Fairbanks International Airport
{{Short description|Airport in Fairbanks, Alaska, USA}}
{{Infobox airport
| name = Fairbanks International Airport
| image = Fairbanks International Airport Logo.png
| image-width = 150
| image2 = File:Fairbanks International Airport terminal entrance (Quintin Soloviev).jpg
| image2-width = 250
| IATA = FAI
| ICAO = PAFA
| FAA = FAI
| type = Public
| owner = State of Alaska DOT&PF
| operator =
| city-served = Fairbanks, Alaska
| location = South Van Horn, Alaska{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/DC20BLK/st02_ak/place/p0272230_south_van_horn/DC20BLK_P0272230.pdf|title=2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: South Van Horn CDP, AK|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|accessdate=2023-07-01}}
| hub =
| elevation-f = 439
| elevation-m = 134
| website = {{URL|https://dot.alaska.gov/faiiap/}}
| coordinates = {{coord|64|48|54|N|147|51|23|W|region:US-AK_scale:40000|display=inline,title}}
| image_map = PAFA Airport Diagram.svg
| image_mapsize = 200
| image_map_caption = FAA airport diagram
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-zoom = 9
| r1-number = 2L/20R
| r1-length-f = 11,800
| r1-length-m = 3,597
| r1-surface = Asphalt
| r2-number = 2R/20L
| r2-length-f = 4,510
| r2-length-m = 1,375
| r2-surface = Asphalt
| r3-number = 2/20
| r3-length-f = 2,900
| r3-length-m = 884
| r3-surface = Gravel/Ski Strip
| r4-number = 2W/20W
| r4-length-f = 5,400
| r4-length-m = 1,646
| r4-surface = Water/Winter Ski Strip
| stat-year = 2024
| stat1-header = Passengers
| stat1-data = 1,128,000
| stat2-header = Scheduled departures
| stat2-data = 15,093
| stat3-header = Total cargo
| stat3-data = 36,000,000 lbs.
| footnotes = Source: Federal Aviation Administration{{FAA-airport|ID=FAI|use=PU|own=PU|site=50219.*A}}. Federal Aviation Administration. effective February 20, 2025.
Source: Bureau of Transportation
}}
Fairbanks International Airport {{Airport codes|FAI|PAFA|FAI}} is a state-owned public-use airport located three miles (5 km) southwest of the central business district of Fairbanks, a city in the Fairbanks North Star Borough of the United States state of Alaska. It is located in the South Van Horn census-designated place. Fairbanks was the smallest city in the United States with regularly scheduled non-stop international flights, as Condor offered weekly flights to Frankfurt during the summer tourist season.[http://www.gov.state.ak.us/trade/International_Transporation.pdf International Transportation Fact Sheet] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080708201007/http://www.gov.state.ak.us/trade/International_Transporation.pdf |date=2008-07-08 }}, State of Alaska Governor's Office of International Trade Air North is now the only international airline to offer scheduled charters with flights (to Canada).
