Daytona Beach International Airport

Daytona Beach International Airport is a county-owned airport located three miles southwest of Daytona Beach, next to Daytona International Speedway, in Volusia County, Florida, United States. The airport has 3 runways, a six-gate domestic terminal, and an international terminal. Daytona Beach is the headquarters of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

Before airplanes landed on the beach, automobiles raced. The beach had a smooth, hard, and relatively clean surface for anything with wheels and speed. Pilots soon caught on and used the beach as a runway. Hangars were built later and aircraft service was provided on beach. This former airport is one of only two beach airports that were successful. The other, Old Orchard Beach in Maine, was the starting point for at least five transatlantic flights during the 1920s and 1930s.
The first flight on the beach was in 1906 by Charles K. Hamilton, using Israel Ludlow's glider. The glider was pulled by an automobile and actually took place in Ormond. He went as high as 150 feet on his first try, and 250 feet on the second, before crashing into a flagpole and surviving with a bruised knee.

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