Rhodes Air Ranch Airport

The specific reason for closure is not publicly documented. However, as a private airfield owned by an individual (William F. Rhodes), its closure is characteristic of a private owner ceasing flight operations. This is typically due to personal circumstances such as retirement from flying, health reasons, sale of the property, or the economic costs of maintenance. The closure was not the result of a major accident, military conversion, or urban encroachment.

The site is no longer used as an airport. Satellite imagery from the 2020s shows that the physical outline of the turf runway is still clearly visible and appears to be regularly mowed. However, it is now used as a simple field or pasture, fully integrated with the surrounding rural property. A hangar, which was part of the original airport infrastructure, still stands at the northeast end of the former runway, but there is no indication of any ongoing aviation activity.

Rhodes Air Ranch Airport, formerly bearing the FAA identifier GA96, was a private general aviation airfield established sometime between 1980 and 1987. It served as a base for recreational flying for its owner and potentially other local pilots. The facility consisted of a single turf runway, approximately 3,200 feet long and 100 feet wide, oriented roughly 04/22. Operations were limited to light, single-engine aircraft suitable for grass strips, such as Piper Cubs and similar general aviation planes. Its significance was primarily local, providing a private aviation facility in a rural area of Burke County.

There are no known plans or public prospects for reopening Rhodes Air Ranch Airport. The property remains privately owned, and given its long-term closure and current use as a field, a return to aviation service is highly unlikely. Reopening would require a significant investment and a change in intent from the current landowner.