History
=Early years=
The airport opened in 1951 and took over existing scheduled airline traffic to Fairbanks, which had previously used Ladd Army Airfield.{{cite web |title=History of Fairbanks International Airport |work=Fairbanks International Airport |publisher=Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities |date=2011 |url=http://dot.alaska.gov/faiiap/history.shtml |access-date=2013-10-02 |archive-date=2013-10-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004213801/http://dot.alaska.gov/faiiap/history.shtml |url-status=live }} Alaska Airlines used Fairbanks as its main hub in the 1950s, with service to Seattle and Portland as well as intrastate service to Anchorage, Nome and other destinations.{{cite web |title=Alaska Airlines system schedule |work=Timetable Images |date=June 7, 1953 |url=http://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/complete/as53/as53-1.jpg |access-date=October 2, 2013 |archive-date=October 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004213830/http://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/complete/as53/as53-1.jpg |url-status=live }} By 1967, however, the airline shifted its Alaska hub to Anchorage; its Anchorage-Fairbanks service continues to this day.{{cite web |title=Alaska Airlines system schedule |work=Timetable Images |date=June 1, 1967 |url=http://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/complete/as67/as67-1.jpg |access-date=October 2, 2013 |archive-date=October 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004215118/http://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/complete/as67/as67-1.jpg |url-status=live }} In the mid-1970s, following the development of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, Alaska Airlines and Braniff International offered "interchange service" between Fairbanks and Houston via Anchorage, Seattle and Dallas.{{cite web |title=Alaska Airlines System Wide Routes |work=Departed Flights |date=February 1, 1975 |url=http://www.departedflights.com/AS020175.html |access-date=October 2, 2013 |archive-date=October 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004215519/http://www.departedflights.com/AS020175.html |url-status=live }} In 1982, following airline deregulation, Alaska Airlines and American Airlines began a similar interchange service using Boeing 727s.{{cite web|title=History of American Airlines |publisher=American Airlines |date=June 2015 |url=http://www.aa.com/i18n/amrcorp/corporateInformation/facts/history.jsp |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120526202629/http://www.aa.com/i18n/amrcorp/corporateInformation/facts/history.jsp |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-05-26 }}
Pan American World Airways had also served Fairbanks since 1932. The station was originally opened after the acquisition of Pacific International Airways and used for short-haul services to Juneau, Seattle, Ketchikan, Whitehorse and other destinations.{{cite news |title=Pan Am to stop Alaska flights, closes chapter in aviation history |work=Ellensburg Daily Record |date=September 19, 1978 |agency=UPI |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6YRUAAAAIBAJ&sjid=MI8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5757%2C5583123 |archive-date=April 21, 2016 |access-date=June 16, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160421031414/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6YRUAAAAIBAJ&sjid=MI8DAAAAIBAJ&pg=5757,5583123 |url-status=live }} Pan Am intended to use Fairbanks as a stop for service to Asia as early as 1931, but initial difficulty in negotiating landing rights with the Soviet Union, followed by the outbreak of World War II, delayed these plans until decades later. Pan Am service to Fairbanks continued through the opening of FAI until 1965, when the Civil Aeronautics Board terminated Pan Am's rights to serve Alaska.{{cite news |title=Pan Am: Once Ketchikan's Link to the Outside World |first=Dave |last=Kiffer |work=Stories in the News |date=December 29, 2006 |location=Ketchikan, Alaska |url=http://www.sitnews.us/Kiffer/PanAm/122906_Pan_Am_Airways.html |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |access-date=October 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924102241/http://www.sitnews.us/Kiffer/PanAm/122906_Pan_Am_Airways.html |url-status=live }}
Pan American World Airways eventually used Fairbanks as a stopover for transpacific service from New York and Seattle to Tokyo starting in September 1969.{{cite news |title=Pan Am introduces the first nonstop service from Fairbanks to Tokyo |work=Fairbanks Daily News-Miner |date=August 5, 1969 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/11889938/ |archive-date=May 12, 2016 |access-date=July 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160512183856/https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/11889938/ |url-status=live }}{{cite map |title=Pan Am route map |work=Departed Flights |date=February 1, 1972 |url=http://www.departedflights.com/PA020172.html}}{{cite map |title=Pan Am World Routes |work=Departed Flights |date=April 29, 1973 |url=http://www.departedflights.com/PA042973.html |access-date=October 2, 2013 |archive-date=May 22, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140522123501/http://www.departedflights.com/PA042973.html |url-status=live }} In 1974, Pan Am agreed to transfer its Fairbanks-Seattle service to Western Airlines, and requested that the CAB allow its New York-Tokyo service to be suspended from April 1975.{{cite news |title=Pan Am route sale to Western okayed by CAB |work=Eugene Register-Guard |date=February 14, 1975 |agency=Associated Press |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=nqNVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ldkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5112%2C3245004}} Other carriers such as Japan Airlines and Korean Air began to use Fairbanks as a technical stop for transpacific cargo flights in the late 1970s.
