Sparta Community-Hunter Field
SAR · KSAR · Sparta, Illinois · Randolph County · map
Sparta Community-Hunter Field is a public-use airport owned by Sparta Comm Arpt Authority, 2 miles north of Sparta, Illinois, 538 feet above sea level. It has 2 runways; the longest, 18/36, is 4,002 feet of asphalt. It has fuel (100LL avgas, Jet A) and about 32 general-aviation aircraft based on the field by the FAA's count. The FAA counts about 34,000 takeoffs and landings a year.
Quick answers answers refresh every morning
What is the airport code for Sparta Community-Hunter Field?
Its FAA code is SAR, and its ICAO code is KSAR.
Where is Sparta Community-Hunter Field?
It is 2 miles north of Sparta, Illinois, 538 feet above sea level.
How long is the longest runway at Sparta Community-Hunter Field?
The longest of its 2 runways, 18/36, is 4,002 feet long.
Does Sparta Community-Hunter Field have a control tower?
No, it has no control tower.
What fuel can you buy at Sparta Community-Hunter Field?
The FAA's airport file lists 100LL avgas, Jet A.
Where are the nearest FAA examiners to Sparta Community-Hunter Field?
6 pilot examiners and 15 aviation medical examiners work within 50 nautical miles. See them by name
Weather and planning now, the forecast, warnings, pilot reports, winds aloft, restrictions
Fetching the weather now, the forecast, the warnings in force, pilot reports and the winds aloft for Sparta Community-Hunter Field…
Wind map live wind over the area, from Windy.com
Colours show wind speed, the moving lines its direction; drag the time bar for the coming days. Map and forecast by Windy.com.
The airport facts, runways, radio, fuel and services, the FAA's remarks
The airport
- Codes
- FAA SAR · ICAO KSAR
- Kind
- Airport · open to the public · publicly owned
- Owner
- Sparta Comm Arpt Authority
- Elevation
- 538 feet above sea level
- Control tower
- No control tower
- Attended
- Monday to Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm; Saturday, 8:00 am to 3:00 pm
- Lights
- runway lights see the remarks below; beacon sunset to sunrise
- Fuel and services
- 100LL avgas, Jet A; the services card below
- On the chart
- St Louis sectional
- Magnetic variation
- 1E
Runways 2
For understanding the field, not for navigation.
| Runway | Length × width | Surface | Lights |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18/36 | 4,002 × 75 ft | Asphalt, good | Medium-intensity lights |
| 09/27 | 2,958 × 110 ft | Grass, good |
- Runway 18: PAPI, four lights on the left
- Runway 36: PAPI, four lights on the left
- Runway 27: tree 45 ft high 905 ft from the end
Radio frequencies
| Common traffic advisory (CTAF) · UNICOM | 123.075 | |
| Approach and departure | 125.2 | |
| Sar and aWOS-3PT | 118.375 |
Automated weather (AWOS-3PT), by phone 618-443-3296.
Fuel and services as reported to the FAA
- Fuel
- 100LL avgas, Jet A
- Repairs
- airframe and engine: major repairs
- Parking
- hangars, tie-downs
- Also here
- flight instruction, aircraft rental, aircraft sales
Other fields with jet fuel nearby: Perryville Regional (18 nm southwest), Scott Afb/Midamerica St. Louis Airport (25 nm north), Southern Illinois Airport (31 nm southeast).
The FAA's file records what is sold and done at the field, as the airport manager reports it, not who sells it or the price; fuel sellers (FBOs) are not named in any public file. Airports selling jet fuel in Illinois · avgas.
The FAA's remarks as written in the airport file, spelled out
- Migratory waterfowl northwest of runway 18/36.
- Medium-intensity runway lights runway 18/36 and wind indicator preset on low intst; to incr intst and activate runway end identifier lights runway 18 and taxiway a - the common traffic frequency.
- Self service fuel available 24 hours with credit card.
- Runway 18 markings faded.
- Runway 36 markings faded.
- And 27 marked with white cones.
- Runway 18 PAPI, unusable beyond 7 degrees left of course.
Flights and activity in the air now, the airlines, based aircraft, takeoffs and landings
Activity now checking the volunteer receiver network…
Within ten miles
- Looking…
Arrivals and departures, last hour
- Looking…
From the volunteer receiver network, a few minutes behind at most; aircraft whose owners asked the FAA not to be displayed are left out; no person is named. Open the live map here.
Based aircraft as counted for the FAA, fiscal year 2024
Based aircraft, as a table
| aircraft | |
|---|---|
| single-engine | 30 |
| multi-engine | 1 |
| helicopters | 1 |
The FAA's count is the general-aviation aircraft kept on the field (singles, twins, business jets, helicopters) from its Terminal Area Forecast, the latest year with an actual count; airline fleets are never counted as based anywhere, so a big airline airport shows a small number. The register section below shows how many aircraft are registered to owners in town, a different measure again.
Takeoffs and landings a year about 34,000, the FAA's fiscal year 2024 (October 2023 to September 2024)
Takeoffs and landings, as a table
| a year | |
|---|---|
| air taxi and commuter | 6,000 |
| general aviation, travelling | 15,500 |
| general aviation, local | 10,000 |
| military | 2,500 |
Local flights stay in the traffic pattern or nearby, often practice; travelling flights arrive from or leave for somewhere else. Counts at airports without a tower are the FAA's estimates. How this compares nationally: Airports by the numbers.
