Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields:
New Hampshire
© 1999, © 2006 by Paul Freeman. Revised 7/30/06.
Cibor Airport (revised 8/15/05) - Pike Airfield (revised 7/30/06) - White Mountain Airport (revised 6/25/06)
____________________________________________________
43.46 North / 71.56 West (Northwest of Boston, MA)
The Pike Airfield, as depicted on the March 1963 Boston Sectional Chart (courtesy of Chris Kennedy).
Photo of the airport while open has not been located.
According to Cynthia Pike Baron, the Pike Airfield
“was originally built to service two small aircraft:
one
owned by the company & the other by one of its Vice Presidents.
The runway was used almost daily to run parts, supplies, or people to various jobs & locations
throughout New Hampshire, Vermont and Upstate New York.”
It was evidently established at some point between 1962-63,
as it was not yet listed among active airfields in the 1962 AOPA Airport Directory (according to Chris Kennedy).
The earliest depiction of the Pike Airfield which has been located
was on the March 1963 Boston Sectional Chart (courtesy of Chris Kennedy).
It depicted Pike as a public-use airfield having a single east/west paved 2,000' runway.
Pike Airfield was listed in the 1963 AOPA Airport Directory (according to Chris Kennedy).
According to Lou Maglio, “It was owned by Milo Pike who had the Pike Construction Company Asphalt Company & Paving Company.
It was listed on the old sectional as 'Pike'.
I made a few approaches by it in 1970 as my folks had a cottage up the street on Lake Winnesquam.
It was about a 1,600' paved strip with trees / power lines on each end.
I never landed as I was too 'green' &
continued on to Laconia!”
The January 1971 NY Sectional Chart (courtesy of Chris Kennedy)
depicted Pike as a public-use airfield having a single east/west paved 2,000' runway.
Pike Airfield was listed in the “Low Use” section of the 1979 Flight Guide (according to Chris Kennedy).
The last directory reference to the Pike Airfield which has been located
was its listing in the 1982 AOPA Airports USA Directory (according to Chris Kennedy).
Its status had also changed to a private airfield.
According to Cynthia Pike Baron, “In the early to mid-1980s,
the plane was replaced with a Bell Jet Ranger helicopter & the runway had pretty much seen its last days.”
The 1987 USGS topo map still depicted a single 2,900' northeast/southwest paved runway,
but it was unlabeled, which presumably indicates the field was abandoned by that point.
As of the 1998 USGS aerial photo,
several buildings have covered much of the location of the former Pike runway.
Only a small portion at the northeast corner of the former runway still appeared to remain intact.
A 2006 photo by Lou Maglio, looking northwest along the location of the former Pike runway.
Lou Maglio reported in 2006 that the site of the former Pike airfield
“is now the access road behind a Super Stop & Shop and a BJ's Warehouse.”
The site of Pike Airfield is located on the south side of Route 3, just east of its intersection with Interstate 93.
____________________________________________________
43.01 North / 70.8 West (Northeast of Boston, MA)
Cibor Airport, as depicted on the 1985 USGS topo map.
Photo of the airport while open has not been located.
The date of construction of this field has not been determined.
It was evidently established at some point after 1956,
as it was not yet depicted at all on the 1956 USGS topo map.
According to Tom, the field was “named for it's builder Jake Ciborowski.
Jake was a little arrogant & thought he'd do what he wanted.
Apparently forgot the town could make laws.”
According to Mike Wheet, the members of a local radio-controlled model airplane group reported
“that the field was constructed at some point in the very early 1960s,
but the town of Rye almost immediately slapped a severe restriction on the number of takeoffs & landings at the field.
The restriction effectively prevented anything but personal use by the field owner,
and the airport was closed sometime the late 1960s.
The paved single Runway 10/28 had about 2,500 usable feet,
with paved displaced thresholds of at least 500' at each end.”
No airfield at this location was depicted on the March 1963 Boston Sectional Chart (according to Chris Kennedy)
or the January 1971 New York Sectional Chart (according to Chris Kennedy).
Mike reported that the club “R/C Aces... were using the field for flying R/C models in the early 1970s.”
Apparently Cibor Airport was reopened as a private field at some point between 1971-76,
as it was listed as a private field in the 1976 AOPA Airports USA Directory (according to Chris Kennedy).
It described the field as having a single 2,500' asphalt Runway 9/27,
and the field's status was listed as "Private. Closed to public."
The last listing which has been located of Cibor as an active airport
was in the 1982 AOPA Airports USA Directory (according to Chris Kennedy).
It described the field as having a single 2,500' asphalt Runway 10/28,
and the field's status was listed as "Private. Closed to public."
The 1985 USGS topo map still depicted a single runway,
but it was labeled simply as “Landing Strip”,
which most likely indicated that the airfield had closed by that point.
The 1993 USGS topo map still depicted a single 2,500' east/west runway, labeled simply as "Landing Strip",
along with a few small buildings along the northwest side of the property.
As of the 1998 USGS aerial photo,
the runway of the former Cibor Airport still remained intact, along with a few small buildings on the northwest side of the property.
Ironically, Mike Wheet reported that Cibor Field is still represented in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2002.
As of 2003, the site of the former airport had become the site of the “Rye Airfield” skatepark.
A 2005 photo by Rich Peabody of a road sign that remains for “Rye Airfield”.
Rich Peabody reported in 2005, “Apparently the builder of Cibor
decided that it was a good thing to chop the trees at one end of the strip...
and apparently he did so... but the property with the trees belonged to a local judge.
