Ganzhou Huangjin Airport (former)

Ganzhou Huangjin Airport (former) (Chinese: 赣州黄金机场) was the old airport serving the city of Ganzhou in Jiangxi Province, China. The airport was located in Shuinan New Area in Zhanggong District. It was named after the nearby village of Huangjin. Originally built in 1936, it was one of the first civil airports in China, but was closed in March 2008 when all services were transferred to the new airport, also named Ganzhou Huangjin Airport.[1]

Ganzhou Huangjin Airport 赣州黄金机场 Gànzhōu Huángjīn Jīchǎng
IATA: KOW ICAO: ZSGZ
Summary
Airport type	Military, Public, Defunct
Serves	Ganzhou, Jiangxi, China
Location	Shuinan New Area, Zhanggong District
Coordinates	25°49′36″N 114°54′46″E
Map
KOW Location of airport in China
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 07/25 2,200 7,218 Concrete
Source:[1]

History

The terminal building of the former airport.

The earliest construction of the airport is 1930, and was originally called Nanwai (南外) airport, serving as a rudimentary waypoint between Chongqing and all points to southern and eastern seaboard.[2] The airport was rebuilt in 1936 with a 1,200-meter main runway and a 900-meter auxiliary runway. Both runways were 40 meters wide and 32 centimeters thick. The airport was mainly used by the military, but also had civil flights to Chongqing, China's wartime capital.[1]

During World War II, the airport was known as Kanchow (Kan Hsien) Airfield and was used by the United States Army Air Forces Fourteenth Air Force as part of the China Defensive Campaign (1942–1945). Kanchow was used as a photo-reconnaissance base by the Americans, which flew unarmed P-38 Lightning aircraft equipped with an array of mapping cameras on combat missions over Japanese-held territory. The airport also was the temporary base of many P-51 Mustang and B-25 Mitchell medium bombers during the war, which rotated flights in and out of the airfield frequently. The Americans closed their facilities at the airport in September 1945 at the end of the war.[3][4]

In 1959 the main runway was repaired and widened by 10 meters, and the airport was opened to civil flights on 13 November 1959, but later ceased operation. In 1987 and 1992 the airport was expanded twice, with its runway lengthened to 2,200 meters and widened to 45 meters (class 4C). It was closed for the last time on 25 March 2008, when all flights were transferred to the new Ganzhou Huangjin Airport. Its final flight was MU2993 to Xiamen.[1]

See also

• List of airports in China

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

1. 赣州新黄金机场今正式启用　旧机场圆满谢幕 (in Chinese). Carnoc. 26 March 2008. Retrieved 16 July 2012.
2. http://hn.cnr.cn/zt/ggkf30zn/jrjj/200805/t20080509_504783175.html
3. Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. ISBN 0-89201-092-4
4. USAFHRA history search - Kanchow