Hondo's Airfield Footprint Came From 1942

Hondo Army Airfield brought 3,675 acres of flight training to the city in 1942. Hondo incorporated that same year. It was already a railroad county seat and a shipping point for farms and ranches.

The Army closed the field after World War II, but training did not end. Civilian contract pilots trained there. The Air Force later ran pilot-screening programs.

The town owned the former base. That kept the large airfield in Hondo's hands after the wartime mission ended.