Houston Gulf Airport

Houston Gulf Airport (IATA: SPX, ICAO: KSPX, FAA LID: SPX) was a single-runway airport located in eastern League City, Texas, United States.[2] Its FAA code was SPX[3] and its IATA code was also SPX.[4]

Houston Gulf Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
ServesHouston, Texas
LocationLeague City, Texas
Elevation AMSL21 ft / 6.4 m
Coordinates29°30′30″N 095°03′05″W
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
13/31 4,999 1,524 Asphalt (Closed)
Statistics (2002)
Aircraft operations66/day
Based aircraft80

History

The airport opened in 1967 as the Spaceland Airport, a name related to the Johnson Space Center, located about 4 miles north of the airport.[3]

A businessperson named James R. Bath purchased the airport on behalf of Salem bin Laden in 1977. Bath received a 5 percent interest in the companies that own and operate the airport.[5] Salem bin Laden owned the airport for six years before his death in 1988.[6] After Salem bin Laden died, the airport, now owned by his estate, was for sale.[6][7]

The airport was scheduled to close on April 1, 2002. A coalition of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and some local pilots created a campaign asking for the City of League City to acquire the airport from its owner.[8] The airport's land was sold and the land became a string of houses along Texas State Highway 96.[9] The group of houses are part of a 2,000-house community called Tuscan Lakes.[10]

References
  1. "KSPX - Houston Gulf Airport". Federal Aviation Administration, via AirNav.com. 2002-02-21. Archived from the original on 2002-03-08.
  2. Ward, Mike. "Bin Laden relatives have ties to Texas." Austin American-Statesman. November 9, 2001.
  3. "Spaceland Airport / Houston Gulf Airport (SPX), League City, TX". Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields. Retrieved 2009-08-08.
  4. "SPX - Houston-Spaceland Airport, Texas". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 2009-08-08.
  5. Thompson, Alastair. "George W. Bush And Harken Oil - Recovered History." Scoop. Thursday 7 March 2002.
  6. "Ampersand!." The Signal & Urbanite. October 30, 2001. News Page Three.
  7. Romei, Stephen. "Bin Laden family firm feels heat - WAR ON TERROR." The Weekend Australian. Saturday September 29, 2001.
  8. "AOPA works to save Houston Gulf Airport." Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. Retrieved on November 19, 2008.
  9. Rendon, Ruth. "Fees could slow growth / Developers expected to balk at League City plan." Houston Chronicle. Sunday November 2, 2003. A29 MetFront.
  10. Bivins, Ralph. "Galveston County will get new community." Houston Chronicle. Sunday January 18, 2004. Business 6.
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