developed north of Greenwood primarily as an auxiliary air field to the larger Army Air Base in Greenville (now Donaldson Airport). The reported construction cost of the Coronaca Army Air Field was $1.75 million. No aircraft were permanently based there; it was used primarily as a training field for airplane landings, including early Instrument Landing System (ILS) approaches. The CAAF was closed as an Army Air Field soon after the end of WWII.
Greenwood County Airport (GRD)
After WWII local and state officials worked and lobbied hard to obtain the former CAAF Base for an airport for Greenwood County. The county legislative delegation had a bill passed to authorize the Greenwood Airport Commission (GAC). Original members were R. H. Hammond, Chairman, J. Motsinger, and J. L. Hollingsworth. In July 1947, the Federal Government’s War Assets Administration deeded 1000 acres encompassing the airport to the county. In April 1948 an additional 500 acres were deeded to the county. It was reported in the Greenwood Index Journal that when the Army Air Service moved out, they took everything movable with them. The GAC worked with the Civil Aviation Administration to obtain enough equipment such that private and commercial aviation could begin. The funds from the sale of the Chinquapin Airport property went towards helping with a new airport terminal building, which was constructed with this, and other city and government funding. Luther Johnson moved his private aircraft operations to the new county airport, thus becoming the first “Fixed Base Operator” (FBO), as they are called today. Subsequent “FBO’s” were operated by a several people including Waymon Lanford (Lanford’s Flying Service), Buck Griffin, and Jerry Billings. A Civil Air Patrol (CAP) unit was established in 1956 which is still active today. In 1959 the newly formed Federal Aviation Agency installed and commissioned a VOR navigation beacon at the airport which exists today.
Southern Airways initiated airline service to the “new” Greenwood County Airport in August 1949. Although Southern Airways never achieved their passenger goals, they continued to serve Greenwood until August 1974. Air Carolina provided service from April 1975 until February 1977, but stopped service, again because of the lack of sufficient passengers and freight to make the venture worthwhile. Bankair tried to make a go of it for a brief period in 1978, and Atlantis in 1983, but both ventures were short-lived. There have been no airlines serving Greenwood since 1983.
The Greenwood County Airport (GRD) continues today serving primarily Greenwood and Abbeville Counties. The airport has a modern terminal/FBO building. A VOR beacon is located on the airport, and a GPS, NDB, and two VOR instrument approaches are available. Both private aircraft and corporate aircraft are based at the airport and numerous corporate aircraft fly in on a daily basis. The Fixed Base Operator at the airport is Aero Services of Greenwood, and a charter service also operates from the airport. The Greenwood County Airport continues to be a valuable asset to the communities it has served since 1947.
