Bucholz Army Air Field
Bucholz Army Air Field
Bucholz Army Airfield (IATA: KWA, ICAO: PKWA, FAA LID: KWA) is a United States Army airfield located on Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands. Its position is ideal for refueling during trans-Pacific flights, and the airport is available to civilians through Air Marshall Islands and United Airlines, mostly for the Island Hopper. Since the entirety of Kwajalein Atoll is a military base, non-military passengers on commercial flights are transported to and from the neighboring island of Ebeye, the civilian population center of Kwajalein Atoll.
Location
8.720°N, 167.732°E · 3 m s. n. m. (9 ft)
General data
Runways · 1
Lengths and surfaces from the public OurAirports register; open runways only.
Radio frequencies · 1
Tower
Reference frequencies for enthusiasts, from OurAirports (community database, public domain), checked on Oct 16, 2026. They may be outdated or incomplete and do not replace the AIP or current charts: not for navigation. In Europe the published frequency may be an 8.33 kHz channel (e.g., 118.505 for 118.500). In MHz.
History
After the defeat of the Japanese, Kwajalein was developed into a United States military airbase and staging area for further operations by Seabees of the 109th Naval Construction Battalion.
After the war, the United States used Kwajalein as a main command center and preparation base for Operation Crossroads and an extensive series of nuclear tests (comprising a total of 67 blasts) at the Marshalls' atolls of Bikini and Enewetak.
On Memorial Day 1967, Kwajalein Airfield was renamed Bucholz Army Airfield after PFC Fred Henry Bucholz (1907–1944), posthumous recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism in the Battle of Kwajalein.
Passengers on United's Island Hopper service may not disembark the aircraft at Kwajalein unless they have prior authorization from the U.S. government. Photography and videography while at the airport are also restricted.
Airlines operating here · 2
Airlines using it as a main base (hub)
Other airlines with direct routes
Airlines with current passenger routes from here, according to Wikipedia route tables cross-checked from both ends (October 2026).
Photo: United States Army Air Forces · Public domain · view original
Data from OurAirports (public domain) · destinations and airlines from Wikipedia route tables (CC BY-SA, 2026), unless another source is given · profile and photo from Wikidata/Wikimedia Commons (CC0 / CC) · summary and history from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
Cite
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This page was last updated on October 15, 2026
APA
Vuelopedia. (2026, October 15). Bucholz Army Air Field (KWA). Retrieved October 25, 2026, from https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/KWA
MLA
“Bucholz Army Air Field (KWA).” Vuelopedia, Fundación Poderia, 15 Oct. 2026, vuelopedia.org/en/airport/KWA. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.
Chicago
Vuelopedia. “Bucholz Army Air Field (KWA).” Fundación Poderia. Last modified October 15, 2026. https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/KWA.
Harvard
Vuelopedia (2026) Bucholz Army Air Field (KWA). Available at: https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/KWA (Accessed: 25 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{vuelopedia_en_airport_kwa,
author = {{Vuelopedia}},
title = {{Bucholz Army Air Field (KWA)}},
publisher = {Fundación Poderia},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-10-15},
url = {https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/KWA},
howpublished = {\url{https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/KWA}},
urldate = {2026-10-25},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-25}
}Wikipedia
{{cite web |url=https://vuelopedia.org/en/airport/KWA |title=Bucholz Army Air Field (KWA) |website=Vuelopedia |publisher=Fundación Poderia |date=2026-10-15 |access-date=2026-10-25 |language=en}}