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An airport at Mena was the dream of interested pilots and hobby flyers in the 1930's. A rough flying field was started on the McBride property south of town in the early 40's. In 1942, Hartzell Geyer built the first hangar and opened a small flying school. In 1946, serious construction began as the Civil Aeronautics Commission (now the FAA) chose the site as an emergency landing strip for commercial aircraft. The chosen site would be located the approximate midway point between Fort Smith and Texarkana making it a desirable place approximately 100 miles from those airports. Mayor Albert Middleton requested the property under Eminent Domain from the McBride estate.
In the early years, the grass field was maintained by an agreement with a farmer who mowed and bailed the runway for the hay; a tradition that remains today. After development of the airstrip, several businesses began to service aircraft at the remote but centrally located airport. Popularity of the airport has continued to grow through the years.
Today, Mena Intermountain Municipal Airport is a city owned, general aviation airport in west Arkansas. Located 2 miles from the city center, the airport occupies 1,079 acres. Most of this land is available for commercial lease. The lands currently under lease provide the funds for the operations at the airport, allowing the airport to operate without financial burden on the City of Mena and the local taxpayers. In fact, the airport provides approximately $2000 worth of economic benefit for every resident in Polk County annually to the local marketplace according to the Arkansas State Aviation System Plan.
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- Mena Airport Commission Approves Construction of New Hangar - At the monthly Airport Commission meeting held at the airport on Monday 9 April 2012, commission members approved the construction of a new 225-foot by 100-foot aircraft hangar. The hangar will help Hampton Aviation expand its aircraft repair business. Hampton serves the General Aviation industry to complete aviation scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, repairs and services. Plans include expanding both its Government Services Division and its General Aviation Division significantly to support its customer commitments with some specific market capabilities in Mena.
The initial phase will consist of a significant increase in new jobs that will pay well above-average wages, approximately 25,000 to 30,000 square feet of new government compliant hanger and additional office facilities. The initial investment in the expansion of facilities and other assets is approximately $5,000,000. The later phases, which will follow in 3-5 years, call for improvement of facilities and additional expansion of similar or bigger workspace.
Airport Commission Chair Nancy Wright said, “This is a very good endeavor for the airport and the region. Hampton Aviation’s long-range plan at Mena Airport will bring back some of the skilled workers that we lost during the recent down turn, as well as new.” Chairwoman Wright went on to explain that the airport community lost several of the smaller businesses because of the economic down turn. “This new construction will need some additional infrastructure from the airport, and the commissioners are already working on those items,” she said.
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