Flying Start
Remembering Dallas’ Love Field as an army aviator training base
Imagine climbing into a two-seater, single-engine aircraft made of fabric stretched over a wood frame. How about cranking up the propeller and heading down a runway a mere decade after the Wright brothers’ flight, when plane crashes were still common? Sites and exhibits in Dallas help visitors appreciate the dangers — as well as the huge strides made in military and civilian aviation — from a century ago.
World War I was the inaugural leap into strategic military flight. Although initially viewed as primarily a reconnaissance tool, by the end of the war airplanes were engaged in air-to-ground bombing and strafing, and even air-to-air combat. A late entrant in 1917, the United States had to swiftly catch up with the burgeoning role of aircraft over the three years since the war had begun. And in one of the best strategic moves by a city booster group anywhere, in 1917 the Dallas Chamber of Commerce purchased 671 acres and leased it to the army as one of many new wartime aviator training fields in the state and nation. After the war, Love Field grew into one of the economic engines of Dallas, spurring growth and prosperity. It was the site of Texas’ first air mail and passenger service in the 1920s.
Left Maj. Albert L. Sneed, commanding officer of Love Field, 1918, in his Curtiss JN-4D. Right World War I recruiting poster from 1917 features the airplane — and the promise of an experience abroad — to sell potential recruits on enlisting.
The City of Dallas this year celebrates the centennial of its original airfield. “100 Years, 100 Objects: A History of Dallas Love Field” is on exhibit through fall 2017 in the terminal (on the way to baggage claim), telling the story of the birth and early history of this pioneer airport. The exhibit is a great introduction to and a perfect bite-sized First World War experience for those who find themselves passing through Dallas via Love Field.
Also at the airport’s Danny L. Bruce Flag Plaza is an obelisk memorializing the 12 army men killed among the 449 trained in the 16 months during which Love Field was actively preparing men for war. A plaque also memorializes Lt. Moss Lee Love, victim of an earlier plane crash and the army aviator for whom the airfield was named.
The nearby Frontiers of Flight Museum, in addition to being an excellent permanent World War I exhibit, has a temporary exhibit running through 2018. Among the many planes featured is a Curtiss JN-4D of the type that was used as a primary flight trainer. The majority of American pilots learned to fly in a “Jenny,” a nickname derived by pilots from the “JN” model designation. The restored Jenny in the museum is one of the actual planes used during this initial period at Love
Field.The “Flyin’ Frolic” hosted by the Army Air Service in November 1918 included two days of aerial demonstrations that entertained more than 30,000 people. Attendees witnessed impressive skills of the pilots and the capabilities of the airplanes. It also documented the transition of Love Field from pasture to airfield.
Take a moment to hark back to Love Field circa 1917 by visiting any of these installations and learning about the time when America began to adopt the airplane as a universal mode of transportation and an effective military tool.
