Terre Haute Regional Airport is a civil-military 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 ...

Terre Haute Terre Haute ( ) is a city in Vigo County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 58,389 and its metropolitan area had a population of 168,716. Located along the Wabash River about e ...

, in

Vigo County Vigo (, ; ) is a city and municipality in the province of Pontevedra, within the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain. Located in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, it sits on the southern shore of an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, the Ria ...

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, east of the city center. The FAA's

National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS) is an inventory of U.S. aviation infrastructure assets. With the Airport and Airway Improvement Act of September 3, 1982, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was required to develop a ...

for 2011–2015 categorized it as a ''

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...

'' facility. It is also the location of Hulman Field Air National Guard Base of the

Indiana Air National Guard The Indiana Air National Guard (IN ANG) is the aerial militia of the Indiana, state of Indiana, United States, United States of America. It is a reserve of the United States Air Force and along with the Indiana Army National Guard, an element of ...

History

Originally called Hulman Field, the airport dates to 1943 when ground was broken on a site donated to the city of Terre Haute by businessman Anton "Tony" Hulman, Jr. The airport was dedicated on October 3, 1944, and had three runways, taxiways, apron area, and a terminal building.

Trans World Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1930 until it was acquired by American Airlines in 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles ...

(TWA) began the first commercial air service to the airport. In 1953, a new terminal and control tower were completed and the apron expanded. Since 1954, the 181st Intelligence Wing of the

has been stationed at the airport. In 1976, the city of Terre Haute and Vigo County jointly formed an authority to manage the airport. The Terre Haute Regional Airport Authority has six board members, with three appointed by the mayor of Terre Haute and three appointed by the Vigo County commissioners. The terminal was expanded in 1977 and 1981. In 1998 the name was changed from Hulman Regional Airport to Terre Haute International Airport – Hulman Field, primarily due to U.S. Postal Service contractor Evergreen Airlines using the airport as a hub, which has since closed. Hulman Field formerly hosted the Terre Haute Air Fair. Performers included the

USAF Thunderbirds The USAF Air Demonstration Squadron is the air demonstration squadron of the United States Air Force The Thunderbirds, as they are popularly known, are assigned to the 57th Wing, and are based at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. Created in 1953 ...

, the Red Baron Pizza Squadron, and Michael Hunter, the world's only insulin-dependent aerobatics pilot. The Air Fair was run almost entirely by volunteers, including some from community organizations and school organizations looking for fundraising opportunities. In 2016, the airport received a $3.5 million federal grant to fund repairs to a runway. The airport was the third busiest airport in the state of Indiana in 2016. In 2017, work began on a $1.1 million project to upgrade the exterior of a terminal building at the airport. The

National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 (; NDAA 2018Pub.L. 115–91 is a United States federal law which specifies the budget, expenditures and policies of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) for Fiscal Year 2018. Analogou ...

included a $24 million federal grant for a military construction project at the airport that will support the operations of the

Indiana National Guard The Indiana National Guard (INNG) is a component of the United States Armed Forces, the United States National Guard and the Military Department of Indiana (MDI). It consists of the Indiana Army National Guard, the Indiana Air National Guard, a ...

's 181st Intelligence Wing. In summer 2018, the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

's flight exhibition team, the

Blue Angels The Blue Angels, formally named the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, are a Aerobatics, flight demonstration squadron of the United States Navy.. Blue Angels official site. Formed in 1946, the unit is the second oldest formal aerobatics ...

, performed at Terre Haute Regional Airport. The airshow attracted more than 55,000 people over the course of the weekend and was a major success for the airport. The airport received a grant from

Duke Energy Duke Energy Corporation is an American electric power and natural gas holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company ranked as the 141st largest company in the United States in 2024 – its highest-ever placement on the ...

to support development on the west side of the airport in 2020. Later that year, the airport was announced as one of five locations under consideration for an

F-35 The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is an American family of single-seat, single-engine, supersonic stealth strike fighters. A multirole combat aircraft designed for both air superiority and strike missions, it also has electronic warf ...

training center. A public meeting was held in March 2021 to discuss a strategic plan for the airport.

