Air Force Plant #4

Exhibit Overview

After the airline conference in 1938 and the declaration by President Roosevelt, North Texas began to transform into what it is today, a world leader in aviation and aerospace development and achievements.

Amon Carter, Sr. became a driving force that began with the effort to bring Air Force Plant #4 (Lockheed Martin today) to Fort Worth, the establishment of Tarrant Army Airfield (today’s JRB NAS Fort Worth, get Bell Helicopter here in the 1950s, and much more.

During this period, aviation and aerospace transformed North Texas from a farm and ranch economy and culture to a technology center of some of the most iconic aircraft today, all designed, built, and operated here and worldwide.

From the early 194o’s, over 70,000 aircraft have been built here by Consolitade Vultee, Convair, General Dynamics, Lockheed, Bell, North American, and Vought. The direct economic impact on the region is over 1 trillion dollars.

Today, over 20% of the local population is employed in aviation-related jobs, one of the highest percentages in the US. Military contractors, airlines, and active and reserve military aviation contribute nearly 100 billion dollars to the economy.