The road that encircles the Quad Cities International Airport (QCIA) has been renamed for aviation pioneer George Nathan Kirk, the WWII flying ace and visionary first manager of the then Quad City Airport who left an enduring mark on the modern-day MLI.
Signs have been installed rechristening the old 69th Avenue as the new George Kirk Drive to salute the decorated WWII fighter pilot who grew up in Moline and later became the manager of the Moline airport in 1954, a QCIA news release said.
During Mr. Kirk’s nearly three-decades of leadership there, the release said, the young airport saw exponential growth. That included construction of a new terminal, the addition of a two-mile runway, development of an industrial park and an infrastructure expansion that helped shape the airport as a regional economic engine.
“George Kirk was more than just our first airport manager; he was a visionary leader whose fingerprints are still on this airport today,” QCIA Executive Director Benjamin Leischner said in the Tuesday, July 29, release.
“I had the honor of speaking with George on his 100th birthday,” he added. “Even then, he remained deeply engaged, asking thoughtful questions about the airport’s direction and progress. It’s only fitting that the road circling the airport now carries the name of the man who helped lay its foundation.”
The newly renamed George Kirk Drive honors not just his name, but a standard of excellence, vision and dedication to community and country, the QCIA said.
Artifacts donated by the Kirk family, which includes his twin sons and their families, will also be incorporated into the new Moline airport terminal design as part of MLI’s major ongoing transformation through Project Gateway, the QCIA said.
Hall of Fame leader
Mr. Kirk’s local roots run deep. Though he retired to Corpus Christi, Texas, where he died in January of 2023 at the age of 101, he made frequent trips back to the place where he had made his indelible mark through the Moline airport that later became the QCIA.
Mr. Kirk was a Moline High School graduate and now is a member of its Hall of Fame. He attended the University of Iowa for three years before joining the U.S. Navy to begin his fighter pilot training at the start of World War II, according to his Jan. 13, 2023, obituary.
He served with distinction, flying 78 combat missions and earning seven aerial victories for which he was awarded two Distinguished Flying Crosses, three Navy Air Medals and a Congressional Gold Medal. He also is a member of the Military Aviation Hall of Fame of Illinois. Most recently, in November 2022 he was inducted into the Commemorative Air Force – Third Coast Squadron Hall of Fame, his obituary said.
In addition to his contributions to the nation’s war effort and the Moline Airport, the pioneering aviation leader also left a lasting legacy on the industry he served, according to Mr. Leischner. That included serving as the first president of the Great Lakes Chapter of the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE) and national president of AAAE in 1976.
He helped launch its professional accreditation program and became the first AAAE member to achieve formal accreditation. It is now the gold standard for airport professionals across the nation, the airport said.
Still connected to QC
Mr. Kirk retired from the Quad City Airport in 1983 to pursue his passion for traveling, golf, hunting and fishing, according to his obituary with Trimble Funeral Home & Crematory. He and his wife of 61 years, Virginia “Ginny” Kirk, made their home in Corpus Christi, Texas, where she died in May 2004. Mrs. Kirk was a Quad Cities real estate agent until she retired in 1983 along with her husband. The Kirks are buried in the Rock Island National Cemetery on Arsenal Island, where they were long-time members of the Rock Island Arsenal Golf Club.
The couple, and later Mr. Kirk, also made frequent visits back to the Quad Cities over the years. And he remained connected to QCIA, Mr. Leischner wrote in a May 27, 2021, “From the Director’s Desk” blog post when Mr. Kirk was celebrating his 100th birthday.
“We posted a birthday message to him on our Facebook page and it was awesome to see so many community members offer their best wishes,” he said then. “Some former commissioners and employees also shared how much they loved working for and with George.”
