With the rise of aviation in the 1920s and 1930s, St. Augustine eventually saw the need for an airport, getting approval in 1933 to build a small one to the north of town. Federal grants under the WPA supported upgrades throughout the decade for this small airfield, and with the U.S. entry into World War II in 1941, St. Augustine’s airport became critically important. The U.S. Navy took over operations there during the war, using the airfield to supplement operations at Naval Air Station Jacksonville to the north. While under control of the Navy, St. Augustine’s airport saw continued improvement and updates until it was returned to the city after the war in 1946. With the Navy gone and the airport returning to civilian ownership, it soon became a stopping point for small regional passenger airlines. This was not long-lived, however, as without the Navy and substantial federal funding, the airport found itself in dire straits. Lack of funds and inconsistent business led to poor maintenance and eventual shuttering. The land was soon leased to the Moose Lodge for next to nothing.
President Lyndon B. Johnson at the Fairchild facility.
Things would change in 1954, however, when the Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporation announced the opening of an aircraft plant and associated support facilities at the old airport. Fairchild began operations in St. Augustine just a year later. With the Cold War being waged between the Soviet Union and the United States at this time, Fairchild was primarily servicing military aircraft from both the U.S. and its allies. Some of the first aircraft to be flown in and worked on at the facility were Douglas B-26 Invaders from the United States Air Force and the Brazilian Air Force. In the 1960s, as the U.S. got involved in Vietnam, operations at the Fairchild facility in St. Augustine picked up substantially. To accommodate the influx of larger and more advanced aircraft developed during this time, the facility oversaw significant staff increases and a lengthening of the airport’s runways to be able to handle more powerful military aircraft. During this time, the facility serviced C-119 and C-123 cargo aircraft among others, and would play a critical role in the U.S. gunship development programs.
The AC-119K Stinger and earlier models of the same airframe, which served alongside the Douglas AC-47 Spooky and the Lockheed AC-130 during the Vietnam War. The AC-119Ks, which served as “truck hunters” over the Ho Chi Minh Trail, were retrofitted, reassembled, and modified at Fairchild’s St. Augustine plant. Equipped with 20mm autocannons, 7.62mm miniguns, and a sophisticated electronics suite, these aircraft proved effective, although they were underpowered in comparison to the AC-130 which later supplanted them. C-123 cargo planes were also modified at the St. Augustine plant to carry and spray defoliants like Agent Orange during this time. By the mid-1970s, however, with the war in Vietnam winding down, Fairchild saw government contracts begin to dry up. This led to significant staff cuts, including at the St. Augustine plant, where a workforce of nearly 2,000 was gutted to about 500 people. In 1977, Fairchild made the decision to end their operations in St. Augustine, shuttering their facilities as part of a broader company downsizing. In 1978, with Fairchild’s departure a year prior, their facilities at the St. Augustine Airport were scheduled to be developed as an industrial park.
E-2 Hawkeye at Northrop Grumman facility.
In 1980, another defense industry giant, Grumman, purchased the old Fairchild facilities and established a presence at the airport. Grumman utilized the former Fairchild infrastructure for much the same purpose: the maintenance, repair, and upgrading of military aircraft. Front line U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps airframes in service at the time, such as the F-14 Tomcat, the A-6 Intruder, the EA-6B Prowler, and the E-2 Hawkeye were all serviced at the facility. Grumman additionally serviced U.S. Coast Guard aircraft, including the HH-65A Dolphin. Like Fairchild before them, Grumman proved a substantial economic boon for St. Augustine and St. Johns County. Millions of dollars’ worth of work was brought to the region by the company, which primarily employed locals at their facilities. Not everything about their presence was considered positive, however, as increased military aircraft traffic in and out of St. Augustine’s airfield once more meant a significant increase in noise. Some locals were so displeased by aircraft coming in to Grumman’s facilities for service that they submitted letters to the editor of the St. Augustine Record complaining about the noise.
Despite some financial ups and downs as the U.S. defense industry shrank with the end of the Cold War, Grumman remained one of the largest employers in St. Johns County for a number of years, continuing to drawn in government contracts for aircraft. As is clear today, though, noise and economic turbulence was not enough to drive the industry away, as Grumman remains at the airport, though under a slightly different name. In 1994, Grumman was purchased by another defense company, Northrop, becoming Northrop Grumman, which it remains today. Since this 1994 merger, Northrop Grumman has remained a staple of St. Augustine’s airport, continuing aircraft upkeep and maintenance for the United States Armed Forces.
Written by: Robert Covert, Special Collections Manager & Editor-in-Chief
Sources Consulted:
Northeast Florida Regional Airport- St. Johns County Airport Authority- Airport History. Accessed February 13, 2025. https://www.flynf.com/p10-Airport-History.aspx
Mutza, Wayne. Gunships: The Story of Spooky, Shadow, Stinger, and Spectre. North Branch, MN: Specialty Press, 2009.
Vertical File Collection, Aviation, Airports: First and Second, 1930-1940
“New Airport Site is Given CW A Approval,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), December 29, 1933.
“WPA Project to Improve Local Airport Approved,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), February 16, 1938.
Joseph Grubbs. “Aviation in St. Augustine- Past and Present,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), September 12, 1993.
Susan Parker. “When Flight Arrived Here,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), March 4, 2007.
Vertical File Collection, Industries, Aircraft: Fairchild
Harvey Lopez. “Agreement is Signed to Locate Fairchild Aircraft Plant Here,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), June 18, 1954.
Margaret Pitts. “Fairchild Facility Brings Big Payroll to Community,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), July 14, 1957.
“Fairchild Industries Will Leave Old City,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), September 14, 1976.
Tom King. “Fairchild Facility to be Developed as Industrial Park,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), February 25-26, 1978.
Jackie Feagin. “Grumman, Fairchild in Talks,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), October 31, 1985.
Lory Pounder. “$2 per hour, 12-hour days and a chimp at the door,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), October 2, 2005.
Vertical File Collection, Industries, Aircraft: Grumman, Clippings 1980-1989
Jackie Feagin. “Grumman Aerospace to Locate Facility Here,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), June 17, 1980.
Cindy Donovan. “Grumman Adds $25 Million to Economy in 3 Years,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), July 20, 1983.
Doug Shaver. “Grumman: The Sound of Prosperity,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), November 17, 1984.
Betty Greig. “Letter to the Editor,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), November 24, 1984.
“Grumman Gets Pact to Work on Navy Jets,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), March 27, 1985.
Jackie Feagin. “Grumman Begins Work on New A-6E Contract,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), May 16, 1985.
Mark R. Miller. “St. Augustine has a Winner in Grumman The Florida Times Union (Jacksonville, FL), May 10, 1987.
“Grumman Wins $3M Contract,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), August 6, 1988.
Vertical File Collection, Industries, Aircraft: Grumman, Clippings 1990-1999
John Longwell. “E2-C Contract for Grumman,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), September 30, 1994.
“Grumman Wins F-14 Contract Worth $8 Million,” The St. Augustine Record (St. Augustine, FL), July 15, 1999.