The airfield was built by the U.S. military in the 1940s and used by the United States Army Air Forces and United States Navy for gunnery training. The base was closed in the early 1960s and most base facilities were turned over to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in 1961-1963 for renovation and reuse as a detention facility. The hangars and runways were turned over to the Cameron County Commissioners in 1963 to be used as a civil airport.[6]
Facilities
Port Isabel-Cameron County Airport covers 826 acres (334 ha) at an elevation of 18.6 feet (5.7 m) above mean sea level. It has four runways:
Runway 03/21: 5,000 x 150 ft. (1,524 x 46 m), surface: asphalt/concrete
Runway 08/26: 5,317 x 150 ft. (1,621 x 46 m), surface: concrete
Runway 13/31: 8,001 x 200 ft. (2,439 x 61 m), surface: asphalt/concrete
Runway 17/35: 4,200 x 75 ft. (1,280 x 23 m), surface: asphalt/concrete[2]
For the 12-month period ending 11 January 2017, the airport had 29,420 aircraft operations, an average of 81 per day: 54% military, 46% general aviation, and less than 1% air taxi. At that time there were 13 aircraft based at this airport: 46% single-engine, 46% multi-engine, and 8% gliders, with no jets nor helicopters.[2]
^It is unclear exactly when the designation changes took place. A National Transportation Safety Board report for an accident at Port Isabel-Cameron County Airport on 3 July 1992 uses the T31 designation.[7]
