Airport type Public Website fortworthgov.org/... Code FWS Phone +1 817-447-8304 | Owner City of Fort Worth Elevation AMSL 700 ft / 213 m 17R/35L 6,002 Elevation 213 m | |
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Fort Worth Spinks Airport (ICAO: KFWS, FAA LID: FWS) is a city owned, public use airport located 14 nautical miles (26 km) south of the central business district of Fort Worth, in Tarrant County, Texas, United States. It is the newest of the three airports that are owned by the City of Fort Worth and it serves the cities of Fort Worth, Burleson, and Mansfield. The airport is located at the intersection of Interstate 35W and HWY 1187 and serves as a reliever airport for Fort Worth Meacham International Airport and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. It was one of few airports in the country to have Class E airspace and a control tower. However, its airspace now has Class D designation.
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Although most U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier for the FAA and IATA, this airport is assigned FWS by the FAA but has no designation from the IATA.
History
Spinks Airport was named for Maurice Hunter "Pappy" Spinks, a renowned aerobatic competitor/promoter and aviation manufacturer who built the nearby Oak Grove Airport, portions of which have been encompassed by Spinks Airport. Pappy was a patron of the Aerobatic Club of America and was described by fellow aerobatic pilots as a "rough edged old millionaire", who had made a fortune during the Vietnam War as a vendor for nearby Bell Helicopter.
Facilities and aircraft
Fort Worth Spinks Airport covers an area of 822 acres (333 ha) at an elevation of 700 feet (213 m) above mean sea level. It has two runways: 17R/35L is 6,002 by 100 feet (1,829 x 30 m) with an asphalt surface; 17L/35R is 4,000 by 60 feet (1,219 x 18 m) with a turf surface. The fixed based operator (Harrison Aviation) has constructed a 7,400 square feet (690 m2) terminal building that houses their operations and the offices of the airport manager.
For the 12-month period ending September 30, 2008, the airport had 82,948 aircraft operations, an average of 227 per day: 99.4% general aviation, 0.4% air taxi, and 0.3% military. At that time there were 199 aircraft based at this airport: 78% single-engine, 18% multi-engine, 3% jet and 1% helicopter.