Strother Field
IATA: WLD – ICAO: KWLD – FAA LID: WLD
Summary
Airport type		Public
Owner		Cities of Winfield & Arkansas City
Location		Pleasant Valley Township / Beaver Township, Cowley County, near Arkansas City and Winfield, Kansas, USA
Elevation AMSL		1,160 ft / 354 m
Coordinates		37°10′07″N 097°02′15″W / 37.16861°N 97.0375°W / 37.16861; -97.0375
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
	ft	m
13/31	3,137	956	Asphalt
17/35	5,506	1,678	Asphalt
Statistics (2005)
Aircraft operations			6,500
Based aircraft			23
Source: Federal Aviation Administration

1976 USGS airphoto of Strother Field

Strother Field (IATA: WLD, ICAO: KWLD, FAA LID: WLD) is a public airport located in Cowley County, Kansas, five miles (8 km) southwest of the central business district of Winfield and north of Arkansas City. This airport is jointly owned by both cities.

Facilities and aircraft

Strother Field covers an area of 1,530 acres (619 ha) which contains two runways:

• Runway 13/31: 3,137 x 75 ft (956 x 23 m), Surface: Asphalt
• Runway 17/35: 5,506 x 100 ft (1,678 x 30 m), Surface: Asphalt

For 12-month period ending November 4, 2005, the airport had 6,500 aircraft operations, an average of 17 per day, 100% of which were general aviation. There are 23 aircraft based at this airport: 78% single engine, 9% multi-engine, 4% jet aircraft and 9% ultralights.

History

An airport, jointly owned by Arkansas City and Winfield, was under construction in April 1942 when the United States Army Air Forces indicated a need for the airfield as a training airfield by the Army Air Forces Flying Training Command, Gulf Coast Training Center. Winfield Army Airfield was rushed to completion with the first class of cadets scheduled to arrive for basic training in the BT-13 on December 14, 1942.

It was renamed Strother Army Air Field on 1 November 1942 in honor of Capt. Donald Root Strother, a Winfield native who was the first Army Air Force pilot from Cowley County to be killed in World War II.

The immediate construction involved runways and airplane hangars, with three concrete runways, several taxiways and a large parking apron and a control tower. Four large hangars were also constructed. Buildings were ultimately utilitarian and quickly assembled. Most base buildings, not meant for long-term use, were constructed of temporary or semi-permanent materials. Although some hangars had steel frames and the occasional brick or tile brick building could be seen, most support buildings sat on concrete foundations but were of frame construction clad in little more than plywood and tarpaper.

Strother Field was activated on 14 November 1942 as a basic flying training airfield. Units activated at the airfield were the 108th Guard Squadron; 448th Base Headquarters and Air Base Squadron; 332d Aviation Squadron; 1082d, 1083d, and 1084th Basic Training Flyling Squadrons; 32d Flying Training Wing (Basic). Strother received its aviation cadets from Fort Sumner, New Mexico and Majors Field, Texas.

On 1 July 1944, control of Strother AAF was transferred to Second Air Force, and the mission of the airfield became advanced fighter pilot training in P-47 Thunderbolts. Ground personnel were assigned to the 269th Army Air Forces Base Unit (Fighter Pilot Training Station). At the peak of operation there were approximately 3,400 Air Force personnel and 400 civilian employees at the field. In addition to Strother Field there were four auxiliary fields; northwest of Winfield, southeast of Strother Field, west of Arkansas City, and northwest of Gueda Springs.

The military use of Strother Field ended in October 1945 and it was turned over for civil use. Today, the site is currently Strother Field and Industrial Park. Remaining wartime structures include 2 hangars, 2 link training buildings, 1 tetrahedron wind cone, 2 ruins sites, 1 building of unknown original use and runways.

Runway Information

Runway 13/31

Runway 17/35

Radio Navigation Aids

Based Aircraft

Operational Statistics

    Time Period: 2004-11-05 - 2005-11-04

Strother Field Airport

Address: Cowley County, KS

Tel: 620-221-9280

Images and information placed above are from
http://www.airport-data.com/airport/WLD/

We thank them for the data!

General Info
Country	United States
State	KANSAS
FAA ID	WLD
Latitude	37-10-07.000N
Longitude	097-02-15.100W
Elevation	1160 feet
Near City	WINFIELD/ARKANSAS CITY

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