Who flies and works here aircraft registered in town, the companies, the examiners nearby
Aircraft registered in Sparta from the FAA register
3 aircraft are registered to owners in Sparta, Illinois: 2 piston singles, 1 piston twin. Not every one of them is based at this airport; the based-aircraft count above is the FAA's figure for this airport alone.
Companies and organisations in town with two or more aircraft:
Individuals are counted, not named (the site's policy at this time). All aircraft registered in Illinois.
Examiners and inspectors nearby designated by the FAA · within 50 nautical miles
6 pilot examiners (the FAA's designated pilot examiners, who give the practical tests for pilot certificates) are based within 50 nautical miles: 6 for private pilot, 6 for commercial and instrument, 4 for airline transport pilot, 6 for flight instructor, 2 for sport pilot; 5 for airplanes, 4 for multi-engine airplanes, 1 for helicopters. Also nearby: 1 sport aviation examiner, 15 aviation medical examiners, 2 mechanic examiners, 1 airworthiness representative (manufacturing), 4 engineering representatives, 1 aircraft dispatcher examiner, 18 training center evaluators, 20 aircrew program designees, 4 training center examiners.
- Adrian Konrad Krupa private pilot, commercial and instrument, airline transport pilot, flight instructor, instructor renewals, ground instructor; airplanes, multi-engine airplanes · SIU Transportation and Education Center · Murphysboro, IL (28 nm) · (618) 203-1349 · [email protected]
- Steven Charles Goetz private pilot, commercial and instrument, airline transport pilot, flight instructor, instrument instructor, sport pilot, instructor renewals, military competency, ground instructor, foreign pilot certificates; airplanes · SIUC Transportation Education Center · Murphysboro, IL (28 nm) · (618) 977-5640 · [email protected]
- Forrest Crawford private pilot, commercial and instrument, flight instructor, instrument instructor, commercial pilot, instructor renewals, military competency, ground instructor; helicopters · Ideal Aviation · Sauget, IL (34 nm) · (765) 401-0777 · [email protected]
- John Scott Saunders private pilot, commercial and instrument, airline transport pilot, flight instructor, instrument instructor, instructor renewals, ground instructor, foreign pilot certificates; airplanes, multi-engine airplanes · Parks College · Cahokia, IL (34 nm) · (314) 308-5875 · [email protected]
- Lindsey Erin Saunders private pilot, commercial and instrument, flight instructor, instrument instructor; airplanes, multi-engine airplanes · Parks College · East Saint Louis, IL (34 nm) · (314) 308-8700 · [email protected]
- David Walter Chilenski private pilot, commercial and instrument, airline transport pilot, flight instructor, sport pilot, instructor renewals, ground instructor; airplanes, multi-engine airplanes · Saint Louis, MO (37 nm) · (314) 221-2190 · [email protected]
All 72 nearby, by kind, with contact details
What each kind does
- DPE: Designated Pilot Examiner: gives the practical tests (checkrides) for pilot certificates and ratings.
- SAE: Sport Aviation Examiner: gives the tests for sport pilot certificates and light-sport aircraft.
- AME: Aviation Medical Examiner: a doctor who issues the medical certificates pilots must hold.
- DME: Designated Mechanic Examiner: tests candidates for the mechanic certificate (airframe and powerplant).
- DAR-F: Designated Airworthiness Representative, manufacturing: issues airworthiness certificates for newly built aircraft and parts.
- DER-T: Designated Engineering Representative: approves engineering data for repairs and alterations on the FAA's behalf.
- DADE: Designated Aircraft Dispatcher Examiner: tests candidates for the dispatcher certificate.
- TCE: Training Center Evaluator: gives tests at a simulator training center.
- APD: Aircrew Program Designee: an airline's own check pilot who gives the FAA's tests to the airline's pilots.
- DCTO-E: Designee at a certificated training organisation.
Designees are listed with the name and contact details the FAA publishes for them on its designee locator (read October 10, 2026): the FAA lists them so that pilots, mechanics and companies can find them. Private individuals are not named, the site's policy at this time. A designee who would rather not appear here can ask us through the contact address on the About page. Each designee is placed at the main public airport of the town the FAA lists (or the nearest one to its zip code), so "nearby" means the town, not an exact address. All examiners by state.
Safety record the NTSB's cases at or near this airport
Accidents and incidents at or near this airport NTSB records · 7 since 1982, 1 fatal
Cases the NTSB recorded with this as the nearest airport, newest first. Each opens the full report in plain English. The country as a whole: Where accidents happen.
Nearby within 30 nautical miles
Connections how this airport links to the rest of the register
- Aircraft registered in Sparta 3 aircraft · 2 piston singles, 1 piston twins
- Agri Business Aviation INC 2 aircraft in town
- NTSB accidents and incidents at or near this airport 7 since 1982 · 1 fatal
- Accidents and incidents in Illinois 2,117 since 1982 · 250 in the last ten years
- Nearby landing places within 30 nautical miles 8 airports, heliports and seaplane bases
- Public-use airports in Illinois 103 landing places
- Illinois 8,055 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/airport/SAR.json.
Facts from the FAA's airport file effective October 29, 2026, written out in plain English; weather from the National Weather Service's aviation weather service; registered aircraft from the FAA register as of October 29, 2026; accidents from the NTSB's public database. Owners are shown only when they are an organisation; no person is named. Check the official sources before a flight: this page is for understanding an airport, not for planning one.