Henderson Field is a public

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

located on Sand Island in

Midway Atoll Midway Atoll (colloquialism, colloquial: Midway Islands; ; ) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the United States and is an Insular area#Unorganized unincorporated territories, unorganized and unincorpo ...

, an unincorporated territory of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The airport is used as an emergency diversion point for

ETOPS The Extended-range Twin-engine Operations Performance Standards (ETOPS) () are safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) for Twinjet, twin-engine commercial passenger aircraft operations. They are a safety measu ...

operations. It is one of three airfields named after Major Lofton R. Henderson (killed in the

Battle of Midway The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II, Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of t ...

during WWII), together with Henderson Field on Midway's Eastern Island, and Henderson Field in the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...

. The airfield now provides access to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. The airfield operated until 1993 as Naval Air Facility Midway. Its construction was begun by

Seabees United States Naval Construction Battalions, better known as the Navy Seabees, form the U.S. Naval Construction Forces (NCF). The Seabee nickname is a heterograph of the initial letters "CB" from the words "Construction Battalion". Dependi ...

of the 1st Naval Construction Battalion in July 1942 as a bomber strip. After transition from the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

to the

Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relatin ...

, the airport was subsidized by

Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...

until 2004. Since 2004, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has owned the airport, but subcontracted airport operations and maintenance, with financial assistance from the

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...

. Henderson Field has no control tower. From November to June, when

albatross Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds related to the procellariids, storm petrels, and diving petrels in the order Procellariiformes (the tubenoses). They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Paci ...

are typically present, flight arrivals and departures are limited to night-time. (Midway Atoll NWR is one of the world's largest colonies of nesting albatross.)

Past airline service

During the early 1950s, the airfield was used as a technical stop by

Pan American World Airways Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for ...

(

Pan Am Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for ...

) for its

Boeing 377 Stratocruiser The Boeing 377 Stratocruiser was a large long-range airliner developed from the C-97 Stratofreighter military transport, itself a derivative of the B-29 Superfortress. The Stratocruiser's first flight was on July 8, 1947. Design features inclu ...

propliners as part of

's round the world service from New York City to San Francisco via London, Frankfurt, Delhi, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Guam, Honolulu and other en route stops. The airfield was previously served by

Aloha Airlines Aloha Airlines was an airline in the United States that operated passenger flights from 1946 until 2008. It was headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii, operating from its hub at Honolulu International Airport (now Daniel K. Inouye International Air ...

with scheduled weekly charter flights to and from Honolulu using a

Boeing 737-200 The Boeing 737 is an American narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton factory in Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retained the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating ...

jetliner. In early 2000, Aloha began scheduled 737 passenger service between Midway Island and Honolulu.

Continental Micronesia Continental Micronesia, Inc. (CMI) was an American company which was a wholly owned subsidiary of Continental Airlines. It operated daily flights to Honolulu, Hawaii, as well as international services to Asia, Micronesia and Australia from its h ...

served Midway with

Boeing 727-100 The Boeing 727 is an American narrow-body airliner that was developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After the heavier 707 quad-jet was introduced in 1958, Boeing addressed the demand for shorter flight lengths from smaller airp ...

jetliners during the early 1970s although the airport was only used as an "operational stop" for refueling on this airline's westbound service from Honolulu to Guam. The routing of these 727 flights was Honolulu - Midway Island - Kwajalein - Majuro - Ponape - Truk - Guam.

Facilities

Henderson Field covers and has one runway.

Accidents and incidents

*On January 22, 1961, a Lockheed WV-2 Super Constellation (143193) of the US Navy was returning from an aborted barrier mission and hit seawall debris while landing, killing 6 of the 22 occupants along with the 3 occupants of a Crash Crew Truck that were hit by the main mount when it slid off and exploded. *On January 7, 2004,

Continental Airlines Continental Airlines (simply known as Continental) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1934 until it merged with United Airlines in 2012. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers. Continen ...

Flight 6, a

Boeing 777-200 The Boeing 777, commonly referred to as the Triple Seven, is an American long haul, long-range Wide-body aircraft, wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The 777 is the world's largest twinjet and the mo ...

from

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

carrying 294 people made an emergency landing at 03:10 local time at Henderson Field due to losing an engine after suffering an oil leak from a starter. Continental flew in a Learjet with a maintenance crew of four, a new starter and additional food and water supplies for passengers to Midway. *On June 17, 2011,

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, operating nine hubs, with Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport being its ...

Flight 277, a

Boeing 747-400 The Boeing 747-400 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, an advanced variant of the initial Boeing 747. The ''Advanced Series 300'' was announced at the September 1984 Farnborough Airshow, target ...

traveling from

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

with 359 passengers and 19 crew made an emergency landing on Henderson because of a crack in the windshield. During the landing at Midway, the plane hit two birds, one of which damaged a wing flap. *On July 11, 2014,

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...

Flight 201 from Honolulu to

Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...

made an emergency landing at Henderson Field after an "electrical odor" was detected in the cabin. An investigation revealed that an equipment supply cooling fan had malfunctioned. *On April 16, 2021, United Airlines Flight 2781 made an emergency landing at Henderson Field after smoke/odor smell in the cockpit (reported in

ACARS In aviation, ACARS (; an acronym for Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System) is a digital data communication system for transmission of short messages between aircraft and ground stations via airband radio or satellite. The proto ...

messages). The flight departed Guam, and was on its way to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, operated with a

Boeing 787-9 The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is an American Wide-body aircraft, wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After dropping its unconventional Boeing Sonic Cruiser, Sonic Cruiser project, Boeing announced the ...

. This flight carried only cargo. *On September 24, 2021,

Hawaiian Airlines Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. ( ) is a commercial U.S. airline headquartered in Honolulu, and a subsidiary of the Alaska Air Group. It is the largest operator of commercial flights to and from the island state of Hawaiʻi, and the tenth largest ...

Flight 460, an

Airbus A330 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body airliner developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus began developing larger A300 derivatives in the mid–1970s, giving rise to the A330 twinjet as well as the Airbus A340 quadjet, and launched both designs along ...

en route from

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

to Honolulu experienced an in-flight engine shut down and diverted to Midway.

References

External links

AirNav - Henderson Field Airport
airport facilities and navigational aids {{authority control Airports in the United States Minor Outlying Islands Midway Atoll

Past airline service

Facilities

Accidents and incidents

See also

References

External links