By 1929 an airport had been established at Burns.[3]
In 1934, the Civil Works Administration awarded $5,000 to build a new airport.[4] In 1942, the City of Burns purchased 680 acres (280 ha) for a new airport.[5] The new airport was built by the Civil Aeronautics Administration at a cost of $570,000, which had two runways of 5,200 feet (1,600 m).[5] During World War II, a squadron of P-38 Lightning were stationed at the Burns Airport.[5]
West Coast DC-3s landed at Burns from 1959 until early 1967.
Burns Municipal Airport covers 825 acres (334 ha) at an elevation of 4,148 feet (1,264 m). It has two runways: 12/30 is 5,101 by 75 feet (1,555 x 23 m) concrete; 3/21 is 4,600 by 60 feet (1,402 x 18 m) concrete.[1] The United States Bureau of Land Management operates a SEAT Base from the airport for fighting wildfires.[7]
In the year ending September 10, 2018, the airport had 8,000 aircraft operations, average 22 per day: 84% general aviation, 15% air taxi, and 1% military. 13 aircraft were then based at the airport: all single-engine.[1]
The airport is home to the Burns Interagency Fire Zone (BIFZ), fire aviation base, supporting initial attack helicopters and single engine air tankers (SEATS).