Things apparently deteriorated from there...
the field was slapped with restrictions because of the proximity to Pease [AFB] as well,
and the 'war' raged for about 10 years.”
A 2005 photo by Rich Peabody looking southeast from the northwest end of the former Rye Airfield.
Tom reported in 2006 that the former airfield “is now the site of several large structures
and is used as an indoor/outdoor skateboard park.
It could in no way function even as an emergency 'landing strip'.”
The site of Cibor Airport is located northeast of the intersection of Lafayette Road & Washington Road.
____________________________________________________
White Mountain Airport (CWN), North Conway, NH
44.02 North / 71.11 West (North of Boston, MA)
An aerial view looking east at the White Mountain Airport,
from the Airport Directory Company's 1941 Airport Directory (courtesy of Chris Kennedy).
According to Wylie Apte, Jr., what would eventually become White Mountain Airport
started out as a site for weekend barnstorming in 1928.
"It was then a horse racing track.
As you may know racetracks were often used for landing & takeoffs as it was a known prepared surface.
My father, Wylie Sr (commercial license # 392) officially moved there with an airplane operation in 1930;
the field was then improved under the WPA projects under the Roosevelt era."
The Department of Commerce's 1934 Airport Directory (courtesy of Chris Kennedy)
described White Mountain Airport as a commercial airport having a single 1,800' sod & sand runway.
The Airport Directory Company's 1941 Airport Directory (courtesy of Chris Kennedy)
described White Mountain as a commercial airport
having an irregularly-shaped 2,300' x 800' grass landing area,
with "additional area under development."
The field's name was said to be painted on its hangar roof.
The 1942 USGS topo map labeled the site simply as "Airport", but did not depict any runways.
The 1942 Lewiston Sectional Chart (courtesy of Mike Keefe)
depicted White Mountain as a commercial airport.
According to Wylie Apte, Jr. recalled, "The property was unofficially owned by the town of Conway.
My father operated it as an airport yearly as a tenant until WW2
when he was required to close & he was recalled to active AAF duty patrolling the East coast for enemy submarines."
Wylie Apte, Jr. continued, "After the war, the town called him [Wylie Apte Sr.] in & said there was no future in aviation
and therefore he had to vacate or purchase the property.
He struggled & bought the airport at a time when financing anything was practically unheard of.
Improvements followed as aviation grew,
private donations added to the airport's growth as bigger & better aircraft came along.
A new paved runway was installed in 1961, 3,000'.
Business improved to where it became a major attraction for tourism & businesses,
and commuters started buying vacation homes & depending on the airport."
The 1962 AOPA Airport Directory described White Mountain Airport as consisting of a 3,000' asphalt Runway 15/33.
The operator was listed as Wylie Apte.
The 1965 Boston Sectional Chart (courtesy of John Voss) depicted White Mountain Airport
as having a 2,900' paved runway & an NDB radio beacon on the field.
The 1968 Boston Sectional Chart (courtesy of Mike Keefe) depicted White Mountain Airport
as having a 2,900' paved runway & an NDB radio beacon on the field.
A 1971 photo of Lou Maglio, his future wife and her grandmother in front of a Piper Warrior at White Mountain Airport.
The 1982 AOPA Airport Directory (courtesy of Ed Drury)
described the runway configuration in much the same manner,
and listed the operator as White Mountain Airways.
However, apparently by this time White Mountain had changed to a private field,
as the remarks said, "Private. Use at own risk. PPR from owner before landing.
Closed during winter months. Runway not plowed."
Jeffrey Geibel, CFII, said, "I flew out of it in the summer of 1982.
The runway was parallel to the main road (Highway 302) and slightly east,
but perhaps only 100 yards or so off the road."
The 1985 Flight Guide (courtesy of Chris Kennedy) depicted White Mountain Airport
as having a single 2,940' paved Runway 15/33,
with two taxiways leading to a ramp on the west side with several adjacent buildings.
One of those buildings was depicted as the location of White Mountain Airways.
The 1987 USGS topo map depicted White Mountain Airport as having a taxiway leading from the northwest end of the runway to the south,
with several buildings (hangars?) along the west side of the taxiway.
Wylie Apte, Jr. said "I was the last & final owner of this airport,
taking over from my father who started the airport.
It was closed down after a forced sale due to being taxed out of existence
by the town's greediness to raise property taxes."
According to Wylie Apte, Jr., the airport closed in the Summer of 1988.
Jeffrey Geibel said, "There is (or was) a heliport left over from the airport circa 1995 when I was up there,
but that may have gone, too.
I believe there's a street called "Airport Square" or something like that (right of the main drag)
which was the entrance road to the airport."
As seen in the 1999 USGS aerial photo,
the site of the former airport has been covered by a factory outlet center, several condo units,
and a Sheraton Hotel (since renamed the North Conway Grand Hotel)
The southeastern half of the runway still remained visible in the above photo, however.
A 2003 photo by Mike Fesko of the former hangar of the White Mountain Airport,
which remains in use as a retail outlet. Note the biplane wind indicator on the roof.
A 2003 photo by Mike Fesko of the plaque at the site of the former White Mountain Airport which honors founder Wylie Apte Sr.
According to Wylie Apte, Jr., the original main hangar (built by Apte) also still remains.
It is the silver-roofed Quonset hut visible just below the entrance road along the left side of the above photo.
As of 2003, it was being reused as an Orvis outlet.
The site of White Mountain Airport is located northeast of the intersection of Route 302 & Route 16,
two miles southeast of North Conway.
____________________________________________________