The airport was established in 1942 and used during 1943–44 by the United States Army Air Forces as a contract glider training airfield. It was known at the time as Denton Field. Harte Flying Service provided instruction. It was used primarily by C-47 Skytrains and Waco CG-4 unpowered Gliders. The mission of the school was to train glider pilot students in proficiency in operation of gliders in various types of towed and soaring flight, both day and night, and in servicing of gliders in the field.
It was inactivated in late 1944 with the drawdown of AAFTC's pilot training program. It was then declared surplus and turned over to the Army Corps of Engineers on September 30, 1945. It was eventually discharged to the War Assets Administration (WAA) and became a civil airport in December 1946.
Denton Municipal Airport covers an area of 929 acres (376 ha) at an elevation of 643 feet (196 m) above mean sea level. It has two asphalt paved runways designated 18L,18R/36L,36R which measures 7,002 x 150 feet (2,134 x 46 m) and 5,003 x 75 feet (1,525 x 23 m).[1]
For the 12-month period ending September 30, 2023, the airport had 196,034 aircraft operations, an average of 537 per day. At that time there were 420 aircraft based at the airport: 309 single-engine, 62 multi-engine, 34 jet, and 15 helicopter.[1]
^Manning, Thomas A. (2005), History of Air Education and Training Command, 1942–2002. Office of History and Research, Headquarters, AETC, Randolph AFB, Texas OCLC71006954, 29991467
^Shaw, Frederick J. (2004), Locating Air Force Base Sites, History’s Legacy, Air Force History and Museums Program, United States Air Force, Washington DC. OCLC57007862, 1050653629