=Development since the 2000s=
Condor started a seasonal route to Frankfurt in May 2001. The inbound flight stopped in Whitehorse, Canada, and the outbound one was nonstop.{{cite web | url=https://condor-newsroom.condor.com/en/de/news-article/explore-fairbanks-and-condor-celebrate-15-years-of-seasonal-service-to-fairbanks/ | title=Explore Fairbanks and Condor celebrate 15 Years of Seasonal Service to Fairbanks | work=Condor | date=July 27, 2015 | accessdate=September 6, 2024}} On October 11, 2009, the airport completed a new terminal and began demolishing the old terminal which was built in 1948. The new terminal is built around the modern TSA standards. In addition to architectural design and better security, the main terminal now has six jet-bridges (up from the former five).{{cite web|url=http://www.fai-terminal-project.com/pdf/Terminal_Timeline.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=October 15, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081121182835/http://www.fai-terminal-project.com/pdf/Terminal_Timeline.pdf |archive-date=November 21, 2008 }} The 2,700m2 of custom-unitized curtain wall was designed and supplied by Overgaard Ltd. Hong Kong. The special design incorporates double low-e triple glazing. The new building's footprint is smaller than the old building.
For the 12-month period ending February 28, 2018, the airport had 119,898 aircraft operations, an average of 328 per day: 58% general aviation, 31% air taxi, 9% scheduled commercial, and 2% military. At that time there were 569 aircraft based at this airport: 91% single-engine, 8% multi-engine, <1% jet and <1% helicopter.
Facilities
=Terminal=
The terminal building, situated on the northwest side of the airport, contains eight gates: two for commuter carriers and six for larger carriers.
=Runways=
Fairbanks International Airport covers an area of 3,470 acres (1,404 ha) at an elevation of 439 feet (134 m) above mean sea level. It has four runways:{{cite web|url=https://skyvector.com/airport/FAI/Fairbanks-International-Airport|title=FAI airport data at skyvector.com|website=skyvector.com|access-date=September 12, 2022|archive-date=September 12, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912103415/https://skyvector.com/airport/FAI/Fairbanks-International-Airport|url-status=live}}
- Runway 2L/20R: 11,800 by 150 feet (3,597 x 46 m), surface: asphalt
- Runway 2R/20L: 4,510 by 75 feet (1,375 x 23 m), surface: asphalt
- Runway 2/20: 2,900 by 75 feet (884 x 23 m), surface: gravel/ski strip
- Runway 2W/20W: 5,400 by 100 feet (1,646 x 30 m), surface: water/winter ski strip
Airlines and destinations
=Passenger=
{{Airport destination list | 3rdcoltitle = Refs | 3rdcolunsortable=yes
| Air North | Seasonal charter: Dawson City | {{cite web | url = https://www.flyairnorth.com/flights/flight-schedules | title = Flight Schedules | publisher = Air North | access-date = January 11, 2021 | archive-date = January 11, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210111024311/https://www.flyairnorth.com/flights/flight-schedules | url-status = live }}
| Alaska Airlines | Anchorage, Seattle/Tacoma
Seasonal: Portland (OR) (resumes May 15, 2025){{cite web | url=https://news.alaskaair.com/destinations/new-flights-to-anchorage-from-detroit-and-sacramento/ | title=Alaska Airlines announces new flights to Anchorage from Detroit and Sacramento | date=January 7, 2025}} | {{cite web | title=Route Map | url=https://www.alaskaair.com/route-map/?lid=nav:explore-routeMap&int=AS_NAV_Explore_RouteMap_-prodID:Destinations | access-date=February 11, 2021 | archive-date=March 25, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210325013908/https://www.alaskaair.com/route-map/?lid=nav:explore-routeMap&int=AS_NAV_Explore_RouteMap_-prodID:Destinations | url-status=live }}
| Delta Air Lines | Seattle/Tacoma