Historical airline service

(TWA) served Terre Haute from 1944 to 1967 as a stop between Indianapolis and

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

along its trancontinental route structure. TWA flew

Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper ...

s followed by

Martin 2-0-2 The Martin 2-0-2 was an airliner introduced in 1947. The twin piston-engined fixed-wing aircraft was designed and built by the Glenn L. Martin Company. Design and development Glenn L. Martin, president of the company, intended that the Model ...

and

Lockheed Constellation The Lockheed Constellation ("Connie") is a propeller-driven, four-engined airliner built by Lockheed Corporation starting in 1943. The Constellation series was the first civil airliner family to enter widespread use equipped with a pressurized cab ...

prop aircraft. Shortly before ending service in 1967, TWA had upgraded its flights to

Douglas DC-9 The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is an American five-abreast, single-aisle aircraft designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was initially produced as the Douglas DC-9 prior to August 1967, after which point the company had merged with McDonnell ...

jet aircraft.

Chicago and Southern Air Lines Chicago and Southern Air Lines (C&S) was a United States trunk carrier, a scheduled airline that started life as Pacific Seaboard Air Lines in California and was organized on June 15, 1933. Following the move from California, the airline's hea ...

began service in the late 1940s with flights to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 118,414 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is Indiana's List of cities in Indiana, third-most populous city after India ...

. The carrier was merged into

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 ...

in 1953 and became known as Delta C&S. Service continued until 1954.

Lake Central Airlines Lake Central Airlines was a local service carrier and scheduled airline that served multiple locations throughout the midwestern and eastern United States from 1950 to 1968, when it then merged into Allegheny Airlines. In 1979 Allegheny became US ...

served Terre Haute from 1954, replacing Delta-C&S, with flights to Chicago and Indianapolis, each making one-stop. Lake Central merged into

Allegheny Airlines Allegheny Airlines was a local service carrier that operated out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1952 to 1979, with routes primarily located in the eastern U.S. It was the forerunner of USAir that was subsequently renamed US Airways, which i ...

in 1968 and service continued until 1973.

Britt Airways Britt Airways was a regional airline in the United States that operated from 1964 until it merged with ExpressJet in 1996. It was established as Vercoa Air Service in 1964 and renamed to Britt Airlines when it was purchased by William and Ma ...

, which had its headquarters at Terre Haute, took over for Allegheny in 1973 operating as

Allegheny Commuter Allegheny, Alleghany or Allegany may refer to: Places Geologic and geographic features * Allegheny River, in Pennsylvania and New York * Allegheny Mountains, part of the Appalachian Mountain Range in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Vir ...

to Chicago and Indianapolis. In 1981, Britt began operating under its own identity and added new service to St. Louis. Britt was sold to People Express in 1985 and the flights to Chicago then began operating under a code-share relationship with People Express. Service to Indianapolis and St. Louis was discontinued. New service to Dayton was operated in 1985 and 1986 as Piedmont Commuter on behalf of

Piedmont Airlines Piedmont Airlines, Inc. ( ) is an American regional airline headquartered at the Salisbury Regional Airport in Wicomico County, Maryland, near the Salisbury, Maryland, city of Salisbury. The airline is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the American ...

. In 1986 People Express was sold to

Texas Air Corporation Texas Air Corporation, also known as Texas Air, was an airline holding company in the United States, incorporated in June 1980 by airline investor Frank Lorenzo to hold and invest in airlines. The company had its headquarters in the America T ...

which also owned

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 ...

and by 1987, the flights to Chicago began operating as

Continental Express Continental Express was the brand name used by a number of independently owned regional airlines providing commuter airliner and regional jet feeder service under agreement with Continental Airlines. In 2010 at the time of Continental's merger ...

. Britt's scheduled service to Terre Haute ended in 1989 but the company continued operating its headquarters at the airport until 1996 while it became the primary regional feeder carrier for Continental Airlines.

Trans World Express Trans World Express (TWE) was the fully owned and certified regional carrier for Trans World Airlines ( TWA) and an airline trademark name for TWA's corporation. * Trans World Express - The formerly independent regional airline known as Ransom ...

, operated by Resort Air on behalf of

TWA The Twa, often referred to as Batwa or Mutwa (singular), are indigenous hunter-gatherer peoples of the Great Lakes Region in Central Africa, recognized as some of the earliest inhabitants of the area. Historically and academically, the term � ...

