Parafield Airport is on the edge of the residential suburb of Parafield, South Australia, north of the Adelaide city centre and adjacent to the Mawson Lakes campus of the University of South Australia. It is Adelaide's second airport and the third busiest airport in Australia by aircraft movements. Although owned by the Government of Australia, the airport is leased to and managed independently by Parafield Airport Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Adelaide Airport Limited. Parafield was Adelaide's only civil airport until Adelaide Airport was opened in February 1955 and is currently used for small aircraft, pilot training and recreational aviation. The airport is home to the University of South Australia Aviation Academy. The airport hosts a jet fighter museum and historic aircraft displays. The museum now houses an authentic flight worthy Wirraway. There are also multiple flight training schools including the University of South Australia Aviation Academy, FTA (Flight Training Adelaide) formerly known as Australian Aviation College, Bruce Hartwig Flying School, AFTC (Adelaide Flight Training Centre), Aerostar Aviation, and Parafield Flying Centre. Parafield Squadron of the Australian Air League, a national uniformed cadet organisation promoting and encouraging the interest of aviation and flying training in the youth of Australia, is also located at Parafield Airport. History The first powered flight in South Australia was of a Blériot Aéronautique monoplane in 1910, south-west of Salisbury. In the 1920s investigations began into construction of an airport in Adelaide. Land was initially purchased in Albert Park with the aerodrome site becoming the new suburb of Hendon; but within a few years the cost of acquiring sufficient land, neighbouring residential development and the erection of power transmission lines all interfered with airport plans and the Hendon site was effectively abandoned. In 1927, the Commonwealth government purchased of land at Parafield from a family owned farming company for £17,000. The area had been used for fattening sheep on lucerne and other fodder plants. The new airport was expanded in 1942, with the boundary extending west to the Gawler railway line. On 1 October 1927, H. C. "Horrie" Miller was the first to land on the Parafield site, ground preparation was completed on the 17th and flights began on 26 November by the Aero Club of South Australia. The site was officially opened as an airport in August 1929 by Governor-General of Australia Alexander Hore-Ruthven. The control tower opened shortly prior to World War II.