Departure
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vs 95%
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Kawaihapai Airfield, formerly Dillingham Airfield, is a general aviation field on the North Shore of Oahu at Mokuleia, Hawaii, built around a single long paved runway and best known today for its glider and skydiving operations. Operated jointly by the U.S. Army and the Hawaii Department of Transportation, it offers a striking VFR destination for simulator pilots, with mountains rising close to one end of the strip and the Pacific just beyond the other.
Kawaihapai Airfield (formerly and still commonly known as Dillingham Airfield) is a general aviation airfield at Mokuleia on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii. It is owned by the U.S. Army and managed by the Hawaii Department of Transportation (HDOT) under a long-term lease, making it a joint military and civil airfield. For a simulator pilot it is a distinctive destination: a single very long hard-surfaced runway hemmed by the Waianae Range on one side and the ocean on the other, with a long-standing role as Oahu's centre for commercial glider towing and skydiving.
The airfield lies on the North Shore of Oahu at Mokuleia, near Waialua, along Farrington Highway. It sits within the general Oahu airspace environment and is a joint-use facility, with the U.S. Army retaining first priority for air-land operations and helicopter night-vision training; military aviation uses the field both day and night.
Kawaihapai Airfield has a single physical runway, 08/26, of hard surface construction, with a length of approximately 7,000 feet (7,019 feet as runway 08 and 7,016 feet as runway 26). Field elevation is 10 feet. There is no ILS approach.
The airfield uses CTAF/UNICOM on 123 MHz. A Honolulu Radio frequency of 122.6 MHz is also listed. A military air-to-air frequency of 23.33 MHz is published for the joint-use military operations at the field. No instrument approach or navaid information is available for the airfield.
No published circuit height, joining procedure or noise-abatement track information is available for Kawaihapai Airfield. Pilots should note that the airfield is a joint military/civil facility, with the U.S. Army having first priority for air-land operations and for helicopter night-vision training, and that military aircraft may be operating both day and night. The airfield is not lighted for general aviation night operations.
The airfield is located on the North Shore of Oahu at Mokuleia, close to Waialua, and runs alongside Farrington Highway, with the Waianae Range rising close to one end of the runway and the Pacific Ocean beyond the other. These features make the field straightforward to identify visually when transiting or approaching the North Shore coastline.
The site has been used as a military installation since the 1920s. The State of Hawaii Department of Transportation began managing the airfield in 1962. The state took a five-year lease from the Army in 1976, followed by a 25-year lease in 1983 for use as a joint Department of Defense and civil airport, then known as Dillingham Airfield. Hangars for fixed-wing aircraft and gliders, bathrooms, and a Unicom Tower/fire station were added between 1985 and 1986. Airport master plans were produced in 1980 and 1993, with an environmental assessment completed in 2000. The 2001 Hawaii Legislature passed Act 276 renaming the airfield Kawaihapai Airfield, after the Hawaiian place name meaning "the carried water", with the change taking effect once the airfield was transferred back to the state by the U.S. Army. In July 2024, Hawaii's Governor, HDOT and U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii signed a new 50-year lease for the airfield, effective from 6 July 2024, securing its continued operation.
Kawaihapai Airfield remains a general aviation airfield managed by HDOT, with the U.S. Army retaining first priority for air-land operations and helicopter night-vision training as part of its continuing joint military and civil use. The single runway is used primarily for commercial glider and skydiving operations, supporting a number of aviation tenants and their employees on Oahu's North Shore. The airfield is not lighted for general aviation night flying. Published general aviation operating hours are 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. daily from 1 April to 30 September, and 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily from 1 October to 31 March.