Western Nebraska Regional Airport  Western Nebraska Regional Airport (William B. Heilig Field) is three miles east of Scottsbluff, in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska. The airport is owned by the Airport Authority of Scotts Bluff County and is named after William B. Heilig. Known as "Scottsbluff's Mr. Aviation," he was a World War II United States Army Air Force primary flight instructor, a civil flight instructor, and manager of the city's airport. It sees one passenger airline, subsidized by the Essential Air Service program. In 2016, the airport had 4,262 passenger boardings (enplanements), a 17.15% decrease from the 5,144 enplanements in 2015. The airport had 10,608 enplanements in calendar year 2008, 9,221 in 2009 and 9,864 in 2010. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021 categorized it as a "non-primary commercial service" airport. The original airport opened in 1934; it had a hangar, commercial airline connections, air mail service, lighted fields, a weather bureau station, and was a pilot training facility . With the United States entry into World War II Scottsbluff promoted its municipal airport for military/defense purposes. On September 5, 1942 Scottsbluff was selected as one of seven satellite air bases in Nebraska. Twenty-eight farms were vacated so construction could begin at a cost of $5.5 million. The original Scottsbluff Municipal Airport closed to make way for the new airfield; the old airport later became a prisoner of war camp. Construction began on September 7, 1942. A temporary railroad spur was constructed and some of concrete for three runways was poured in forty-five days. There were about 108 buildings on the ground including barracks, mess halls, officers' quarters, warehouses, a hangar, a camouflage instruction building, and a bombsight storage building. The base was occupied as early as 11 October 1942 and was assigned to Second Air Force. Initially, Scottsbluff Army Airfield was a satellite to Casper Army Air Field, Wyoming. The first troops arrived December 4, 1942. The 4190th Army Air Force Base Unit was the host organization at Scottsbluff AAF. The original mission was to train crews of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and Consolidated B-24 Liberators bombers. Crews based at Casper AAF Wyoming final training at Scottsbluff. All training aircraft at the airfield were assigned to the 4190th AAFBU.