, flew to St. Louis for a brief time during the summer of 1987.

, operated by Air Kentucky on behalf of

USAir US Airways was a major airline in the United States. It was originally founded in Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon became a commercial passenger airline. In 1953, it was renamed Allegheny Airlines an ...

, served Terre Haute from Indianapolis in 1987 and 1988. American Eagle, operating on behalf of

American Airlines American Airlines, Inc. is a major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the ...

, briefly served Terre Haute in 1986 with flights to Nashville. American Eagle returned in 1989 taking over the service to Chicago which continued into 1993.

Lone Star Airlines Lone Star Airlines was an American regional airline that operated both domestic and international flights. For much of the airline's life its headquarters were located in the Fort Worth Stockyards in Fort Worth, Texas. The airline's largest hub ...

served the airport from 1991 through 1994 with flights to St. Louis. Midway Connection, operated by Direct Air then provided service to Chicago's

Midway International Airport Chicago Midway International Airport is a major commercial airport on the southwest side of Chicago, Illinois, located approximately 12 miles (19 km) from the city's Loop business district, and divided between the city's Clearing and ...

during 1994 and 1995.

United Express United Express is a regional airline network that supports United Airlines operations, primarily by serving smaller cities and connecting traffic to United's main hubs. Representing six percent of United's total capacity for 2024, United Express ...

, operated by

Great Lakes Aviation Great Lakes Airlines was an American regional airline operating domestic scheduled and charter services. Corporate headquarters were in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with a hub at Denver International Airport. As of November 2013, Great Lakes Airlines r ...

on behalf of

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 ...

was the final carrier to serve Terre Haute with flights back to Chicago's

O'Hare International Airport Chicago O'Hare International Airport is the primary international airport serving Chicago, Illinois, United States, located on the city's Northwest Side, approximately northwest of the Chicago Loop, Loop business district. The airport is ope ...

from 1995 until July 10, 1999. The airport then went without scheduled airline service.

Branson Air Express FlyBranson Travel, LLC, branded as Branson Air Express, is a defunct air travel marketing brand, based at Branson Airport near Branson, Missouri. Branson AirExpress used the air carrier services of DOT and FAA certificated airlines such as Elit ...

announced service in February 2010, but the airline later cancelled those plans, citing weak demand. There is currently no scheduled commercial service at Terre Haute Regional Airport.

Air National Guard

The airport is home to the 181st Intelligence Wing (181 IW) of the

. The ANG enclave is called Hulman Field Air National Guard Base. The 181 IW is operationally gained by the

16th Air Force The Sixteenth Air Force (Air Forces Cyber) (16 AF) is a United States Air Force (USAF) organization responsible for information warfare, which encompasses intelligence gathering and analysis, surveillance, reconnaissance, cyber warfare and ele ...

(16 AF). The unit served in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, flying anti-submarine patrol along the East Coast of the United States and the Gulf of Mexico. It was also activated for the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

and the

Berlin Crisis of 1961 The Berlin Crisis of 1961 () was the last major European political and military incident of the Cold War concerning the status of the German capital city, Berlin, and of History of Germany (1945–90), post–World War II Germany. The crisis cul ...

. In 1962 it was established as a fighter unit, the 181st Tactical Fighter Group (181 TFG), operationally-gained by the

Tactical Air Command Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Lang ...

(TAC). Initially using the

RF-84F Thunderstreak The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak is an American swept-wing turbojet-powered fighter-bomber. The RF-84F Thunderflash is variant of the F-84F that was designed for photo reconnaissance. The design was originally intended to be a relatively simple ...

