Blytheville Army Airfield

In 1942, in response to a pilot shortage going into World War 2, the U.S. Army Air Force constructed a B-25 advanced pilot training school northwest of the city of Blytheville. The facility was a standard Class "A" runway, with a large apron. The cadets trained on the BT-13, AT-6, AT-9, and AT-10, and it is believed there were over 3000 graduates from the flight school.^[2]

Blytheville Municipal Airport

On October 7, 1946, the Army released control of the facility to the city of Blytheville.^[3] The city operated the base as the Blytheville Municipal Airport, with most of the dorms converted to serve as a veterans housing area, and industrial park.^[4] A new administration building was constructed on the site of the WW2 era control tower in 1950, at a cost of $50k, with half of the funding provided by the federal government.^[5] The city of Blytheville applied to the Civil Aeronautics Authority multiple times to make the airport a stop on the Chicago and Southern Air Lines main route. But the petitions were never acknowledged.^[6]

Blytheville Air Force Base

As early as 1946, the Blytheville Chamber of Commerce began lobbying efforts with Rep. Ezekiel Gathing to reopen the facility as a permanent military installation. In 1955, the facility was formally reopened the Tactical Air Command as Blytheville Air Force Base. The base hosted three squadrons of B-57s, which participated in multiple combat exercises, like Operation Redwing.^[7][2]

In 1959, the facility was transferred to the Strategic Air Command, as part of a project to expand the B-52 fleet. The base had a Ready Alert Facility constructed in 1960, and which allowed B-52s to be launched at a moments notice incase of nuclear war. In 1962, during the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis, two B-52G bombers at the base were readied to participate in Operation Chrome Dome to strike the Soviet Union with nuclear weapons if necessary.^[2]

The base was closed in December 1992 as part of the 1991 BRAC Commission.^[2]

Arkansas International Airport

Arkansas International Airport was developed after the base was closed and the land was transferred from the federal government to the cities of Blytheville and Gosnell for joint control.^[2]

In October 2008, Aviation Repair Technologies (ART) established its headquarters at the facility and opened repair facilities for aircraft heavy maintenance, short-term aircraft storage, and aircraft engine disassembly.^[8]

• The company's heavy maintenance activities are focused on regional turboprop and jet aircraft, including the ATR 72, ATR 42, CRJ 200, CRJ 700, CRJ 900, Embraer 120, ERJ 135, ERJ 145, ERJ 170, and ERJ 190 aircraft.^[9]
• Its aircraft engine disassembly operation, named Turbine Support International (TSI), is a joint venture between ART and Air France-KLM.^[10] TSI is focused on disassembly of CFM56, CF6-80, and CF6-50 engine types.^[11]
• Also located at the airport is an aircraft jet engine test cell that was constructed in 1991 by the US Air Force and is capable of testing engines that produce up to 56,000 lbs of thrust, including CFM56, CF34, and other popular engine types. Aviation Repair Technologies holds an exclusive lease on the test cell through 2019.

• From its headquarters at the facility, ART also manages a network of thirteen line maintenance facilities located at major airports around the United States.^[12]

The facility secured a lease with USA Floral, a major floral distributor based near Washington, D.C., that needed a southern locale for its regular flights to South America to import flowers. USA Floral was expected to create hundreds of jobs in Blytheville.^[13]

The Arkansas Archaeological Society hosted a training program at the former air base from 2004 to 2006. Archaeologists have been studying the Mississippian culture that lived in the region, focusing on the years 900–1600.

In 2020, the National Cold War Center was created by local citizens to take the former base's SAC Alert Facility and turn it into a museum.^[14] They have a projected opening of 2027.