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Partridge has interviewed most of they key players and has done a wonderful job researching the airport's time line from concept to construction to grand opening. In the process he has debunked a lot of the myths and "conspiracy theories" that I've heard from my Greenville friends [and a few Spartanburg friends too] over the years. They constantly berate me about the "heavy-handed" way the Spartanburg delegation pushed the Greer site over a more favorable [and closer to] Greenville site. They also insist that the airport was a Greenville idea and that Spartanburg was against the concept from the beginning.
Below is what I learned:
- Roger Milliken, while believing that a regional airport was critical to the long-term economic viability of the upstate, was not one of the airport's initial visionaries. In fact, the real visionary was legendary aviator and World War I ace Eddie Rickenbacker, who voiced the need for an upstate regional airport while speaking at a luncheon held at Greenville's Poinsett Hotel in 1945.
- Even approaching middle age Milliken was afraid to fly and, before moving his company headquarters from New York to Spartanburg, traveled by train. He was approached by his friend, Greenville businessman Charles Daniel, to champion the airport. Milliken enthusiastically accepted and has been the airport's driving force since.
- Charles Daniel, founder of Greenville's Daniel Construction Company and a key driver behind the airport, too was afraid to fly. Well after his company became a global general contractor did he purchase a company plane in 1956. But like Milliken, he believed that a regional airport was critical to the future of the upstate. In a strange turn of events, Daniel Construction Company lost the bid to build the airport. Greenville's Suitt Construction Company won the bid.
- Milliken's relationship with the city of Greenville was much closer than I thought. Before relocating his company to Spartanburg he stayed in the Poinsett Hotel when he visited his plants, most of them located in Spartanburg County.
- The site eventually chosen for the airport (south of Greer and north of Pelham and yes, mostly in Spartanburg County) was picked by the president of Greenville's Piedmont Engineering, not by a cabal of Spartanburg [or Greenville] industrialists. He chose this site for several reasons: (1) it was 900 feet above sea level with good visibility in all directions, (2) prevailing winds favored the alignment of the proposed runway, (3) the site was mostly rural and required little relocation of people, homes, businesses, and roads, (4) it was approximately halfway between Greenville and Spartanburg, (5) it was adjacent to the new Interstate 85, and (6) there was plenty of land for future expansion.
- Donaldson Air Force Base, by the late 1950's slated to close by the Pentagon, was considered for the airport. In fact, several Greenville business and political leaders aggressively advocated it becoming the new regional airport even after the Greer site was chosen. The airport commission, which included Messrs. Daniel and Milliken, commissioned Leigh Fisher and Associates, a respected San Francisco based airport consulting firm to weigh the pros and cons of the Donaldson site and [re]evaluate the already chosen site south of Greer. Leigh Fisher's report, released in early 1961, strongly endorsed the Greer site and recommended against Donaldson. The Donaldson location, said the report, was obviously not convenient to Spartanburg, would require millions of dollars of infrastructure upgrades, and it's connection to Interstate 85 would not be ideal. Moreover, the air force could take it back over. That would seem unlikely today but in the late 50's and early 60's conflict between the US and the Soviet Union was a real possibility and the air force had taken back control of other former bases during that era.
- Local political and business leaders from both Greenville and Spartanburg enthusiastically supported the regional airport although it could have meant their local airports, which much had been invested, might lose business and eventually close. The manager of Spartanburg's' airport, Buck Moss, told the Spartanburg Herald that he supported the airport and believed that general aviation traffic at his airport would increase. Local media, including both Greenville and Spartanburg newspapers welcomed the new airport and kept their readers updated and informed on construction progress.
- Nowhere in Partridge's book is there mention of a Spartanburg elected official, businessman, or resident questioning the need, the location, or the cost of the airport.
- The level of cooperation between the two cities was remarkable. City, county, and state delegations met often to discuss the project and never was there any serious disagreements. Never before or perhaps since have Greenville and Spartanburg worked together so closely.
- The quality and quantity of airline service was a problem even when the airport opened in 1962. Only Eastern and Southern Airlines served the airport in it's early days and jet service to the "jetport" did not begin until 1965. Airline service has ebbed and flowed over the years but passenger traffic has steadily increased.
- The airport's first director was the director of Greenville's Municipal Airport, a decision supported by the entire airport commission.
- The airport commission, created by state law in 1958, consists of six members. Three from Greenville County, three from Spartanburg County.
Finally, the airport opened on schedule and on budget. And, yours truly attended the dedication ceremonies in 1962 although I was too young to know what to think of it all.
Edited by roads-scholar, 01 March 2010 - 03:12 PM.
I'd like to think that an e-mail I sent them got it changed to "Greenville-Spartanburg." 
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