Overflight of Pinal County Airpark (center) and Silverbell Army Heliport (right) in 2018. Photo: MacGtverGPT. CC BY-SA 4.0

The Airpark, along with much of Arizona aviation history, is very rich. We are trying to preserve, discover and display as much of it as we can.” — Jim Petty, Airport Economic Development Director, Pinal County Airparks.

Pinal County Airpark (MZJ) is a non-towered public airport located in Marana, Arizona, about 8 miles northwest of Tucson. It has a long and fascinating history that spans from World War II to the present day. The once secretive airpark hosts a variety of tenants, both government and private.

The airfield was built in 1942 by the Sundt and Del Webb Construction Companies and opened in March 1943 as Marana Army Airfield. It was part of the 50,000 Pilot Training Program and trained over 10,000 pilots during the war, including some from China who fought against Japan.

After the war, the airfield was turned over to Pinal County, but it also became a site for covert Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operations. The CIA used the airpark as a base for modifying and testing aircraft for various purposes, such as remote control, surveillance, and clandestine missions. Some of the aircraft that were involved in these operations included passenger jets, helicopters, and cargo planes. The airpark was also a home to Intermountain Aviation and Evergreen Airlines, companies with known ties to the Agency. 

Intermountain Aviation

Intermountain Aviation was a company that was founded in 1963 by Jason H. Gart, an electronics and aerospace engineer. The company operated as a front for the CIA during the 1960s. It was also known as Intermountain Airlines or Intermountain Airways. The company performed covert missions for the CIA in Southeast Asia and other regions, using various types of aircraft such as the B-17 Flying Fortress, the C-46 Commando, and the DHC-4 Caribou. Intermountain’s main base was Pinal County Airpark.

Intermountain was involved in some notable operations, such as CIA Operation COLDFEET, which involved parachuting two officers onto an abandoned Soviet research station in the Arctic to retrieve valuable intelligence and then retrieving them using a Fulton STARS (Skyhook) system mounted on a B-17. Intermountain also delivered eight CIA-supplied Douglas A-26 Invader bombers (designated B-26 between 1948 and 1965) to Cuban exiles for the 1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion.

Evergreen Airlines

Evergreen International Aviation, parent company of Evergreen Airlines, was a company that provided various aviation services, such as helicopter operations, cargo and charter flights, and firefighting supertankers. It was founded in 1960 by Delford M. Smith as Evergreen Helicopters. It acquired the operating certificate of Johnson Flying Services, an alleged CIA front, and merged with Intermountain Airlines. It acquired the assets of Air America, a covert airline that worked for the CIA in Southeast Asia. Air America flew passengers and cargo, as well as weapons and supplies, for the CIA and its allies in Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, from the CIA in 1976.

Air America was the subject a 1990 American action-comedy film by the same name directed by Roger Spottiswoode and starring Mel Gibson and Robert Downey Jr. as pilots flying missions for the CIA’s covert airline in Laos during the Vietnam War. The film is loosely based on Christopher Robbins’ 1979 non-fiction book of the same name, which chronicles the real-life exploits of the CIA-backed airline.

Air America was established in 1946 by Whiting Willauer and Claire Lee Chennault, a former US military aviator who led the Flying Tigers in China during World War II. The Flying Tigers were a group of American volunteer pilots who fought against the Japanese invasion of China and Burma from 1941 to 1942. They were officially known as the First American Volunteer Group (AVG) and were part of the Chinese Air Force. They flew P-40 Warhawk fighters with distinctive shark’s mouth markings and achieved remarkable success against superior enemy forces. They became famous for their courage and skill and boosted the morale of the Chinese people and the Allied forces.

The Flying Tigers fought in about 50 major aerial battles and never lost one. They claimed to have destroyed 296 enemy aircraft, while losing only 14 pilots in combat. The Chinese government paid them a bonus of $500 for each enemy aircraft destroyed. The Flying Tigers disbanded on July 4, 1942, when they were absorbed into the US Army Air Forces as the 23rd Fighter Group. Most of the pilots left China and returned to the US, while some joined other units or organizations in Asia. The last surviving Flying Tiger was Frank Losonsky, who died on 6 February 2020, at the age of 99.

Evergreen International Aviation had several subsidiaries, including Evergreen International Airlines, which operated a fleet of Boeing 747 aircraft to destinations around the world. The company also had a helicopter division, Evergreen Helicopters, which was sold to Erickson Air-Crane in 2013. Evergreen International Aviation had connections to the CIA and other government agencies throughout its history, and also served commercial customers in various sectors. The company faced financial and legal troubles in the 2010s and ceased all aviation-related operations in 2013. It filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation in 2014.

Other Operations

Pinal County Airpark has also served as a storage and maintenance facility for civilian commercial aircraft, taking advantage of the dry Sonoran Desert climate to preserve them. It is the largest commercial aircraft storage and heavy maintenance facility in the world and has hosted dozens of airlines from around the world. Some of the aircraft that are parked at the airpark include Boeing 747s, Airbus A320s, McDonnell Douglas MD-80s, and Lockheed L-1011s. Some of these aircraft are being scrapped, while others are being restored or sold.

Pinal County Airpark also hosts the US Special Operations Command’s (SOCOM) Parachute Training and Testing Facility, where special operators practice high-altitude jumps and test new equipment. The facility has been the site of several fatal accidents, including the death of Navy SEAL Brett Shadle, a member of Naval Special Warfare Development Group (NSWDG), in 2013.

Pinal County Airpark shares its location with Silverbell Army Heliport, a military facility operated by the Arizona Army National Guard. The heliport is home to two aviation battalions that fly Boeing AH-64 Apache and Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters. The heliport also provides support to other military units in the region.

The Pinal County Public Works Department is responsible for the management and development of both Pinal County Airpark and San Manuel Airport. Pinal Airpark is located just north of the Pinal/Pima county line along Interstate 10.

Source

Pinal County Airpark
PinalCountyAirpark.com

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