Wednesday, December 04, 2024

Dillingham Airfield (HDH)

Dillingham Airfield is a general aviation airport located in Mokuleia, on the north shore of Oahu. The runway is operated by the Hawaii Department of Transportation and is used primarily by commercial gliders and for sky diving operations. The airfield is under lease from the US Army while the Oahu District of the State Airports System maintains the airfield and its facilities.

Facilities at Dillingham Airfield include hangars for fixed wing aircraft and gliders, and a control tower. Around 50,000 air operations take place over a year at the airfield. The airfield lies 2 miles west of the district of Mokuleia in Honolulu County. While the airport is open to civilians for gliding and sky diving operations in the day, the military conduct night vision device training operations. The airfield was named in memory of Captain Henry Gaylord Dillingham, a B-29 pilot who was killed in action during a sortie over Kawasaki, Japan in 1945.

Dillingham Airfield was originally owned by the Air Force who later transferred the lease to the Army. The State of Hawaii signed a lease agreement with the Army for joint-use of the airfield. Air traffic is limited to daytime with sport parachuting being the major activities during this period. While private owned light aircraft such as Cessnas are permitted to use the facilities, Dillingham Airfield is mainly used for glider tours for visitors.