Save Harvey Young Airport!

Harvey Young Airport in mid-1970s
FAA identifier - 1H6
Street Address - 1419 S. 135 E. Ave.

Hobbs

Another vital piece of Tulsa's history is in jeopardy of being lost forever. This historically important and commercially viable Tulsa landmark is currently for sale. This website is devoted to preserving the airport's history and promoting it's survival.

Latest News:
Thanks to Don Boyles for contributing photos from the 1960's & 1970's.

Media Coverage:
Read Tulsa World Article of 10/9/2007
or see the PDF Version
Watch the Fox23 News Story of 9/21/2007
or read the text version
Watch the KOTV News story of 9/7/2007

or read the text version

Read the BatesLine Harvey Young blog

Historic Links:
View photos from 1950’s
View photos from 1960’s - New!
View photos from 1970’s - Updated 10/21
View photos from 2000’s
View News Articles from 1989 to Present
Read Visitor Comments

History:
Harvey Young Airport has a long and proud history of serving the aviation needs of the Tulsa-metro area since 1940. In the early days of World War II, the airport answered the country's call to train cadets for the US Army Air Corp (predecessor to the US Air Force). By all accounts, thousands of future combat pilots took their first flights over the countryside of east Tulsa County:

Cadets in training at Harvey Young Airport - circa 1943.	1955 aerial view looking WSW (note exposed rock at bottom center)
	Mid 1980's aerial view looking SSW.

While Harvey Young was 'out in the country' when established, Tulsa expanded east to surround and incorporate it. Sadly, Harvey Young is the last VFR (visual flight rules) GA (general aviation) airport within easy driving distance from anywhere in Tulsa. Should this vital resource be lost, most of the 80 or so tenants will be forced to relocate their aircraft to municipal and private airports outside the Tulsa area such as Gundys in Owasso, Haskell, Wagoner, Claremore and others. The associated commerce from hangar rent, fuel, maintenance, and even the hamburger and coffee sales to pilots, crews and spectators will go with them.

Harvey Young has always been a draw for visiting aircraft due to its close proximity to Tulsa. At most any time of the week, several 'transient' aircraft are tied-down at the field to do business in town or just to visit friends and relatives. The field has also been a host to blimp traffic for decades including the recent PGA Final at Southern Hills.

'Snoopy' the MetLife Blimp covering PGA Final 2007	Goodyear Blimp 1970's
Boeing 247D N18E at Harvey Young - 1940's	Boeing 247D N18E today, Wroughton, UK Museum

The Property:
The reason most of the old Tulsa airports are gone is simple - the land they occupied was economically viable for other uses, usually a traditional housing and/or commercial development. The main reason Harvey Young has not suffered the same fate before now is that it sits on a solid limestone rock shelf lying 3 feet or less below the soil surface.

Many Tulsans will remember the near decade-long delay from the time construction started (mid 1970's) and then abruptly stopped at Eastland Mall. Eastland sat as a ghost-town for years for the same reason the housing development just east of Harvey Young has such an odd shape - developers kept going broke trying to install utilities into the solid rock!

As an airport, there is very little demand on public utilities. Currently, a one-inch water line provides service and the septic system has no impact on the city's sewer system.

Considering the high cost to develop almost anything else on top of solid rock, the only way to make such a project profitable would be to defer most of the development cost onto taxpayers. We know that there are government funds available for such projects and that there are financial institutions who specialize in securing those funds.

Current Status (10/21/2007):
The airport may have "dodged a bullet" as the recent sales contract was apparently abandoned due to the underlying rock. We understand this plan included developing the property into a subsidized housing project.

For now the property is still an airport - at least until the next offer comes along...

Despite what some folks think, pilots are generally very risk-averse. Because of the airport's uncertain future, many of the tenants have already fled. This has left some very desirable hangar space available. For those aircraft owners who thought you could never live so close to your aircraft, now just might be your chance! If the airport's future could be assured, these vacancies will disappear in a heartbeat. Perhaps the new tenants will be better prepared to weather a storm or two.

The Potential is Still Here:
Many believe the best use for the airport property is what has been right here for nearly 70 years: A close-to-town general aviation (GA) airport that is in a unique position to exploit the current boom in sales, maintenance and support of the FAA's new Light Sport Aircraft category as well as traditional general aviation needs.

Ownership of the airport has had a very odd history. With the passing of Harvey O. Young in 1985, the airport went into a trust held by Mr. Young's long time employer, Hillcrest Hospital. Perhaps understandably, the hospital had little interest in operating or investing in the airport and only abided by the terms of Mr. Young's will until the property could be sold.

When the Hillcrest trust expired, the airport was purchased by Terrance McDonald who was a friend and coworker of Harvey Young and shared his love of aviation. Mr. McDonald planned to improve on the airport's neglected condition and even to develop some housing adjacent to the runways. Lots were to be sold with a stipulation that each home site must include an airplane hangar. Tragically, Terrance McDonald died only eight months after acquiring the airport. Essentially none of his plans had time to be implemented.

Perhaps with some insight into human nature, Terrance passed the airport to his son in the form of another trust. Once again, the airport was held by an entity who had little interest in aviation and only saw the property as something that could not be disposed of until the trust expired. That happened in 2004 when the airport was offered again and eventually sold to the current owner in the spring of 2007.

Despite this highly unusual chain of ownership, the airport survives today in a very functional condition. Up until the last sale, none of the hangars remained vacant for more than a few days. Many tenants tied their aircraft down in the grass for months until a hangar became available. For over 20 years the airport has survived by the efforts of the management and the tenants and in spite of it's ownership.

The potential is still here. With just a little vision and some reinvestment, Harvey Young could be one of the most active and profitable GA airports in the country - just as it was in it's heyday!

As stated above, the main reason the airport has survived against these odds is that the land is well suited for its current use but not much else!

Stay Informed - Inform Others:
Find your US and Oklahoma State Representatives (your zip-code is all that's needed)
District 6 Councilman Dennis Troyer
Tulsa Metropolitan Planning Commission
Tulsa Board of Adjustment (Zoning)

Updated - 10/21/2007