by Sharon D. Dillon

The Williamsburg-Jamestown Airport’s story is one of struggle and triumph. It all began in 1967 when Larry Waltrip first asked his parents, Dudley and Mary Waltrip, who owned a construction company, to take their bulldozers and carve a little airstrip on their 200 acres of clay off of Lake Powell Road so he could learn to fly. Larry, his father Dudley C., and his brother Dudley S. (Timmy), began to do just that – carve the runway with their bulldozers. In the middle of all this, friends told them “You have to get permits from the State and the FAA to build and operate an airport”. This they did, and on July 10, 1969 the senior Waltrips did receive permission to establish and operate the Jamestown Airport by both the State and the FAA. Ironically, Larry did get his private certificate in 1970, but he did his flying at Fort Eustis since he was a member of the Virginia Air National Guard.

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JGG - A 35 Year History.pdf