Liberal Mid-America Regional Airport (IATA: LBL, ICAO: KLBL, FAA LID: LBL) is two miles west of Liberal, in Seward County, Kansas.[1] It is used for general aviation and was at one point subsidized by the Essential Air Service program. Formerly Liberal Municipal Airport, it hosts the Mid-America Air Museum.

Liberal Mid-America Regional Airport
USGS 2006 orthophoto
IATA: LBL ICAO: KLBL FAA LID: LBL
Summary
Airport type	Public
Owner	City of Liberal
Serves	Liberal, Kansas
Elevation AMSL	2,885 ft / 879 m
Coordinates	37°02′39″N 100°57′36″W
Website	Airport website
Map
LBL Location of airport in Kansas / United States Show map of Kansas LBL LBL (the United States) Show map of the United States
Runways
Direction Length Surface ft m 4/22 5,721 1,744 Concrete 17/35 7,105 2,166 Concrete
Statistics (2010)
Aircraft operations 38,300 Based aircraft 54
Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1]

The Federal Aviation Administration says this airport had 7,911 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008,[2] 6,255 in 2009 and 7,156 in 2010.[3] The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a non-primary commercial service airport.

History

During World War II, the facility was Liberal Army Airfield and was used for United States Army Air Forces Second Air Force B-24 Liberator training from 1943 to 1945. New multi-engine graduates were shipped to Liberal to transition to the Liberator, then sent to 1st Phase bases to join a crew for combat training.

Before April 1944, Liberal was home to a Twin Engine Flying Training Group with four squadrons (60, 63, 1029, 1030), the 527th Base Hq & Air Base Sq, 324th Sub Depot, 444th (later 744th) AAF Band, and 396th Aviation Sq.

These units later merged into the 2425th AAF Base Unit (Pilot School, Specialized, Four Engine).

Airline flights (on Central Airlines DC-3s) began in 1956; successor Frontier Airlines left in 1981.

Facilities

The airport covers 2,005 acres (811 ha) at an elevation of 2,885 feet (879 m). It has two concrete runways: 4/22 is 5,721 by 150 feet (1,744 x 46 m) and 17/35 is 7,105 by 100 feet (2,166 x 30 m).[1]

In 2010, the airport had 38,300 aircraft operations, an average of 104 per day: 91% general aviation, 5% airline, 3% air taxi, and 1% military. 54 aircraft were then based at this airport: 68% single-engine, 24% multi-engine, 6% jet and 2% helicopter.[1]

The Mid-America Air Museum is located on the airport.

Airline and destination

Destinations map
Liberal Denver Destinations from Liberal Mid-America Regional Airport

Statistics

References

Other sources

External links

• Official website
• Lyddon Aero Center, the fixed-base operator (FBO)
• "Airport diagram and aerial photo" (PDF). from Kansas DOT Airport Directory
• Aerial image as of September 1991 from USGS The National Map
• FAA Airport Diagram (PDF), effective August 11, 2022
• FAA Terminal Procedures for LBL, effective August 11, 2022
• Resources for this airport:
  • FAA airport information for LBL
  • AirNav airport information for KLBL
  • ASN accident history for LBL
  • FlightAware airport information and live flight tracker
  • NOAA/NWS weather observations: current, past three days
  • SkyVector aeronautical chart, Terminal Procedures