Discover Hidden New York: Floyd Bennett Field Part 1: New York City's First Municipal Airport

Administration Building

You fly in and out of New York City via JFK and La Guardia, but did you know that New York City's first airport was Floyd Bennett Field? It was designed by famed aviator Clarence D. Chamberlin at Barren Island, a 387-acre marsh with 33 small islands in Jamaica Bay, off the southeastern shore of Brooklyn. Chamberlin was famous for setting various aviation records including an endurance record for circling New York City for 51 hours and 11 minutes with Bert Acosta in 1927. Acosta would later be Richard Byrd's co-pilot in his transatlantic flight.

The site was chosen due to the lack of obstructions nearby and because it was easily identifiable from the air. Six million cubic yards of sand were pumped from Jamaica Bay to connect the islands and raise the site to 16 feet above the high tide mark. The airport was constructed between 1928 and 1931 to divert the increasing volume of air traffic to New York City away from Newark Airport, where most New York bound flights terminated. It was named after Floyd Bennett, a one-time Brooklyn resident, who piloted Richard Byrd in the first attempt to fly over the North Pole in 1926. The airport originally consisted of two runways, a taxiway, four hangars and the administration building, which served as the passenger terminal, baggage depot and freight receiving–shipping area. The back of the building, which faced the runways, has a semi-octagonal projecting bay, three stories tall and topped with a steel framed and glass enclosed control booth.

Back of the administration building and control tower

Floyd Bennett Field became the second busiest airport in the country, with 51,828 landings and takeoffs. It was considered one of the most advanced airfields of its day. It had electrically illuminated, concrete runways at a time when most airports had dirt runways and no night landings. The terminal facility had numerous amenities including a barber shop, a passenger lounge, overnight accomodations and a restaurant. Famous aviators such as Wiley Post (the first pilot to fly solo around the world), Jackie Cochran (famous racing pilot and only woman to participate in the Bendix Trophy Race), Laura Ingalls (first solo flight around South America), Amelia Earhart and Howard Hughes all used Floyd Bennett Field for record breaking flights.

One of the hangars

Mayor Fiorello La Guardia convinced American Airlines to move to Bennett Field but passengers complained that travel time to the city was longer than from Newark Airport. Also, La Guardia was unsuccessful in getting the United States Postal Services to move from Newark Airport. At that time, airmail accounted for the bulk of air freight and airports having contracts with the United States Postal Services attracted commercial airlines as airlines could makeup for revenue by carrying airmail with under- booked flights, which was a common occurrence back then. The fact that the airport was constructed around the time of the Great Depression, that flying was not widely accepted as a means of public transportation and that air travel fares were affordable to the select few, limited commercial passenger activity. At the same time that Floyd Bennett was being promoted, an alternate airport, which now carries the name La Guardia, was also being developed in conjunction with American Airlines executives. The airport was originally named the New York Municipal Airport and opened for business on December 2, 1939.

Floyd Bennett lost favor as a commercial enterprise and it was converted to a Naval Air Station in 1941, becoming one of the most active airports in the United States during World War II. Today, Floyd Bennett Field is maintained by the National Park Services. There is a visitors center in the administration building, escorted tours of the facilities are offered and there are talks to restore Floyd Bennett Field to its former glory days so that visitors can experience what travel was like during the golden days.