Seasonal: Minneapolis/St. Paul, Salt Lake City (resumes June 8, 2025){{cite web|url=https://airlinegeeks.com/2024/11/08/delta-to-resume-two-domestic-routes/|title=Delta to Resume Two Domestic Routes|website=AirlineGeeks|date=November 8, 2024|access-date=November 9, 2024|archive-date=November 9, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241109063108/https://airlinegeeks.com/2024/11/08/delta-to-resume-two-domestic-routes/|url-status=live}} | {{cite web | url = https://www.delta.com/flight-status/search | title = Flight Status & Notifications | publisher = Delta Air Lines | access-date = January 11, 2021 | archive-date = June 30, 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220630062254/https://www.delta.com/flight-status/search | url-status = live }}
| Everts Air | Anaktuvuk Pass, Arctic Village, Eagle, Fort Yukon, Galena, Huslia, Kaktovik/Barter Island, Kaltag, Nulato, Ruby, Venetie | {{cite web |title=Passenger Schedules |url=https://evertsair.com/passenger/schedules |access-date=22 November 2022 |archive-date=26 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926114747/https://evertsair.com/passenger/schedules |url-status=live }}
| United Airlines | Seasonal: Chicago–O'Hare, Denver{{cite web |url= https://ishrionaviation.com/news/united-new-canada-alaska-routes |title= United Airlines Adds New Alaska and Canada Routes |date= January 18, 2024 |accessdate= January 18, 2024 |archive-date= January 18, 2024 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240118215450/https://ishrionaviation.com/news/united-new-canada-alaska-routes |url-status= live }} | {{cite web | url = https://www.united.com/en/us/flightstatus | title = Check flight schedules and notifications | publisher = United Airlines | access-date = January 11, 2021 | archive-date = September 4, 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220904192457/https://www.united.com/en/us/flightstatus | url-status = live }}
| {{nowrap|Warbelow's Air Ventures}} | Beaver, Central, Circle, Manley Hot Springs, Minto, Rampart, Stevens Village | {{cite web | url = https://www.warbelows.com/daily-schedule | title = Scheduled Service | publisher = Warbelow's Air Ventures | access-date = Sep 15, 2022 | archive-date = April 6, 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220406225220/https://www.warbelows.com/daily-schedule | url-status = live }}
| Wright Air Service | Allakaket, Anaktuvuk Pass, Arctic Village, Bettles, Birch Creek, Chalkyitsik, Deadhorse/Prudhoe Bay, Fort Yukon, Galena, Healy Lake,{{Cite web |url=https://www.regulations.gov/document/DOT-OST-1998-3546-0071 |title=Archived copy |access-date=2024-09-02 |archive-date=2024-09-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240902161138/https://www.regulations.gov/document/DOT-OST-1998-3546-0071 |url-status=live }} Hughes, Huslia, Kaktovik/Barter Island, Kaltag, Koyukuk, Lake Minchumina, Nulato, Ruby, Tanana, Venetie | {{cite web | url = http://info.flightmapper.net/airline/WRT/FAI | title = Timetable | publisher = Wright Air Service | access-date = Sep 15, 2022}}
}}
=Cargo=
{{Airport destination list
| Amazon Air | Portland (OR), Spokane{{Cite web|url=https://www.aviationpros.com/airlines/press-release/21242472/amazon-amazon-air-launches-first-air-gateway-in-spokane-washington|title=StackPath|date=15 October 2021|access-date=16 October 2021|archive-date=16 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211016005302/https://www.aviationpros.com/airlines/press-release/21242472/amazon-amazon-air-launches-first-air-gateway-in-spokane-washington|url-status=live}}
}}
Statistics
{{Airport-Statistics|iata=FAI}}
File:Alaska Airlines E175 departing Fairbanks (Quintin Soloviev).jpg aircraft departing Fairbanks in 2021]]
File:Fairbanks_Airport_Interior.jpg
File:FedEx 727 N467FE Fairbanks (Quintin Soloviev).jpg Boeing 727 donated to the University of Alaska Fairbanks]]
| class="wikitable"
|+ Top domestic destinations (July 2023 - June 2024) {{cite web | url = https://www.transtats.bts.gov/airports.asp?20=E&Nv42146=SNV&Nv42146_anzr=Snv4on0x5,%20NX:%20Snv4on0x5%20V06r40n6v10ny&pn44vr4=SNPgf | title = Fairbanks, AK: Fairbanks International (FAI) | publisher = Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA), U.S. Department of Transportation | access-date = September 25, 2024 }} ! Rank ! City ! Passengers ! Carriers |