, the unit transitioned to the

F-84F Thunderstreak The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak is an American swept-wing turbojet-powered fighter-bomber. The RF-84F Thunderflash is variant of the F-84F that was designed for photo reconnaissance. The design was originally intended to be a relatively simp ...

in 1964, the

F-100D/F Super Sabre The North American F-100 Super Sabre is an American supersonic jet fighter aircraft designed and produced by the aircraft manufacturer North American Aviation. The first of the Century Series of American jet fighters, it was the first United S ...

in 1971, the

F-4 Phantom II The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber that was developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bower ...

in 1979, and the

F-16 Fighting Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic Multirole combat aircraft, multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superio ...

in 1991. Known as the ''Racers'', the then-181 TFG participated in the first

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

from 1990 to 1991. With the disestablishment of TAC in 1992, the unit was redesignated the 181st Fighter Group (181 FG) and operationally-gained by the

Air Combat Command The Air Combat Command (ACC) is one of nine List of Major Commands of the United States Air Force, Major Commands (MAJCOMs) in the United States Air Force, reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force (HAF) at the Pentagon. It is the prim ...

(ACC). In 1995, it was redesignated as the 181st Fighter Wing (181 FW) and deployed to Kuwait on two separate occasions in support of

Operation Southern Watch Operation Southern Watch was an air-centric military operation conducted by the United States Department of Defense from August 1992 to March 2003. United States Central Command's Joint Task Force Southwest Asia (JTF-SWA) had the mission of moni ...

. On September 11, 2001, the 181 FW flew combat air patrols over the Midwestern United States less than four hours after the attacks on New York City and Washington, DC. The wing drastically increased its operations tempo, deployed members and equipment to 19 countries, and simultaneously supported seven different military operations, including Operation Southern Watch, Operation Northern Watch, Operation Joint Forge, Operation Noble Eagle, Operation Deep Freeze, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. In 2005, concurrent with an Air Force initiative to phase out F-16C/D aircraft Block 30 and older, the

Base Realignment and Closure Commission Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) was a process by a Federal government of the United States, United States federal government commission to increase the efficiency of the United States Department of Defense by coordinating the realignment and ...

(BRAC) mandated the end of flying operations for the 181 FW. On September 8, 2007, the wing's F-16C Block 30s flew their last training mission out of Terre Haute Regional Airport/Hulman Field Air National Guard Base. The wing's squadrons were redesignated as a Distributive Ground Station (DGS) and an Air Support Operations Squadron (ASOS) and on May 3, 2008, the 181st Fighter Wing was re-designated as the 181st Intelligence Wing (181 IW).

Facilities

The airport covers and has two

runway In aviation, a runway is an elongated, rectangular surface designed for the landing and takeoff of an aircraft. Runways may be a human-made surface (often asphalt concrete, asphalt, concrete, or a mixture of both) or a natural surface (sod, ...

s: * Runway 5/23: , surface:

asphalt Asphalt most often refers to: * Bitumen, also known as "liquid asphalt cement" or simply "asphalt", a viscous form of petroleum mainly used as a binder in asphalt concrete * Asphalt concrete, a mixture of bitumen with coarse and fine aggregates, u ...

* Runway 14/32: , surface: asphalt/

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

Indiana State University Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana, United States. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified ...

uses Hulman Field for its aviation program. The USAF uses Hulman Field for worldwide command and control of remote control surveillance aircraft. Hulman Field can also support the

F-16 The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it e ...

and larger military aircraft on an "as needed" basis.

Accidents

* On January 30, 1984, a

Swearingen Merlin The Swearingen Merlin or the Fairchild Aerospace Merlin is a pressurized, twin turboprop business aircraft first produced by Swearingen Aircraft, and later by Fairchild at a plant in San Antonio, Texas. Development The Merlin was an evolution ...

operated by

entered a steep descent after takeoff from HUF and crashed past the runway end and left of the extended centerline. All three occupants, employees of Britt Airways, were killed. * On May 15, 2025, a

General Motors TBM-3 Avenger The Grumman TBF Avenger (designated TBM for aircraft manufactured by General Motors) is an American World War II-era torpedo bomber developed initially for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, and eventually used ...

crashed on landing at the airport.

References

External links

Terre Haute Regional Airport
official site
Aerial image as of 6 April 1998
from

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an government agency, agency of the United States Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geograp ...

The National Map ''The National Map'' is a Collaboration, collaborative effort of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and other federal, state, and local agencies to improve and deliver topographic information for the United States. The purpose of the eff ...

'' * * {{Airports in Indiana Airports in Indiana Buildings and structures in Terre Haute, Indiana Transportation buildings and structures in Vigo County, Indiana