McMinn County Airport

A Brief History

McMinn county has been served by numerous airports. The earliest airport was a grass field owned by Thomas Brumet located at the present day site of Texaco Distributing Company in Athens.  It was used in the mid to late 1930's.  A new, longer field was utilized in the late 1930's.  The new field, which was just a few hundred yards away from the Brumet airstrip, belonged to the Mayfields.  However, the airport was also used by barnstormers doing air shows.  The airstrip, known as Mayfield's hayfield was approximately 1,500 feet long and had a rise in the center.  Tom Mayfield said, the rise in the field helped prepare him to be a Naval Aviator.  Tom built the only hangar at the site and stored his fuel in fifty gallon drums.  It was located at the present site of Athens Products and was used until the early 1950's.  Buell Gray also operated an airstrip in Athens during this time.  It was the longest and most level field in the county.  Mr. Gray used the field primarily to instruct new pilots under the G.I. Bill.  It was located at the present site of Congress Parkway.

The current airport was originally part of both the county poor farm and a private farm owned by Dr. Shields.  The original airstrip consisted of an 1,800 ft. grass strip.  The airport was expanded in the early 1960's with use of private funds.  As a result of the expansion, the airstrip was extended to 3,500 feet and paved.  The airstrip was lengthened again in the 1970's to 4,000 feet and later to 4,500 feet in the 1980's.  The airport recently was extended to 5,000 feet and a neo-colonial style terminal facility added.

The previous terminal was built in the 1950's with private funds, while the T-hangars were built between 1963-64 by the county.  The FBO (McMinn County Flying Service) was installed in 1961 and consisted of three partners.  Marvin Farrris, one of the partners, carried out the day-to-day operations.  J.C. Garrison bought the FBO contract from McMinn Flying Service in the mid 1960's and entered into a contract with the county to build a new hangar.  Jim Sliger and Charlie Nelson later bought the contract from Mr. Garrison.  They performed airplane maintenance, operated a Cessna dealership and a flight training school under the G.I. Bill.  They sold the interest to John Scruggs.  Mr. Scruggs had a difficult time making any profit with the operation and was shortly followed by a Mr. Brown, who also served as FBO for only a few months.  Larry Womac followed Mr. Brown, but was later killed in a plane crash in 1976.  Nancy Daily became the new FBO and operated under the title of Athens, Air Inc..  She served as the FBO for nearly twenty years until her untimely death in a plane crash in the mountains of North Carolina.  The current FBO is Rob Kitchersid.  He operates under the name of McMinn Aviation.

While no individuals of national fame have worked at the McMinn County Airport, there have been numerous individuals who have developed very successful careers in aviation who either worked at or through the airport.  Fred Womac started flying at the airport when it was a grass airstrip.  He later became Vice President for flight operations at Piedmont Airlines and a Major General in the Air National Guard.  Many area flyers have gone on to be pilots for major commercial airlines,  such as Raymond Axley, Jack Elrod, Bill Kirkpatrick, Lowell Axley and others.

The first use of the airport by a jet occurred in the 1960's.  The jet was owned by Beaunit Fibers Industry and landed on a 3,500 feet airstrip.  Other notable industries which have utilized the airport are Bowater Inc., Mayfield's Inc., Davidson Textron Inc. and Johnson Controls Inc..  Mayfield's built a hangar at the airport and housed their aircraft there for many years.

The McMinn County Airport is best known nationally and world-wide for being the home of the International Swift Association and the Swift Museum Foundation, Inc..  Local aviation enthusiast Charlie Nelson, founded the International Swift Association in 1968 as a club of Globe and Temco Swift owners.  At the time, the Swift aircraft did not enjoy a very high level of acceptance or demand due to its dubious early history of being difficult and dangerous to fly.

Mr. Nelson and other owners of the Swift aircraft recognized its potential and began to communicate with each other via a monthly newsletter published locally and distributed nationally by the Swift Association, with Mr. Nelson serving as President, editor and general manager.

The Swift organization quickly grew to approximately 800 members, the approximate number of Swifts in existence.  Membership is throughout the U.S. Conventions were held across the United States and Canada with attendance from most every state in the Union.  National Conventions were held for many years in western Kentucky at the Kentucky Dam State Park Airport.  These conventions attracted several hundred people with 100 to 150 aircraft on display.

In 1980, the Swift parent organization, "The Swift Museum Foundation, Inc." purchased the "Type Certificate" or manufacturing rights, along with the existing inventory of spare parts, engineering data, parts fabrication tools, jigs, etc. for the Swift aircraft.  This purchase, consisting of three tractor trailer loads, was moved from Aurora, Colorado to McMinn County Airport and placed in subleased hangar space at the airport.

McMinn County Airport and Athens, Tennessee were already International headquarters for Swift aircraft enthusiasts.  After the Type Certificate was obtained and the Swift Museum Foundation became the sole source of parts for the aircraft, the McMinn County "star" on the map instantly became much larger.

In 1981, the Swift organization accepted an invitation from the Athens Area Chamber of Commerce to conduct an air show at the McMinn County Airport and preview the area in advance of the upcoming World's Fair in nearby Knoxville.  At the time, the McMinn County Airport did not offer sufficient aircraft parking space to accommodate the anticipated number of aircraft and people expected with such a national convention.

The McMinn County Manager and McMinn County Council voted to make the necessary improvements to provide the additional parking at the airport utilizing the County Highway Department personnel and equipment.  With improved aircraft parking space available, the Swift organization voted to hold its 1982 National Convention at McMinn County Airport.  After the 1982 convention and the exposure to East Tennessee, the Swift organization has voted overwhelmingly to hold each succeeding National Convention at McMinn County Airport.

In the early years of the Swift organization, the Swift aircraft was for the most part neglected and easily available for sale in the $2,500 to $3,000 range.  Today, as a direct result of parts availability and improvements brought about as a result of the Swift organization's efforts, the Swift aircraft has reached a level of performance and acceptance that puts it at the forefront of sports aircraft.  Present day aircraft values begin at the 25 to $35,000 range and average between 40 and $50,000, with a few reaching the $100,000 range.

The Swift/McMinn County Airport operation now consists of an aircraft museum, administrative offices, maintenance shop, parts department and parts manufacturing.  The museum contains a fine collection of original Swifts, military and customized specimens.  The administrative office houses the technical data, accounting, and historical data.  The Swift Parts Department daily ships parts world-wide.  The Swift work shop does aircraft maintenance, modifications and complete aircraft rebuilding exclusively for Swift owners.  Arrow Manufacturing, ( the Swift Manufacturing Department ) is located off-site due to lack of available space at the airport.  The total operation provides employment for seven full-time and four part-time employees.  In addition, several Swift aircraft enthusiasts have selected McMinn County as their choice for a place to retire, live and fly.  Swift and McMinn County are prominent throughout the aviation world.