Aug. 5--After many years of limited service to Stanly County from its location to the south side of 24-27 By-Pass in Albemarle, the vision for a new airport to serve the needs of jet aircraft grew wings on May 21, 1971 when the Stanly County Airport Authority was created by the North Carolina General Assembly.

Five dedicated men -- George McManus, Stokes Reeves, Carlton Holt, Pritchard Dennis and Dewey Sides -- served on that first board and settled on a site in Palestine for the new airport.

These five charter board members searched for grants and other funding sources for years and opened bids on May 7, 1975 for the construction of a 3,900-foot runway. Bids ranged from $314,237 to $869,429, with E.D. Geymont, Inc. of Vale, N.C. being the low bidder.

Delays in grant funding pushed the construction start back to October/November 1976; however, during the delay, enough other federal, state and local funds were obtained to extend the runway to the 4,400 feet it opened with in early 1979.

Charles E. Hopkins was hired as the first airport manager in 1979 and the existing terminal was dedicated the same year.

In 1984, current Airport Manager David Griffin was hired to replace Cyril Herlocker, who was retained as a consultant to get Griffin's feet on the ground with managing an airport.