On December 17, 1903, two brothers from Dayton, Ohio carried the
dreams of a nation to new heights as they launched their 12
hp, 200 lb (90.7 kg) craft into the salty air of Kitty Hawk, North
Carolina. Those 13 seconds of fame have led to almost a century of
accomplishments. The world of aviation didn't make its official
debut in Cheyenne until August 1, 1911 when Charles Walsh
disappointed many spectators by flying his Curtiss-Farmann biplane to
a mere height of 100 ft (30.48 m). Early Wyoming aviators faced the challenge
of adapting to high-altitude conditions that presented far more
aerodynamic issues than were faced by aviators in other parts of the country.
The 1920s were an exciting time for Cheyenne as commercial air
service crept its way into southeastern Wyoming. In January 1920, the
Post Office department announced its intent to extend the airmail
route from Chicago to San Francisco. Civil leadership within Cheyenne
realized that the desire to have the airmail carriers follow the
Union Pacific railroad line, along with Cheyenne's central
location between Omaha, Nebraska and Salt Lake City, Utah, would make
Cheyenne an ideal stopping point prior to crossing the Rocky
Mountains. Other factors contributing to the attractiveness of
Cheyenne included its status as a state capital, the availability of
level terrain close to the city, and the fact that, in addition to
the Union Pacific railroad, the transcontinental Lincoln Highway
(US 30) also ran through town. The only factor that slowed down
Cheyenne's progression was its lack of an adequate airfield.
Initial planning for an airfield called for enlarging and improving
the existing landing area at Fort D.A. Russell and re-designating the
field as a Cheyenne/Army municipal airfield for common usage. While
this idea had the support of the citizens of Cheyenne as well as the
Wyoming congressional delegation, the US War Department felt that
the airfield might still be needed for other purposes and would not
allow the field to become a common use field. The city's second
plan was to site a new airfield on a 200-acre (0.8 sq.km) tract of land less than
one mile north of the city. It was this site that would eventually
become Cheyenne Airport.
Cheyenne Airport was "put on the map" on September 8, 1920
when the Chicago-to-San Francisco leg of the Columbia
Transcontinental Airmail Route was inaugurated. Cheyenne began with
six planes, six pilots and nine administration and maintenance
employees. It was one of only fifteen national locations to serve as
an airmail station. As a result of the Airmail Act of 1925, The
Boeing Airplane Company, under the name Boeing Air Transport Company,
took over the Chicago-to-San Francisco leg in July 1927. It would
mark the beginning of a long and lucrative relationship between
Cheyenne Airport and Boeing. 1927 would also see the arrival of a new
route (Cheyenne-to-Pueblo) and a new carrier (Western Air Express) to
the awakening Cheyenne market. It was during this period that, in an
effort to increase revenues, airmail companies, such as Boeing and
Western Air Express, began to augment their airmail service with
passenger service. In 1929, after changing their name to the United
Aircraft and Transport Company, Boeing established their main
overhaul base in Cheyenne. The number of jobs created by this base
grew to exceed 500 in subsequent years. The sum total of the
aforementioned events provided a huge boost to the economy of Cheyenne.
The late 1920s and early 1930s provided a gradual shift
in the aviation industry from delivering the mail to transporting
passengers. Several changes occurred at the airfield as a result of
this new trend. In 1925, four brick hangers replaced the original
wooden hanger that had burned down in 1924. The building that
currently houses the airport administration offices was originally
built in 1929 as the passenger terminal. Realizing the importance
that accurate weather forecasts have on the safety of flights, the
National Weather Service moved to the airport from its original
location in downtown Cheyenne, where it had been at for nearly 60
years. Flight safety was also improved through the use of nationwide
radio-range-finding stations. Cheyenne's station, one of 400
across the nation, was located at Fort D.A. Russell, now F. E. Warren
AFB, and provided a fix to the east-west runway.
United continued to exert its influence in Cheyenne throughout the
1930s and into the 1940s. In 1931, the United Aircraft
and Transport Company, a holding company for several firms including
the Boeing Airplane Company and the Boeing Transport Company, was
renamed United Air Lines. Two years later, United consolidated all of
their major maintenance and overhaul facilities and moved them to
Cheyenne. The impact of having this maintenance facility, considered
to be one of the largest, if not the largest, in the world at that
time, was tremendous. As Gerald M. Adams states in his article, The
Air Age Comes to Wyoming, "Having United's maintenance and
overhaul facility provided not only a boost to the economy but added
stature to the city's image as an air center." By 1935,
Cheyenne had 24 daily arrivals and departures. United further
cemented its home in Cheyenne in 1942 by transferring in its flight
training division to Cheyenne from California.
The United States' entrance into WW II in December of
1941 would bring additional business to the airport. In an effort to
maintain the supply of B-17s being used on the battlefronts, a
modification center was set up on the north side of the airport.
B-17s would leave factories on the west coast and stop in Cheyenne
for final outfitting prior to departing for the air front lines. The
Cheyenne Modification Center was a huge facility that employed 1,642
workers at its peak. It consisted of two large hangers, four units of
nose hangers, an electric air and heating unit, a cafeteria, a
garage, a boiler house, a 500,000 gal (1,892,706 l) water storage reservoir, a
guard house, a target butt for testing the guns, and a control house.
After the war, United Air Lines took over the modification center in a
lease agreement with the government and moved most of their equipment
and machinery from their overhaul base at the airport to the
modification center.
The introduction of the DC-4 in 1939 changed the face of the
commercial aviation industry. The nine to ten thousand foot ceiling
that the older planes were restricted to was a thing of the past. The
DC-4 could fly from Chicago to California non-stop at an altitude of
18,000 ft (5,486 m). The ability to cross the Rocky Mountains without having
to follow a mountain pass made a stop in Cheyenne unnecessary. While
the war may have brought more business to Cheyenne, it did nothing
more than delay the inevitable. In 1947, United's maintenance
facilities moved to San Francisco while their flight training
division moved to Denver. In what almost appeared to be a
compensatory move, United did move its stewardess training school to
Cheyenne in 1947. However, fourteen years and 83,000 graduates later,
the training school also left Cheyenne to make a new home in Chicago.
Cheyenne is a city rich in aviation history that was affected
negatively by the progress of technology. That negative impact,
however, has done nothing to quell the pioneering spirit of those who
continue to call Cheyenne home. What was once a 200-acre (0.8 sq.km) field is now
a multimillion-dollar industry covering over 1,000 acres (4 sq.km). It is the
home of the Wyoming ANG, the Wyoming Army National
Guard, a globally known business in Cheyenne Airmotive, and the
headquarters of Great Lakes Aviation. With continued strong
leadership and support from the community, the Cheyenne Airport will
continue to maintain an exciting spot in the aviation industry.