Trip Report: Aerosmith Tour
First published in 2000. Reformatted 2025. Aerosmith had been one of my favorite rock bands for nearly two decades. So, when tickets went on sale for their concert in Dallas, I grabbed one quick. Since I had to drive from Shreveport, it seemed only logical to make it an overnight trip and add in a few base research visits. Just a reminder PIN means Permanent Installation Number and ILC means Installation Location Code; I include these for Air Force properties when I know them.Monday, 3 October 1994
Kaufman County Airport TX, 32-43-30, 96-16-30. On the road at 0630, I headed west to Terrell, TX. First stop: Terrell Municipal Airport (TRL). This was a contract flying school (Terrell Aviation School, Ltd.) during WWII, training British pilots. An added touch was visiting the Silent Wings Museum, located on the airport grounds.Hangar Wolters AFB TX, 32-49, 98-05. Continuing west past Dallas and Fort Worth, to Weatherford. From there, I headed north to Mineral Wells and the former base. It is now part industrial park, part Army National Guard base with some older buildings still standing. Wolters AFB was an Army fort both before and after its short period of Air Force use.
Gate
Building
General view
Gate post detail Nike DF-70L TX. I didn't realize it until after my visit, but one of the Wolters facilities I saw was this former Nike launcher site. At the time of this visit it was used by the TX Army National Guard as a range control facility.
Sentry box and administration building Mineral Wells Airport TX, 32-46-56, 98-03-41. I also visited this airport which served as an auxiliary field to Carswell Field during WWII. It was home to a large Army heliport supporting the nearby Fort Wolters during the Vietnam War.
Hangar
Elevated water storage tank Hicks Field TX, 32-54-42, 97-24-03. Now it was time to head back east, to Fort Worth. Taking Loop 820 north, then RR 287 north I found the site of this former field. No longer used for flying, it is one mile south of a modern airstrip called Hicks Airfield (T67), 32-55-52, 97-24-42. Yes, I visited the new airstrip first thinking it was the genuine article--a couple of friendly and knowledgeable pilots directed me back to the historic site. It is now an industrial park, although it looks mostly abandoned. Two large hangars remain.
Hangar
Hangar
Hangar
Hangar Meacham Field TX, 32-49, 97-22. Weaving my way back through Fort Worth, I found the Fort Worth Meacham Airport (FTW), with a hangar visible.
Hangar
Hangar
Hangar
Hangar Hensley Field TX, 32-44-30, 96-57-30. I made my way to Grand Prairie and found NAS Dallas Hensley (7TX2). A large WWII hangar still stands. At the time of this visit, it still had an Air National Guard unit present, flying C-130s.
Navy hangar
Navy hangar and control tower
ANG hangar Arriving in Dallas, I settled in at the La Quinta Motor Inn on Highway 75. The research part of my day was over; I was on the road 11 hours and drove 430 miles. Getting to the concert was an adventure in itself--it took me 95 minutes to drive six miles to the Coca-Cola Starplex for the show! I found one of the very last parking spaces and walked into the amphitheater as the lights went down. I assumed that the opening act, Collective Soul, was about to start. To my surprise, I had missed their set entirely, and was just in time for Aerosmith!
Tuesday, 4 October 1994
Gainesville AAFld TX. 33-39, 97-12. Checked out of the La Quinta at 0600. Then I aimed north out of the Metroplex and cruised to Gainesville Municipal Airport (GLE). During WWII it supported nearby Camp Howze, a large Army training post.Hangar and beacon light
Historical marker Ardmore AFB OK, 34-18, 97-01. Continued north into Oklahoma to Ardmore. The former base is now Ardmore Municipal Airport (ADM), and still has much the look and feel of an Air Force Base. I found a friendly controller on duty in the control tower, who invited me up to chat and take photos from the tower walkway. Great view!
Fire station
Traffic check house
Building
Hangars
Double cantilever hangar
Base operations building and control tower
General view from control tower
General view from control tower Ardmore Radio Beacon Annex OK, 34-12-42, 97-10-05. Southwest of the base, and visible from I-35, the FAA currently operates it.
Distant view Perrin AFB TX, 33-42-46, 96-39-58. Then I headed back south into Texas, worked my way east to Sherman, and found the Grayson County Airport (F39). Many of the former Air Force buildings remain in use. Perrin conducted interceptor training.
General view
Building and elevated water storage tank
Control tower and hangar
Weapons calibration shelter Jones Field TX, 33-36, 96-11. Heading east to Bonham, I found this former WWII contract flying school (Bonham Aviation School). I had the pleasure of talking with Mr. H.R. Van Zandt at the FBO. He had been a dispatcher for the flying school during the war, and had this to say about wartime flying training: "We didn't have radios, we just issued them airplanes and hoped they'd make it back in one piece."
General view Brown Field TX, 33-41-30, 96-11. Based on information I learned from Mr. Van Zandt, I drove north six miles and found this auxiliary to Jones Field. Nice bonus!
General view Caddo Mills Auxiliary Field TX, 33-02, 96-15. Worked my way back to Greenville, then to the Caddo Mills Airport (7F3). Still in use as a general aviation field, it was once an auxiliary to Majors AAFld.
General view Majors AAFld TX, 33-04, 96-04. Back toward Greenville, my next stop was Majors Airport (GVT) which had been a WWII airfield. It was an industrial setting, not very scenic for the tourist.
General view
General view It was time to head home. I finished my day in 14 hours, covering 545 miles. This put the two-day total at 987 miles, in 25 miles of road time. The old Volvo (a 1980 242 DL) was earning its keep. Updated January 26, 2025
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