| 1
| {{Flagicon|Washington (state)}} Seattle/Tacoma, WA | 301,000 | Alaska, Delta |
| 2
| {{Flagicon|Alaska}} Anchorage, AK | 179,000 | Alaska |
| 3
| {{Flagicon|Illinois}} Chicago, IL | 17,000 | United |
| 4
| {{Flagicon|Minnesota}} Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN | 14,000 | Delta |
| 5
| {{Flagicon|Alaska}} Galena, AK | 9,000 | Everts, Wright |
| 6
| {{Flagicon|Alaska}} Fort Yukon, AK | 5,000 | Everts, Wright |
| 7
| {{Flagicon|Alaska}} Anaktuvuk Pass, AK | 3,000 | Everts, Wright |
| 8
| {{Flagicon|Colorado}} Denver, CO | 2,000 | United |
| 8
| {{Flagicon|Alaska}} Huslia, AK | 2,000 | Everts, Wright |
| 8
| {{Flagicon|Alaska}} Arctic Village, AK | 2,000 | Everts, Wright |
=Annual traffic=
{{Airport-Statistics|iata=FAI}}
Accidents and incidents
- On December 30, 1951, Transocean Air Lines Flight 501, a Curtiss C-46 Commando, a cargo flight, crashed on approach to FAI due to not following radio procedures and spatial disorientation. All four occupants were killed. The wreckage was found on January 3, 1952.{{ASN accident|title=N68963|id=19511230-0|access-date=September 12, 2022}}
- On February 16, 1975, a Pacific Alaska Airlines DC-6, a cargo flight, crashed attempting to return to Fairbanks Int'l Airport. Three engines lost power after takeoff from runway 10 and crashed 2 km short of runway 19 attempting to return to the airport possibly due to fuel contamination. All three occupants were killed.{{ASN accident|id=19750216-0|accessdate=October 29, 2020| title=N77DG}}
- On February 28, 1994, during takeoff for a ferry flight to Miami, a Lockheed L-1011-1 Tristar of Rich International Airways (registered N303EA) experienced a mechanical power loss on the number 3 and number 1 engines and an internal fire on the number 1 engine. The takeoff was aborted and during the taxi back, the fire on the number 1 engine was extinguished. None of the 3 occupants on board were injured.{{cite web|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19940228-0|title=Accident description|publisher=Aviation Safety Network|access-date=February 24, 2021|archive-date=March 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210307113754/https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19940228-0|url-status=live}}
- On April 23, 2024, approximately six minutes after takeoff, an Alaska Air Fuel DC-4, (registered N3054V), suffered an engine explosion and crashed along the Tanana River 7 miles southwest of Fairbanks. Two occupants were onboard the plane, both were killed.{{cite web|url=https://asn.flightsafety.org/wikibase/386882|title=Accident description for N3054V at Aviation Safety Network|website=aviationsafetynetwork.org|accessdate=November 26, 2024|archive-date=July 13, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240713162929/https://asn.flightsafety.org/wikibase/386882|url-status=live}}
References
{{Reflist|2}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- [http://www1.dot.state.ak.us/faiiap/ Fairbanks International Airport] (official web site)
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060523000701/http://www.fai-terminal-plan.com/ FAI Terminal Area Development Project]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20090512223142/http://www.alaska.faa.gov/fai/images/TANVLY/FAI-INTL.gif FAA Alaska airport map] (GIF)
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20090114093211/http://www.alaska.faa.gov/fai/images/ARPT_DIAGRAMS/FAI.gif FAA Alaska airport diagram] (GIF)
- {{FAA-diagram|01234|Fairbanks International}}
- {{FAA-procedures|FAI|Fairbanks International}}
{{US-airport2|FAI|PAFA}}
- {{FAA-delay|FAI}}
{{Portal bar|Alaska|Aviation}}
{{Airports in Alaska}}
{{Fairbanks, Alaska}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:1951 establishments in Alaska
Category:Airports established in 1951
Category:Airports in Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska
Category:Economy of Fairbanks, Alaska
Category:Tourist attractions in Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska